A Hope for Ranek by Lynnea Lee [Review]

A Hope for Ranek (Tallean Mercenaries #12) by Lynnea Lee
Format: ebook
Source: borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: February 14, 2026

Tallean Mercenaries
1. A Deal for Zeylum
2. A Chance for Arus
3. A Promise for Vore
4. A Claim for Calix
5. A Minx for Ryek & Holden
6. A Captive for Kean
7. A Future for Zharor
8. A Redemption for Ulrek
9. A Prize for Ckzarr
10. A Home for Berus
11. A Mate for Vasek
12. A Hope for Ranek - Kindle

Related Series:
(find all the books in the series on the 1st book review)
Tallean Mates
1. Becoming Mrs. Claws

Lynnea Lee
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

It was supposed to be a simple delivery: get the dragus pup to his new owner, collect the credits, and go home. Instead, Commander Chaos and I end up crammed in an escape pod hurtling through space.

We land in the middle of a bog and start sinking… immediately. And to make things worse, giant pterodactyl creatures descend from the sky looking for a snack. FML.

I’m about to give up hope when an alien mercenary charges in, weapons blazing, to rescue us from certain doom. Ranek is dangerous, intimidating, and his devilish grin turns my knees to jelly. He’s also my only chance at surviving this alien planet.

Can I trust this stranger who looks at me like I’m his favorite dessert? Or will escaping with him mean trading one danger for another and risking my heart along the way?

Thoughts on A Hope for Ranek: Maya is having a rough day, but Ranek is just getting back on his feet after a rough decade. To be fair, Maya's rough day (which is longer than a day, but she was knocked out for part of that time thanks to emergency procedures in the escape pod) ends with her sinking in a smelly bog. While trying to hold onto the dragus pup she's in charge of. While pterodactyl-like creatures hone in on their location. I'm going to say that Maya wins this round of the bad time game.

BUT...Ranek appears at the right moment to save her and Commander Chaos from certain death. He's hunky and has a place for them to ride out the dangerous creatures that come out at night and (to be blunt) Maya doesn't have a lot of options. So she goes with him. And the more time she spends with him, the more she likes what she sees. He's kind, Commander Chaos seems to like him, and he's a whole lot of Tallean male.

As for Ranek, he has some protective feelings about Maya, but he doesn't think he can ever have a mate bond again since, you know, he's already had one. Sure, it was a mess of a bond, but it was still a bond. But there's a whole lot he likes about Maya and those protective instincts are going into overdrive around her.

An abandoned mining station, a steamy encounter in the baths, some really nasty pirates, a male who doesn't dare dream he might have a bond, and a lady who likes the big Tallean even without the bond. *thumbs up*

Enter the Nightmare by Jayne Castle [Review]

Enter the Nightmare (Harmony #18) by Jayne Castle
Format: ebook
Source: provided through NetGalley
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: January 1, 2026

Harmony
0.5. Bridal Jitters
1. After Dark
2. After Glow
3. Ghost Hunter
4. Silver Master
5. Dark Light
6. Obsidian Prey
7. Midnight Crystal
8. Canyons of Night
9. The Lost Night
10. Deception Cove
11. The Hot Zone
12. Siren's Call
13. Illusion Town
14. Guild Boss
15. Sweetwater and the Witch
16. People in Glass Houses
17. It Takes a Psychic
18. Enter the Nightmare - Hardcover | Kindle

Jayne Castle (AKA Jayne Ann Krentz)
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Alice Radstone should have known not to return. Her life before the Hotel of Dreams had been the perfectly cloistered world of a teacher at the Ballantine Academy. When the death of her mentor forced her out, she was left to reinvent herself in the big city. Since then, things have not gone well. Ten months ago, after her first trip to the hotel, she woke up in the locked ward of a hospital for the criminally insane, told that she had murdered her husband on their wedding night. She has no memory of the husband or the wedding but after escaping the asylum, one thing is certain—she is never going back.

Unfortunately, Alice’s second reinvented life is also deteriorating rapidly, which is why she finds herself once again at the Hotel of Dreams—this time hiding in the shadows of her room, a dead body in the shower, and two men wearing masks creeping toward the bed to kidnap her. Again.

When the enigmatic and decidedly dangerous Owen March shows up, claiming he’s there to rescue her, she has no choice but to accept his offer—and hope that he doesn’t intend to kidnap her, too.

With Alice and now Owen in the killer’s sights, time is running out. Alice and Owen must trust each other and the electric passion between them if they are to make it out of this hotel alive.

Thoughts on Enter the Nightmare: We're back on Harmony and Alice is in a bit of a pickle. Dubbed the Deranged Bride by the media, Alice doesn't remember getting married OR killing her husband, but she spent several months in an asylum so she knows SOMETHING happened. Now she's back at the hotel where her life was thrown into turmoil ten months before and things are getting even more complicated.

To start with, someone's trying to kidnap her. There's also a dead body in the bathroom and a man claiming he's there's to rescue her. Alice isn't sure she can trust Owen March, but she's sort of out of options.

On Owen's end, he's not a fan of being lied to (or used) and he's determined to help Alice after outing her to some very bad people. Suggesting a marriage of convenience seems like a logical way to protect her from the unscrupulous business man. And if he maybe sort of might have some smitten feelings after all the research he did on her, he'll totally keep that to himself. Totally.

With Alice's dashing dust bunny, these two work on figuring out why someone has it out for her. No lie, the Hotel of Dreams is sort of a bad place for Alice to keep returning to, but it has answers (probably) and Alice and Owen are determined to uncover whatever they need to uncover to keep Alice safe. *thumbs up* all around.

Alien's Bargain by Honey Phillips [Review]

Alien's Bargain (Alien Wolf Tales #6) by Honey Phillips
Format: ebook
Source: borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: February 15, 2026

Alien Wolf Tales
1. Big, Bad Alien
2. Alien Huntsman
3. Alien Charming
4. Cursed Alien
5. Alien Song
6. Alien's Bargain - Paperback | Kindle
7. Alien Awakening
8. Alien Tower

Related Series:
(find all the books in the series on the 1st book review)
How the Aliens Were Won
1. Borgaz

Seven Brides for Seven Alien Brothers
1. Artek

Honey Phillips
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

One lie. One bargain. One debt she can’t escape.

Jessa is the most talented weaver in her village, but when her ruthless uncle claims she can spin legendary goldthread, he traps her in a lie that could cost her everything… including her little sister.

Desperate to save her sister, Jessa flees into forbidden Vultor territory in search of the rarest plant of all. Instead she finds Tarek, a gruff, solitary alien feared by humans and shunned by his own kind.

Tarek has been alone for too long, so when a pretty little human strays into his territory, he can’t resist offering her a bargain—his help in exchange for a promise to be fulfilled later.

What begins as a reluctant deal turns into something far more dangerous, because Tarek is more than he seems. And the price he asks might be her heart. Sometimes love is the most dangerous bargain of all.

Thoughts on Alien's Awakening: Another exiled, lonely Vultor is up to find his special someone and Jessa kind of needs a lot of patience to convince Tarek to let her in. Well, her and her sister. Tarek has convinced himself he's better off alone and that he doesn't deserve companionship, but Jessa and Dani find a way to worm their way into his heart. Eventually. It really does take time and patience on Jessa's end for that to happen.

Jessa is in a tough situation. Her greedy uncle is withholding her sister's much needed medicine unless Jessa falls in line. Unfortunately, the thing he wants her to do is nearly impossible. Even if she COULD do it, it would leave her and her sister at her uncle's mercy going forward. So Jessa takes a leap of faith and heads into the mountains with Dani in the hopes they can figure things out and get more medicine before things become dire.

Tarek has been trying to convince his beast to not get attached to the little human weaver since they helped her before. But it's kind of a lost cause because he's already attached. So when he comes across her and her sister in his mountains during a brutal storm, he does what any borderline obsessed individual would do and takes the two of them to his den to ride out the storm. Soon the three of them are settling into a routine and Tarek and Jessa are making eyes at one another. Covertly, of course.

Until, you know, it's not covert.

A past that eats at an honorable Vultor, an illness that needs his special skills, and a lady who is willing to fight for the things that are important to her. GOOD STUFF!

RtP's Week in Review (06/28/26)

Reading the Paranormal's Week in Review

• Oops! I Summoned a Liderc by Regine Abel [Review] - Demon love!
• Guarded by the Krampus by Cassie Alexander [Review] - Monster love!
• Oops! I Summoned a Metamorphic Monster by Opal Reyne [Review] - Demonic monster love!
• Oops! I Summoned a Demonic Merman by Naomi Lucas [Review] - MORE demonic monster love!
• Oops! I Summoned a Night Demon by Tiffany Roberts [Review] - EVEN MORE demonic monster love!
• Bound to my Demon by X. Callisto [Review] - Instalove demon romance!

Bookish Delights

• Books added to the pile
• The Dragon's Favorite Strays (Fireblood Dragons #11) by Ruby Dixon
• Currently reading
• Knead for Speed by Lindsay Buroker

Bound to My Demon by X. Callisto [Review]

Bound to My Demon (Demon Fated Mates #5) by X. Callisto
Format: ebook
Source: borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: February 12, 2026

Demon Fated Mates
1. Possessed by My Demon
2. Saved by My Demon
3. Deal with My Demon
4. Sacrificed to My Demon
5. Bound to My Demon - Kindle
6. Summoning My Demon
7. Falling for My Demon
8. Snowed In with My Demon

X. Callisto
| Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

I thought I knew heartbreak. Three years with my boyfriend, supporting his dreams, and he repays me by screwing my "best friend". In our bed. On my grandmother's quilt.

Furious, I performed a vengeance ritual from some sketchy grimoire. But when my blood hit the circle, I didn't just summon help—I bound Vernox, a vengeance demon, to me until justice is served.

Now he follows me everywhere in leather and danger, whispering dark promises about what Trevor and Megan deserve. But Vex doesn't just want revenge on them—he wants to destroy everyone who's ever hurt me.

And the way he touches me, claims me, makes me realize I don't want vengeance anymore. I want to be loved properly. Possessively. Forever.

"You bound me to you, baby. That means you're bound to me too."

I summoned a demon for revenge. Instead, I got a hot protector with anger issues and incredible stamina. I'm keeping him.

Thoughts on Bound to My Demon: Lyssa is in a bit of a rageful frame of mind when she performs her ritual and she didn't just end up with a demon who would help her get revenge, but with a demon who is bound to her, can read her like an open book, AND wants to give her all the revenge her heart desires.

Yup, Vernox is there for Lyssa in all the ways her ex wasn't. For all he's a demon, he's devoted, VERY giving, and willing to go to any lengths to make sure she's happy.

Quite frankly, Lyssa definitely traded up when she walked in on her ex and ex-best friend and made the choice to call down a little vengeance on them both.

Oops! I Summoned a Night Demon by Tiffany Roberts [Review]

Oops! I Summoned a Night Demon (Witches Love Monsters #4) by Tiffany Roberts
Format: ebook
Source: borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: February 17, 2026

Witches Love Monsters
1. Oops! I Summoned a Liderc
2. Oops! I Summoned a Metamorphic Monster
3. Oops! I Summoned a Demonic Merman
4. Oops! I Summoned a Night Demon - Paperback | Kindle

Tiffany Roberts
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

When she wished upon a star, she never thought the universe would manifest him.

Ember has always worked hard to achieve her goals. Move to the city? Check. Start her own boutique? Check. Buy a Victorian house? Check. Find love?

Absolute failure, and it’s not for lack of trying.

So she does something she hasn’t tried yet—she makes a wish upon a star. It’s just a silly, hopeful gesture. What can it hurt?

With a literal bump in the night, Nyte appears. He’s ethereally gorgeous, with dark skin that glitters like the starry sky, wings formed of otherworldly shadow, and eyes that glow with all the beauty, depth, and mystery of the universe. The moment Ember sees him, she can’t help but think her wish has come true.

What does it matter that he’s not human? He’s her monster-loving fantasy brought to life.

The problem? He had his heart stolen by his freaking ex.

Thanks to the spell that inadvertently summoned him, she has a month to prove that she’s the one for him. That she’s worthy of his love.

But is his wounded heart able to give it?

Thoughts on Oops! I Summoned a Night Demon: As far as Ember knows, she's not a witch. Yet she managed (with a little help from a mischievous, sweet shooting star) to summon a demon who is grumpy, a little heartsore (to say the least), and incredibly sexy.

I might be understating things when I say Nyte is not thrilled to have been summoned. His trust was shattered by his last relationship and he has a hard time wrapping his head around the idea that Ember is not there to take from him. She's genuinely kind and does what she can to make their month together as painless as possible.

On Ember's end, Nyte is everything she'd wished for in a romantic partner. But since he's only with her thanks to the summoning, she tries to ignore his sexiness and treat him like a person. A person with wings and horns and the endless night beneath his skin, but a person all the same.

A little (okay, not so little) nudge from Nyte's found family, a nasty succubus who doesn't know when to quit, a couple of steamy kisses, a night demon who has to shake himself out of his despair, and a lady who wants a forever kind of love and might just have found the perfect male to share it with.

Oops! I Summoned a Demonic Merman by Naomi Lucas [Review]

Oops! I Summoned a Demonic Merman (Witches Love Monsters #3) by Naomi Lucas
Format: ebook
Source: borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: February 16, 2026

Witches Love Monsters
1. Oops! I Summoned a Liderc
2. Oops! I Summoned a Metamorphic Monster
3. Oops! I Summoned a Demonic Merman - Paperback | Kindle
4. Oops! I Summoned a Night Demon

Naomi Lucas
|Website | Amazon|

Synopsis (Goodreads):

One moment I’m within my domain in the abyss, and the next…
She’s in front of me with a steam cleaner in her hand.
Her name is Grace… but I’m in no threat of falling, feeling hexed…
With her, I’ve ascended, on land.

Now she wants to get rid of me, saying I’m an accident.
Unfortunately for her, I have no intention of leaving without a taste.
I plan to stay until she’s flustered, wet, and bent out of shape.
Then maybe I’ll give her a reprieve, after I’ve had my fill of the chase.

-Sepher, Duke of Hell

Thoughts on Oops! I Summoned a Demonic Merman: Grace was only trying to clean up her parent's rental when she triggered the summoning circle left behind by the last renters and suddenly she has a roomful of merman. Demonic merman, so be specific. Sepher isn't thrilled to have been summoned, but he's also pretty darn intrigued by the human with the tasty tears and sexy body.

So he does what any self-respecting demon would do and makes a deal with Grace. And in typical demonic fashion, he makes sure the terms are in his favor. To be fair, why should be give up the tasty human treat now that he's found her?

On Grace's end, she's understandably confused on how she accidentally summoned a demonic merman. While she has magic, she shies away from using it after a bad incident years ago and she doesn't quite know what triggers her abilities. Turns out a sexy demon in the bathtub is the answer.

A grumpy demon who is about to find his match in the human realm, a lady who doesn't fit in until she does, and a watery hellscape that's perfect for raising little demonic merkids. Grace and Sepher are worlds apart, but they work!