Warning: Rigid Standards by Laelia West


Warning: Rigid Standards by Laelia West
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short story (62 pages)
Other: M/F
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Silver-spooned Portia Ward is getting her degree to start a life free from her mother’s stipulations. She doesn’t need additional complications. Maybe a casual one-night stand now and then. Nothing intimate, nothing close.

It is in your best interest to speak with prescription free cialis your parents of your intentions. Have you tried non-surgical ED treatment like viagra shipping? Any kind of surgery can upset a normal human being. Often using Kamagra can lead to generic super cialis some side effects which can damage their health as well as intimate relationships. It is a natural herbal treatment sold in a somewhat safe time-released caplet. generico viagra on line The economics major in her history class disagrees. Portia hates Malik on sight: he’s tall, arrogant, and wears sunglasses indoors for no reason. He has a comeback for everything. His clothes don’t quite sit right. And who wears all black in the heat? When he asks her on a date, she’s so irked by his blasé confidence that she agrees.

Then she catches glimpses of Malik’s other side. The one who wants to study music theory. The one who apologizes by baking cheesecake. The one who won’t touch her until she asks. He has one rule: he doesn’t do casual. If Portia wants more, she’ll have to compromise her rigid standards.

Portia knew she was the spoiled rich kid of a powerful CEO mother – but more and more lately she wished her mother actually cared about her and her life. With zero maternal instinct the only person in Portia’s life who cared about her was her best friend, Candice. After yet another emotionless monthly call, Portia goes to the gym to blow off some steam. Well used to many of the entitled, overly confidant men at the gym making the wrong assumptions about her, Portia has no idea why one man in particular – Malik – gets under her skin. She knows he’s completely unsuitable for her, but yet something still draws her to him.

I found this to be an interesting and well-paced story. I was really pleased Portia and Malik verbally sparred for a while before settling together as this helped the quickness of their getting together feel a lot more realistic and relatable to me. I wasn’t sure if Portia’s antagonism toward Malik would sit right with me – she made an awful lot of snap judgments about him that I wasn’t too keen on – but Malik’s smooth and confidant manner balanced Portia’s judgy antagonism pretty well to my mind and I ended up not wanting to beat my head on the desk over her rudeness. I felt at times that Portia’s dislike of Malik was portrayed as a little too strong to make it believable that her dislike of him could be overcome by her physical and sexual attraction him. I mean, why agree to go on a date with a guy you’ve spent almost the entire first half of the book castigating to the reader? There was clearly attraction and chemistry under the annoyance, but I felt this could have been a little better balanced as Portia’s vitriol to Malik appeared stronger than her curiosity or attraction to him.

Once Malik and Portia went on their date I just disconnected my brain, ignored logic and simply relaxed into the story and enjoyed it for what it was – a love/hate style of romance. While I enjoyed the story a lot more once I stopped taking it so seriously, I found the ending to be particularly steamy. I feel it definitely rounded out the story but there was an extremely interesting twist in the last few pages that clearly showed the reader both that there will be a following story and a lot more to come. Readers who want something that definitively stands alone might not be satisfied with this ending with the tease about what’s coming next, but I personally felt it added a whole new aspect to the story and was a little disappointed that the author left it until the last few moments of the story to add this new element in. I feel it could have really made the story a whole lot better and more rounded if this element been added and explored within this story. I feel I would have enjoyed it much more for that but it has certainly whetted my appetite for the next installment.

With interesting – and antagonistic – characters and a really good, steamy sex scene towards the end I feel this short story will hit the right notes for a number of people.

Viper by Marteeka Karland


Viper by Marteeka Karland
Bones MC #4
Publisher: Changeling Press
Genre: Action/Adventure, Contemporary, Holiday
Length: Short Story (97 pages)
Other: M/F
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Reviewed by Dryas

Who knew I’d find my destiny at Christmas? Not me. Or her daddy. Don’t mean I ain’t keeping her.

Darcy: I didn’t run away from a sadistic stepfather and a mother who wouldn’t protect me just to be carted off by some strange man. I fought the son of a bitch. Woulda won, too, except the bastard had help.

Viper’s rough around the edges and some kind of badass biker, so there’s no way this is going to work out well. Unfortunately, he calls to me on a purely sexual level. Makes my heart race and my body melt just looking at me. It doesn’t help he’s actually nice to me. He claims to know my dad. My real dad. Says he’s been sent to bring me back. I have no idea if I believed him or not. Just don’t really have a choice but to go along. At least for now.
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Viper: I tracked the cunning little wench for three fuckin’ days. In the fuckin’ snow. She’s good, too. She survived on her own in a hostile environment with only a little trouble. That alone would make me respect for her, but then she had to go and kick me in the balls. Had I not been on the ground in agony, I’d have been turned on beyond belief. Now, with her safely under my protection, I’ve got to figure out how to keep my hands off her so her father won’t kill my sorry ass. He’s our intel man and one of my best friends, so I don’t want to cause him grief. But I want Darcy. Badly.

It’s Christmas Eve, and there’s an enemy on our doorstep with a unique gift. One that will leave us all with some hard choices — Darcy especially. What unfolds next is something none of us ever planned for.

Viper, one of the hunters for the Bones Motorcycle Club, was sent to the Kentucky woods in search of Data’s daughter, Darcy. Data had been gobsmacked when he learned that he had a daughter. The moment Viper sees Darcy, he is struck by her beauty and then her fierceness and her survival skills. Viper is a man of honor, with a spine of steel, a set of skills that he learned in special forces that he uses to protect his brothers and complete missions. He is a man that thinks of his brothers and family first and the rest of the world next.

Darcy knows that most men are not to be trusted as her mother had horrible taste in men. She is a character who can look after herself and had a hard wall around her heart to keep from getting hurt any worse than she had been. The heat between her and Viper was immediate and he was completely blown over by her beauty. It was rather fun watching him try and fight the attraction between them with no luck.

There is an almost palpable connection between Data and Darcy, she feels safe and knows almost immediately that he will do anything to protect and provide for her. It was such a sweet moment when Data showed her a picture of his sister that had passed long ago from cancer and Darcy could have been her twin.

The club loves, protects, and helps any woman they can. Although they are portrayed as hard and unforgiving to those who cross them there is the other side which one of the women calls them ‘teddy bears.

El Diablo who is a bit of an enigma as it seems like he was one of the top enforcers for the upper echelon of organized crime over the world. He has a daughter, Magenta, who is married to one of the club members, but she does not have a great relationship with him. The club had reached an uneasy truce the last time they met. It is a strange encounter as he brought a ton of food as a Christmas present. It really was a Christmas dinner between two families, the Motorcycle club that El Diablo ran had brought their woman and child to enjoy the feast. To my entire surprise El Diablo had taken the twin sisters, Serlda and Winter under his protection with a man to watch them until they figure out what was going to happen next.

This is a bit of a rushed book, but I did enjoy it, especially with the loving Christmas atmosphere balancing out the horror that Darcy and her sisters had gone through. I did think that the relationship between Viper and Darcy was rather quick and would have enjoyed seeing her giving him more of a chase, but it was fun anyway. So, if you are looking for a short Christmas story with big bad bikers acting like teddy bears towards their women and watching a brand-new member of the family be embraced, you will love this story. You’ll love it more if you also like a little heat with your hot chocolate.

Little Free Library by Naomi Kritzer


Little Free Library by Naomi Kritzer
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (9 pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Upon setting up her Little Free Library, Meigan develops an unexpected friendship with a mysterious book borrower.

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I adored Meigan from the second I met her. She had such a compassionate, sensitive, and kind personality. Even her biggest flaw endeared me to her because of how well it was written and how three-dimensional it made her feel. She was the sort of person who expected everyone to follow the rules, but she also knew how to be graceful when she realized her first impression of those who stepped out of line might not be the most accurate one.

The mysterious book borrower made me smile. At first, Meigan assumed that it was one of her neighbors who was using her Little Free Library so freely, and honestly so did I. Without wandering into spoiler territory, figuring out their true identity was one of the many joys of reading this tale. The little tidbits of information she and the audience uncovered about this character were exciting and made me eager to press forward and keep reading.

Yes, there was a strong resolution in the final scene that wrapped up the most important conflicts. It is also true that after I read it I furiously searched the Internet to see if a sequel was in the works. This is the sort of tale that I’m going to be thinking about for a long time as I wait to see if the author decides to expand this universe. There is certainly plenty of room to for Meigan’s further adventures!

Little Free Library was a brilliant short story that made me yearn for more. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

Bones by Ainsley Cole


Bones by Ainsley Cole
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short story (98 pages)
Other: M/F
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Braedon “Bones” Roberts is used to getting his own way. As leader of Black Dove Security, he runs an efficient and often deadly team of operatives who specialize in keeping the rich and famous safe. There isn’t a situation in the world he can’t tackle and come out on top of…until he meets Witty and smart Doctor Abigail Baker, the lead scientist who’s tasked with discovering the cause of mass bleeding deaths in the Kenyan desert.

Abigail grinds on Bones’ nerves with her forthright honesty, but he can’t keep her out of his mind and his dirty fantasies, and before long, they’re closing in on becoming more than colleagues in a dangerous realm.

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Bones has a decision to make—keep Abigail in Kenya to find out what is causing the disease, or flee from the militia and protect her life.

Either way, he’s playing with fire, and at the center of it all, she’s a woman he’d lay down his life for.

Braedon “Bones” Roberts leads a team of professionals, and while their work is second to none, in his private life Bones has a less than stellar track record. Dr Abigail Baker is determined to get into Kenya and recover some virus samples and have her team returned home safely. Black Dove Security have been recommended to make sure the militia is kept at bay and keep trouble at bay. Only Abigail and Bones hadn’t expected for there to be such chemistry between them, threatening to mess up both their plans.

I enjoyed this fast paced story. Bones’ team is full of characters and clearly the author plans a story for each of them. I was delighted that Bones wasn’t just the leader of the group but was a complicated and multi-layered character that I really enjoyed getting to know over the course of the story. While at first he might have appeared as a playboy it quickly became apparent that there was a lot more to him and I was pleased he proved early on that he deserved to be the leader of their team and didn’t take it for granted. Abigail’s character took me a little longer to warm up to. While smart and sensitive I had mixed feelings about her being so out of her element in Kenya. There were a few really stupid mistakes on her part – like not thinking they’d need a translator in a tiny African village, or just assuming their basic attempts to contain the virus would be just fine and not having any contingencies or back up plan. On the one hand this made Abigail feel more human and fallible to me and I could relate to her better, but I also thought it was deeply stupid and slightly arrogant on her behalf, too.

I enjoyed how there were a number of layers to the story which I felt kept it complicated and interesting – but also kept the pace moving forward quickly. The medical/virus story was well written and I felt it was a solid plotline. There were a few surprises in both Abigail and Bones’ past which kept me on my toes and helped keep the story feel fresh as the focus shifted around. This, coupled with the interesting security team with the group of different characters as well as the sexual chemistry smoldering between Bones and Abigail the story had a good flow and pace and I really enjoyed it. With plenty of action and the delicious back-drop of Kenya added into the mix this is a story I feel should appeal to a wide range of readers.

This is a great story and one I thoroughly enjoyed reading – I’m eagerly looking forward to the second in the series.

He Is Watching by Denise Carbo


He Is Watching by Denise Carbo
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Short story (114 pages)
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Stalked and on the run, Julie Roy’s life is in shambles. An unexpected detour in a quiet Vermont town ignites a surprising and romantic spark with the local furniture maker.

Joe Bascomb’s skill of knowing when to be patient is put to the test when he meets Julie. Her kindness is a gift, yet he senses she is hiding from something or someone.
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When Julie’s determined stalker comes to town, she is ready to pull up stakes—despite her desire to stay. Joe realizes he will have to break down her fear as well as the walls around her tender heart. Can he keep her from running again in order to give their love a chance?

Julie had reported her stalker many times to the police, but while they had tried to find out who he was, it had led them nowhere. When the stalker sends her photos of herself taken unaware while she was relaxing inside her apartment Julie has had enough. Desperate to escape she leaves her life behind and runs. Can she escape and ever find a sense of comfort and safety again?

I found this to be an emotional and well written mystery story. Very quickly I became attached to Julie and sympathized with her plight. While a part of me wished she’d continued to report the photos and harassment from her stalker to the police – so they’d have a record of what had happened, if nothing else – I couldn’t fault her for finally cracking and having enough and running away to try and escape and find some peace. The situation felt a little corny to me as I read it, but it was realistic and all-too-understandable so I couldn’t really fault it.

There were a few parts to the story that just didn’t gel and make sense to me, like the afore-mentioned stage where Julie simply stopped reporting events to the police, or how she withdrew the maximum amount of cash from an ATM so she couldn’t be traced, but then checked into the random hotel she picked from a brochure on impulse with her credit card. It seemed odd to about-face on using her credit card after the space of only a few hours and with a huge wad of cash in her purse. These were small niggles though and while they made me pause and wonder I could over-look them and simply enjoy the story for what it was – an atmospheric and character driven suspense/mystery story, Julie’s character was relatable and someone I could easily empathize with. The plot was strong and well-written and overall I really enjoyed the story.

Readers looking for a hard or really intense thriller/stalker type of story probably won’t find this suits there tastes. While I found the plot deep and realistic, the stalker aspect was only one large part of the plot – not an all-consuming drive that saturates the entire story. Personally, I was pleased that the small town Julie finds herself in, and her very slow-blossoming relationship with Joe, a native to the small town, had a good amount of time and space within the story to flourish. This helped take much of the edge off the thriller/stalker aspect to the story for me and helped me relax and really enjoy both the scenery and characters.

With a strong plot, plenty of thrills, action and a lovely slow-paced romance I found that this story really ticks all the boxes of an excellent mystery/suspense. Recommended.

Wild Thoughts by Delaney Diamond


Wild Thoughts by Delaney Diamond
Publisher: Garden Avenue Press
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (146 pages)
Heat Level: Spicy
Rating: 4.5 stars
Reviewed by Chamomile

He’s an introvert. She’s an extrovert.
He’s celibate. She’s…not.
What could possibly go wrong?

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Lindsay Winthrop’s weekly podcast on sex and dating has garnered thousands of listeners across the country, thanks to experience with a loving fiancé she’s been with for years. Except, her husband-to-be doesn’t exist, and now she’s in a bind. With a book deal on the line, she has to find a man fast, and Malik Brooks might be just the man she’s looking for.

If he knows what’s good for him, he’ll stay away from her…
A few years ago Malik gave up sex and now works hard as a metal sculptor. In doing so, he’s created enough pieces to fill a gallery, and his vow of celibacy has kept him focused. When a major deal falls through, Lindsay makes him an offer he can’t refuse, and all he has to do is pretend to be her fiancé. Sounds easy at first, but after one kiss, he wants more. Then things really get interesting.

From the start, I knew I was in for a fun ride! A fake-relationship is one thing, but these two have a whole lot of…work ahead if they’re going to make this work!

This is the first book by Delaney Diamond I’ve read, and while it’s part of a ‘series’ it read easy enough as a standalone. I enjoyed this Contemporary Romance more than many others I’ve read, so that’s an extra plus, I’ll have to remember to read more of her books in the future.

I loved the main characters Lindsey and Malik early on, and enjoyed watching their relationship, and individual personalities and lifestyles change as they adjusted to the changes happening in their lives. The romance was well done, and definitely steamy, but it was made more intimate by how well her personalities were developed, and the dialogue between them was spot-on!

I highly recommend this one who enjoys caring and fun loving characters, fake-romances, or spicy romances!

Axis Mundi: The Strange Disappearance of John Runyon by Allen T. Grey


Axis Mundi: The Strange Disappearance of John Runyon by Allen T. Grey
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (123 pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Author and researcher Allen T. Grey investigates a remarkable series of paranormal sightings centered on an isolated wooded area in Southeast Oklahoma. What he discovers will challenge your assumptions about the nature of reality.

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One of the things I liked the most about this novella was how sensible the main characters were when faced with something frighting they that couldn’t begin to understand. Of course they were curious about it, but they also had strong senses of self-preservation when it came to how far they were willing to go to investigate it. This is something I’m always thrilled to see.

Expect to think for yourself if you read this. Yes, there were exactly the right amount of clues provided for the audience, but how they fit together was something every reader had the freedom to determine for themselves. I came up with a few different hypotheses myself. While the narrator had a definite opinion abut which one was correct, there was still a lot of wiggle room for other interpretations as well. I appreciated that.

There were some truly creative plot twists, most of which I didn’t see coming in advance in any way despite being well read in both the science fiction and mystery genres. It was delightful to be immersed in a scene only to suddenly be surprised by the direction it took. The fact that this happened more than once has made me determined to read everything else Mr. Grey has written!

I couldn’t stop reading Axis Mundi: The Strange Disappearance of John Runyon until I’d finished it in one setting. This is the perfect thing to pick up if you’re interested in getting lost in a story for a while.

Caught by Her Alphas by Jayce Carter


Caught by Her Alphas by Jayce Carter
Publisher: Totally Entwined
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal
Length Short Story (103 pages)
Other: M/F/M/M, Anal play, Contemporary, Menage, Multiple Partners
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Moonflower

It’ll take all three alphas to catch this omega.

Farrah has done whatever it takes to raise her fifteen-year-old son, Knox, on her own. The boy’s fathers, the three alphas she was best friends with as a teenager, know nothing about him, and she’s never planned on telling them. However, when Knox goes missing, Farrah has no choice but to ask for their help.
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Ryder, Pax and Blake have long carried the guilt of sleeping with Farrah during her heat, afraid that they’d taken advantage of her. When she shows up asking for their help, it’s a second chance they don’t intend to waste.

The four work together to find Knox, but their past—the secrets, the guilt, the regrets—isn’t so easy to resolve. Can they save the child they share and heal old wounds, or will their happily ever after slip away yet again?

This book is about second chances and what to do when you get them. Farrah made her choice long ago, when she was a lot younger and didn’t have as much of an idea about what to do. She didn’t have it easy but she made it work. That’s okay until her son disappears.

This is one of the shorter books in the series but there is still a great story here. I would have preferred it to be a bit longer but that’s just my preference. I loved the relationship between the three alphas together and the three with Farrah.

I wasn’t too sure about the big bad in this one. With it being a novella, it wasn’t completely clear who he was or what he had done, just that he wasn’t ‘nice’. It would have been better if that had been fleshed out a bit more but then the word count may have gone up!

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this quick read. It’s great being in their world, even though none of the other characters from previous books made a showing here. If you are after a quick coffee-break book then I have no hesitation in recommending this one or the series as a whole.

Born to Be Wild by Gloria Jean Hansen


Born to Be Wild by Gloria Jean Hansen
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (83 pages)
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

A story of an unexpected steamy romance that occurred on a remote stretch of the scenic Superior Route of Highway 17 in Northwestern Ontario, Canada between a trucker and a lonely woman seeking a better life for herself.

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The romance was handled beautifully. I loved how respectful Bill, the long-haul trucker, was of Sarah. He went out of his way to make sure that she was comfortable with whatever was happening between them, whether it was something simple like giving her his phone number or more romantic gestures than that. This was exactly how she deserved to be treated after all of the mistreatment she’d known.

It would have been helpful to have more character development in this story. As interested as I was in seeing Sarah escape her abusive home life, I never really felt I got to know her as an individual. I’d be hard-pressed to describe her personality or interests in much detail at all even though she was the protagonist. While I totally understand why someone with her background would need some time to discover who they really are and what they enjoy in life, it sure would have been nice to have more hints about the happy and free person she was trying to become.

I really liked the description of what it was like to share a home with McLaren, Sarah’s abusive ex-partner. While he could have used more character development as well, I could picture exactly what it would be like to be constantly exposed to his mean-spirited comments and controlling behavior. Having this information was critical in order for the audience to understand why she left him so abruptly, so I’m glad it was included in such detail.

Anyone who adores the idea of being surprised by love should check out Born to Be Wild.

Help Wanted: Mafe by Cooper McKenzie


Help Wanted: Mafe by Cooper McKenzie
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (95 pages)
Other: M/F
Rating: 3.5 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Harper Ellis finds it harder and harder to juggle the responsibilities of her growing design business, her five-year-old daughter, Miranda, and everything involved in keeping their household running. During a girls’ night in with her best friend, Harper lists all the qualities she wants in a man-wife. Little does she expect for Brenna to post the ad.

The “Help Wanted: Mafe” advertisement intrigued him and before he knows it, Air Force veteran Foster Michaels finds himself hired for the job of man-wife by dress designer, Harper Ellis, and her five-year-old daughter, Miranda.
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Will Foster be able to take over enough of the household to help Harper meet her deadlines? Will Miranda act out and chase Foster off as she has with previous help? Can Foster come up with a meal comprised entirely of orange foods as requested by the Fairy Princess Miranda?

Harper is struggling to balance her life. Between her energetic, smart five year old daughter, running her own rapidly growing business and keeping her house from looking like it was falling apart she has no time left over for luxuries like sleep. When her best friend starts talking about a mafe – a man-wife – Harper thinks it’s an excellent idea, but she has no idea her friend had actually taken the suggestion and run an add for Harper requesting just this. When Foster Michaels answers the advertisement at first it seems a little too crazy, but Harper is desperate for the help.

Previous to this story I’d not heard of a mafe and was pleased that the author clearly (and early on in the story) explained exactly what it was, a man-wife, responsible and keen to stay at home and cook, clean and help with the children. I liked the idea and found as a plot device it was really strong. I also immediately adored Foster’s character. Financially comfortable and at a loose end after quitting his job as a paramedic and the crazy shift hours just no longer worked for him – or his PTSD after serving in the Air Force – Foster is looking for a challenge and something to keep boredom at bay. While the whole concept of a mafe is outside the box for him, he knows it will certainly keep him busy and retain his attention.

It took me a while to get on board with Foster and Harper’s professional and romantic relationship. I’m not certain whether I just didn’t feel enough chemistry between them, or whether the whole insta-lust coupled with a professional relationship all in the space of a few hours of meeting each other just didn’t work for me. Particularly when they back-tracked the relationship after that first day, but then were intimate again mere hours after deciding to remain platonic. The entire aspect of their relationship (working vs romantic) just felt jumbled, confusing and uncertain to me – the back and forth of sexual to platonic felt weird and uncomfortable to me because Harper kept saying one thing, but then initiating something completely different. I think I just never really felt I understood what she really felt or wanted for herself and in particular from Foster. Despite the fact this story is meant to be a sexy romance I feel it would have been far stronger had the chemistry and attraction been built up from the start and Harper and Foster had given the whole situation more time to evolve more naturally and realistically. I think this would have also sold me a lot more on the chemistry and attraction between the two characters – which I really didn’t feel until almost half way into the story.

The real strength in the story I felt was the characters themselves. Harper in particular was extremely relatable to my mind. Strong, capable, modern and trying to do it all I feel she will really resonate with most readers. Foster, too, is a wonderful character and I adored him right from the outset. Watching him tackle head-on Miranda (Harper’s daughter) in an only-eat-orange-things mood and be a complete success was a highlight and Foster only improved from there. I adored his interactions with Miranda and loved how seamlessly he fit into their home and family.

With a deliciously happy ending and two strong, modern and competent characters there’s a lot to really enjoy in this story. I’m completely sold on the idea of mafe’s and am totally on board with trying more stories like this in the future.