Happy release day and congratulations to author Cassandra Aston on the release of Whispers Among Thorns, the first book in the Deadly Fae duology!
Whispers Among Thorns (Deadly Fae Duology Book 1)
Release Date: June 24th (ebook) & June 25th (print)
Genre: A Dark Fantasy Forbidden Romance
💀 Enemies to Lovers
🌿 Slow Burn
💀 Forbidden
🌿 Age Gap (she’s older)
💀 Morally Grey FMC
🌿 Cinnamon Roll MMC
💀 One Kelpie/One Horse
Quicksilver meets Throne of Glass in a New York City setting, where she’s the centuries old fae and he’s the son of her enemy.
There’s only one rule that truly matters. Never fall in love with a human. Break it and die.
Banished to the human realm, stripped of her magic, and bound by the unjust laws of the Inter-Species Alliance, Sav is forbidden from harming humans… or loving them. Now she’s meant to live quietly, obey the rules, and forget the power that once throbbed beneath her skin.
When the leader of the anti-fae movement destroys her home in an attack on her people, she’s captured and brought to their headquarters. The only thing standing between her and freedom is Jack. Sharp-edged, unafraid, and entirely off-limits, he stirs something in her she thought long buried. Something that makes her question everything she knows.
Darkly gripping and dangerously addictive, Whispers Among Thorns is a story of forbidden love, fractured loyalties, and a girl who was never meant to follow the rules.
We have an absolutely gorgeous cover reveal for you all today! Check out Jeweler to the Blessed by Jillian Witt! You’re going to want to pre-order this one!
Jeweler to the Blessed (Champions of Chaos #1)
Expected Release Date: Aug 19th
Genre: Romantic Fantasy
– Bodyguard romance
– Succubus like mood ring magic
– Meddling goddesses
– Deadly forest
– Touch her and die
In a kingdom where touch drains emotions for power, Emberline masks hers, but when she becomes the key to the Blessed’s magic, her broad-shouldered, irreverent guard could make her feel too much.
His touch would be her undoing.
With a single touch, the ruling Blessed could realize Emberline Arkova is immune to their magic. She’s determined to leave the kingdom in search of answers, because every day she remains is a risk.
But her uncle’s sudden disappearance upends her plans. Thrust into his role as jeweler, she’s gone from avoiding the Blessed to becoming the center of their world. Uniquely able to identify the gems required for their magic, she’s now their most precious resource.
To protect their prize, Hart, a broad-shouldered guard with particular irreverence, is assigned to keep Emberline safe. His motives may be murky at best, but he’s not as loyal to the king as a Blessed should be, and now, putting her trust in him is her best bet to escape without discovery.
Hart may be one of them, but he awakens long-restrained feelings within Emberline. She can’t fall for a Blessed; his touch would expose her secret. But as she unearths the mysteries of magic and politics in the isolated and restless kingdom, Emberline is faced with a choice: flee her fate and hide her feelings—or embrace it and unleash them.
The swoon-worthy tension of From Blood and Ash meets One Dark Window’s unique magic system and rich world-building in this new adult romantasy.
We have a gorgeous new release for Jane Eyre fans! Check out Keeping the Countess, book one in Lille Moore’s new series, Damsels in Disguise!
Keeping the Countess (Damsels in Disguise #1)
Release Date: June 24, 2025
Genre: Historical Romance
A passionate clergyman must overcome his forbidden desire for a scandalous countess to uncover his father’s killer in this historical romantic mystery.
Forbidden romance
Big Jane Eyre energy
He falls first
Mystery & mayhem
All the angst
Victorian gothic vibes
Clergyman hero & heroine with back against the wall
A man obsessed with justice
Reverend Jonah Sinclair survived the deadly streets of London due to divine intervention and two well-trained fists. Determined to bring his father’s killer to justice, he’ll risk his vocation—and his life—for answers. When the notorious Earl of Rochford offers him a position as tutor to his young ward, Jonah accepts, believing the mysterious Ravenglass Hall could lead him to the murderer. But instead, he finds himself drawn to the earl’s abandoned countess, a woman whose fierce strength stirs a forbidden temptation.
A lady with a dangerous secret.
Faith Trenton, Countess of Rochford, is struggling to defend her crumbling estate from an embezzling steward. To keep her enemies at bay, she disguises herself as a man, until Jonah’s arrival threatens to expose her perilous secrets. Despite their irresistible chemistry, she must push him away to keep her home and her family safe.
But when a succession of attacks threatens everything Faith has fought to protect, she’s forced to place her trust in Jonah, and pray he won’t unravel the truth, or her heart.
Helping Faith could sabotage Jonah’s mission. Loving her might cost him everything.
The DAMSELS IN DISGUISE is a new steamy Victorian romance series featuring cunning, courageous heroines, passionate heroes, and copious amounts of intrigue, seduction, and scandal. Perfect for Elizabeth Hoyt and Sarah MacLean fans.
Della Wilde has set aside her dream of moving to Paris to study at the renowned Le Cordon Bleu, choosing instead to support her family torn apart by war. By night, she works at the prestigious Ambrose Café, serving the city’s elite – she feels utterly invisible. Until a chance encounter with rebellious Alice Winters, the daughter of a powerful MP, upends Della’s world.
Alice is a woman caught between duty and desire. She secretly yearns to be an artist but is expected to marry a respectable suitor and raise a family. Della, with her sharp wit and quiet strength, is unlike anyone she has ever known. She makes Alice feel alive. So she draws Della into her orbit – first as a muse for her secret art, then as something infinitely more intimate.
But in a world where reputations are easily shattered, their growing bond is a danger that threatens not only their futures, but those around them. As Alice risks scandal and Della faces the consequences of following her heart, they must will they allow others to choose their path, or dare to forge their own?
Inspired by her childhood fascination with old films which led to a career as a Film Archivist, Carryl’s debut novel The Forgotten Life of Connie Harris is a dual timeline story set against the immersive backdrop of cinema. Originally from the Isle of Wight, Carryl now lives in Devon with her husband, son and a cat called Ditsy who keeps her company while she types.
My thoughts: Set in a time when being openly in a same sex relationship was illegal and dangerous, this follows the lives of two young women, Della and Alice, as they meet, fall in love and risk everything they have.
Della works in the kitchens of the Ambrose, making beautiful cakes and dainty patisserie for the well heeled customers. After a wild birthday party that she made the cake for, she discovers birthday girl Alice asleep under a table in the ballroom. Smuggling her out so as not to draw attention (Alice’s father is an MP) the two women feel a connection.
They’re from different worlds, Alice’s life is whirl of parties and lunches, playing both the wild party girl and the dutiful daughter. Della is the only member of her family currently drawing a wage, the war having taken her father and two eldest brothers. Her mother is prone to bouts of depression and she has three more brothers at home. She can’t risk scandal or losing her job.
But neither woman can deny the spark between them. Unfortunately there are jealous eyes upon them and when things turn ugly, they have to face up to the fact that not everyone is happy for them. They find a true friend in Alice’s family butler, and she learns her parents’ secrets. Can they stay together in the face of opposition that threatens to tear them apart?
Insightful, written with compassion and care, this is a love story that we don’t often see, proof that there have been queer couples hiding in plain sight all along, not just “good friends” but forced to play a terrifying game of hide and seek. Thankfully that has changed in many ways, and women like Alice and Della can love openly.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
We’re thrilled to present the cover for Wicked Onyx, the first book in The Veritas series by Debbie Cassidy!
Wicked Onyx (The Veritas Legacy #1)
Expected Release Date: February 10, 2026
Genre: Dark Academia/ Romantasy
You don’t graduate Nightsbridge Academy—you survive it.
Born into a sorcerer bloodline, cursed, and cut off from my power, I was accustomed to being an outcast. For generations, my bloodline carried the weight of a crime committed by our ancestor. But my mother’s death changed everything. She left a clue that could prove our innocence: an ancient text hidden deep beneath Nightsbridge Academy.
The Academy is a fortress of power, housing the most dangerous incantors and sorcerers, conscripted to keep Horrors and Echoes at bay. And as the last surviving Onyx, I’m owed admission.
My plan is simple—find the book and expose the Imperium as the liars they are.
But I didn’t plan for the whispers that haunt my dreams. Or the complication of feelings I shouldn’t be capable of—stirred by two men bound to the very institution I’ve come to destroy. One sees too much yet says too little. The other is steady, protective, and always in my corner.
I can’t have either.
Yet when I’m in their presence…my curse begins to crack.
If they discover my true purpose, I’m dead.
But some truths are worth dying for.
The Imperium cursed my bloodline. Stripped us of our magic. Branded us as traitors. And now they will pay.
Happy release day to author Poppy L. Roberts! Check out Vessel, a sapphic horrormance you will want to add to the top of your TBR!
Vessel
Publication Date: June 20, 2025
Genre: Sapphic Paranormal Romance/ Horrormance
Cults
Ritual Sacrifice
River Baths
Morally Gray FMCs
Hand Necklaces
Dark Secrets
Forced Proximity
Demons and Dark Magic
The hollow waits.
Harper is lost—drowning in a life that feels hollow, disconnected, and disenchanting. Technology, consumerism, and monotony have drained the world of meaning, leaving her restless and yearning for something real. Then one day in her search for feeling, she stumbles across an obscure online forum whispering about Saint’s Hollow, an off-grid commune hidden deep in the mountains. They promise her a detox from the bog of her overwhelming life and reconnection with herself. They promise belonging.
Desperate for escape, Harper sells everything, erases her old life, and follows the invitation that simply reads: We’ve been waiting for you.
Saint’s Hollow is beautiful, untouched by the decay of modern life. Its people are warm, and its leader, Naamah, is intoxicating. But the deeper Harper sinks into their world, the more her reality fractures. Strangeness seeps into every crevice of life in Saint’s Hollow. Shadowed figures haunt her movements and the darkness whispers back.
As Harper unravels, she faces an impossible choice: fight for her fading humanity or surrender to the darkness that has always been waiting.
Because Saint’s Hollow doesn’t just want her dreams.
CW: This book is intended for adults and may contain graphic or distressing content, including graphic on-page violence, death, gore, and explicit sexual content. A detailed list of content notes can be found at authorpoppyroberts.com.
R&R Book Tours proudly presents the cover for The Frost Witch by Emberly Ash! You can pre-order this gorgeous dark romantasy now!
The Frost Witch (The Covenants of Velora Book 1)
Expected Release Date: August 5, 2025
Genre: Dark Romantasy
Enemies to lovers
Why choose
Witches
MCs bonded against their will
Dragons
Slow-burn spice
Found family
Shifters
Tall/Short MMC/FMC
Deadly trials
Meddling gods
Mental health rep
Forbidden love
Fae
Witches are not born. They are made.
I died alone in a frostbitten forest. It was not heroic. I did not die defending an innocent or hunting to feed my loved ones. I died because I was stupid and cowardly. I died running away. And that would have been the end of my story. Until the witches found me and made me one of their own.
Outcast by her coven more than three hundred years after her resurrection, Koryn faces certain doom. Without her coven’s magic to sustain her, she will wither away to nothing. But earning back their trust means betraying the last living member of her family—the family whose downfall came at Koryn’s own hands.
Offered a bargain she cannot refuse…
Four hundred years ago, the gods sentenced the continent of Velora to death. Now Koryn must make a desperate final bid to save Velora—and herself—by passing each test posed at the Seven Gates. Nothing less will prove her worth to her coven or save her family.
To make matters worse, she finds herself bound against her will to Garrick the Red, a legendary bounty hunter with a secret that makes him not just her rival, but her bitter enemy. She does not need him to protect her—Koryn stands alone.
But when an adolescent dragon appears from the forest and declares herself Koryn’s familar, her understanding of the world begins to shift. Koryn’s choices do not just affect her, but all the residents of a dying, desperate land.
Faced with a devastating choice…
For every gate she conquers, Koryn’s world grows more precarious. A deadly warrior turned bonded protector and forbidden lover. An adolescent dragon entrusted to her care. A powerful male from her past calling in a debt she is not ready to pay. And vengeful gods who demand their due, and force the frost witch to choose—her coven, her love, her dragon… or her soul.
Emberly Ash returns with an all new dark romantasy series perfect for fans of Sadie Kincaid, Carissa Broadbent, and Raven Kennedy. THE FROST WITCH is an epic dark fantasy romance with enemies to lovers, multiple bonded love interests, witches, an adolescent dragon, slow-burn spice, found family, and an expansive world of gods, shifters, and blood magic. The heat builds with each installment in this trilogy—have a cold drink ready. This universe is not for the faint of heart.
Triggers: starvation, dystopian world, prostitution, anxiety, murder, profanity, references to past sexual assault (not MCs), explict sexual content, graphic depictions of death, violence, and torture.
Check out The Last Dragon of Oz, a Wizard of Oz reimagining by Whitney L. Spradling
The Last Dragon of Oz
Release Date: March 3, 2025
Genre: Fantasy/ Why Choose Romance
Why Choose
Fated Mates
Enemies to Lovers
MFMM
Spice
Multi POV
Ace Rep
Disability Rep
Italian Myth/Folklore
Light Mafia Vibes
Baby Dragon
Standalone
HEA
There is no place like home. And sometimes, home isn’t a place at all.
Daciana DeRosa is content to live her pampered life, spoiled by her father. But when she finds a baby dragon in her yard, in a world where magic has long since disappeared, she has no other choice but to team up with three unlikely allies.
Nicolai Morelli, the Tin Man, is from a rival family. He wants nothing to do with Daci, but his ties to Oz are the only way she can get the baby dragon back to its home.
Matteo Rossi, the Scarecrow, goes along for the ride. Always looking for adventure and fun, he doesn’t expect to find himself in such a serious and troubling situation.
Leith Morgan, the Cowardly Lion, keeps everyone at arm’s length. As they journey through Oz, he finds it harder to keep away from Daci.
Their journey to the Emerald City is fraught with adventure, dangers, magic, fate, and a growing connection none of them can ignore. As they travel down the yellow brick road, Daci learns she’s not as in control of her life as she once thought. But fighting fate turns out to be harder than it seems, and it’s a lesson all four of them must learn.
*The Last Dragon of Oz is a Wonderful Wizard of Oz re-imagining. It is a why choose romance, meaning the main character will end up with three men at the end of the book. Please check content warnings as some themes may not be suitable for all ages.
We have another amazing fantasy coming out this week! The Gloom Sundered by Dana C. Brentson! Get it June 17th!
The Gloom Sundered: A Tale of Celuthia
Release Date: June 17, 2023
Genre: Epic Fantasy/ Dystopian/ Why Choose
⚡️Ordinary MCs in a Magical World
⚡️Plus-size FMC
⚡️Golden Retriever MMC
⚡️Friends to Lovers
⚡️Why Choose Spicy Romance
⚡️Political Intrigue
⚡️Magic Storms
The Storm is rising.
The Gloom is destroying Vortheim. These storms of unpredictable magic ravage the continent, swallowing anything they touch. Isalie Wylshard is a Still, an ordinary woman meant to serve the Ambient—the only ones with magic to protect against the Gloom. But Isalie won’t fit into the mold they’ve made for her, choosing instead to follow her best friend as he pursues his dangerous calling, even though he’s never noticed she’s in love with him.
Jentien Themori’s calling is to save people, battling the twisted creatures that emerge from the Gloom. When the opportunity to track these volatile storms arises, he and Isalie don’t hesitate to join the team. They expected danger, but they didn’t expect to be caught inside a city lost to the Gloom.
Stills are going missing, the Ambients’ protection is wearing thin, and Isalie is in the eye of a new storm—one pitting Ambient against Still—that will determine the fate of an entire city.
At Prebbles Flying Circus, the daring Eliza Gray captivates audiences with her breathtaking feats on horseback. Yet beyond the applause, she harbours a longing to find the family she lost as a child and discover who she truly is.
Fate, however, takes an unexpected turn when Eliza is unceremoniously knocked down by a curricle driven recklessly by Raven, Earl Purfoy. Dazed but intrigued, she cannot help but notice Purfoy’s commanding presence.
For his part, the dashing lord, is mortified at his carelessness and resolves to assist the spirited yet intriguing young woman. He deposits her in the care of his dearest friends, Corinna and Alick Wolfe, who encourage Miss Gray in her search for her family and sponsor her entry into London society. The glittering balls and scurrilous gossip of the ton are a far cry from the circus ring and Eliza finds herself the subject of intense speculation and unwelcome advances.
As a most accidental debutante, Eliza has to navigate the complexities of high society and her new friendships. Her quest for family and belonging becomes perilously entwined with Zadoc Flynn, an American heir in search of an English bride, and the unfathomable Lord Purfoy.
Can Eliza uncover the truth of her past and the family she longs for? And will it be Mr Flynn or Lord Purfoy, or indeed her new female friends, who help her find her place in the world?
In a tale of courage, passion, and self-discovery, this lost orphan must decide where she truly belongs.
Jane Dunn is an historian and biographer and the author of seven acclaimed biographies, including Daphne du Maurier and her Sisters and the Sunday Times and NYT bestseller, Elizabeth & Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens. She lives in Berkshire with her husband, the linguist Nicholas Ostler.
My thoughts: It was nice to be reunited with some of the characters from An Unsuitable Heiress (although this can be read as a standalone) as Eliza Grey runs away from the circus to society, rather than the usual way round.
Desperate to find out where she comes from and whether her family are looking for her, she flees the only home she knows and almost gets squashed by Earl Purfoy’s curricle as he races home late at night.
Rescued by the Earl and taken to the home of his best friends’ and neighbours’ the Wolfes, she finds herself with kind and generous people who offer her help and support. Corinna Wolfe, having had a similar search for family some years before (see An Unsuitable Heiress) understands Eliza’s desire for family and offers to help her as much as she can.
As Eliza searches and spends time with her new friends, she and Raven Purfoy are drawn to each other, but a rival in the form of American Zadoc Flynn offers to take her back with him to raise his race horses in Kentucky. Raven is so busy worrying about other things (stupid things tbqh) and almost misses the chance to tell Eliza how he feels.
As Eliza finally finds out where she comes from and some family she can connect with, will she return to the circus, head to America or become Countess Purfoy?
Romantic and with a bright and determined protagonist, who wants to make her own way in the world, not depend on kindness or take advantage, this is a Regency tale with modern sensibility. Very enjoyable.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 