Relic Hunter (Riley Cruz series book 1) by L. A. Cruz

 I totally love this author. And I promise it has nothing to do with the fact that I've lived my whole life close to Kansas City. Although, it is nice to read about an area I'm so familiar with. Riley is such a quirky character. How many stories do you read where the shifter is a goat? And having a goat as a relic hunter is brilliant! I can totally buy that. Riley has a dark mysterious past. And it's also quite tragic. I love Dez. The vampire who's squeamish about blood. But he's a computer hacker who used to own a major company. He's still rich thanks to stocks. And then there's the local Alpha Max. He's your typical broody overprotective Alpha who thinks he has to protect everyone. Riley lived with 4 witches when she came to Kansas City. They made a deal with Max. Riley is on her own living on name brand ramen. And working as a terrible bartender. From the age of 12-16 years old an Alpha named Carl took her after her parents died in a questionable fire. He trained her to be a thief. He used abusive tactics. Riley double crossed him at age 16 and fled to Kansas City. She has made a home here with the witches, Dez, & 2 necromancers. When a demon escapes her friend has to find a way to send it back to hell. Then she is targeted by the demon. He tells her about a demon blade that is going to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. It has magical properties. While she gets Dez to help her steal the dagger Carl has been trying to locate her. There is a hook up scene in here parents. It's not as bad as most in this genre. But I always want parents to be aware. Carl makes his move and Riley is naive enough to not expect a double cross from an old acquaintance. She & Dez barely escape. Then Riley tries to sell the dagger again and she almost dies at the hands of a demon. Max rushes to save her. She loses the dagger to the demon. They regroup in Kansas City and come up with a plan to steal another demon relic that conveniently is being sold by the guy she stood a relic from for Carl and then buried before she ran to Kansas City. Now Max insists on going with her because there are a lot of guards and she could use the muscle. But as usual everything goes wrong. Where Riley goes chaos ensues! You'll love these quirky characters.

Onyx Storm book 3 by Rebecca Yarros

First of all there's a big book hangover after this one folks. Normally, I'd call it a cliffhanger but I'm stunned by this ending. To be fair I thought this was a trio of books though. Again parents there are things in this book I wouldn't let my teenager read. Not until their an adult. I am a big believer in not letting my kids learn about things they shouldn't be doing until they're adults. I'll also probably piss some people off by saying there is mention of same gender couples and leave it at that. I will say it is closed door though. Or I wouldn't have read this series! Now this book is all about how many rules the riot can break in order to save as many lives as possible. First they join with the fliers to integrate with the dragons. Then they take off on an island hopping adventure to locate an army of dragons like Andarna. In order to accomplish this they can't fly as far because the gryphons can't fly as far as dragons. So they have to travel to islands that the gods temples are on. There they become the "entertainment" in the gods sick games. I will warn you we lose some good people in this book. Some that have been with us a long time. Yes I cried a few times. Also, we have to deal with Xaden turning into a venin. And the reactions of what happens when his secret comes out to friends. The last battle is very brutal & may have cost Xaden everything. But I have hope in Aaric and his manifested powers. Plus it appears that Violet put some plans into motion herself at the end of the book. I'm dying to find out the truth but it sounds like it might be another year before that happens.

Wolf Call: A New Dawn book 7 by Rachel M. Raithby

 I have been waiting for this book for so long. But I also understand life happens. I'm glad the author has had some time off for her family. This book can be read as a standalone. Once you read it I would encourage you to go back and start at the beginning of A New Dawn with Winter Wolf. It's one of my favorites! And this series is unique in that two packs actually become one that's briefly explained because it's already happened by the time of this book. Okay, so Zac who was bitten by a wolf was left to fend for himself by his monster of an alpha named Niel. Zac's family immediately seeks help for him. Zac has a sister that's a veterinarian. That helps because she can sedate him & help get him to other wolf shifters. Zac turns out to be a really strong wolf. He could almost be an alpha. Because of that he can choose a different alpha than Niel who turned him. Zac finds a great pack. He is able to work a job flipping hamburgers at a dinner around humans. And he likes protecting the pack. The women, children, & less dominant wolves. Plus you never know when another pack will attack. 

Niel is the worst alpha ever! He hunts humans who he believes need a purpose & he thinks will not be missed by anyone. But he was wrong about Zac & he's wrong about Ashley. Neil has been stalking Ashley & because her mom's in a psych ward her dad is too busy working & visiting his wife to even communicate or stop by the house. He rarely checks to see if she made it home or if there's food in the house. Neil makes his move & attacks Ashley by biting her. He lets her go home so he can watch to see if she can survive the change. Ashley wakes up & runs downstairs on 4paws. She thinks she's going crazy like her mom. Neil and some of his pack kidnap her & take to their pack territory. To confuse her she is blind folded. Held in a cage. She spends most of her time in human form but transforms to sleep. Ashley has no will to live 

Zac is taken off guard when he is ambushed by Neil when he's supposed to be protecting a friend's wolf cub. In order to save them he goes with him willingly. But Neil holds grudges so he kidnaps the mom & wolf cub to get Zac to do as he's told. When they awake in a basement with boarded up windows & I special cages they discover Ashley in her shifted form. Zac is taken with Ashley to numerous locations until they arrive at Neil's compound. Zac soon realizes that Ashley is his mate. He has to protect her. But Ashley hates what she's become & wants nothing to do with this new life. In Neil's pack you fight daily for dominance. If you don't he'll kill you. Can Zac save them both? And what happens when Zac finds out what Neil is really doing?