#Review - Taming the King by D.D. Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Witchling Academy # 3
Format: Kindle, 246 pages
Release Date: November 22, 2021
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Fantasy / Romance

I swore nothing would screw up the alliance I'd finally forged with the king of the Fae. Then I was captured by his mortal enemy.

❤️ : It's Complicated.

Marrying the brutally gorgeous, fiercely proud, and irredeemably arrogant High King of the Fae wasn’t on my punch list a few weeks ago, but it was the fastest way to keep my people safe.  

Then the Fae’s ancient enemies strike. The darkly twisted king of the Fomorians rips me into his underworld prison…and tells me I’m now his bride, too.

Even worse? Once my beautiful Fae king learns how I’ve unwittingly betrayed him, his only solution is war.

To stop the bloody battle that will destroy two of the most powerful races in all the realms—and take down Earth’s witches too—I’ve got to call in every favor and squeeze every last drop of magic I can from my Hogan blood. It still might not be enough.

Because witch’s hearts are meant for breaking, traitors hide around every corner, and when it comes to Fae, Fomorian, and especially witchling magic—nothing is as it seems. 

Taming the King, by author D.D. Chance, is the third and final installment in the authors Witchling Academy series. This story begins right where Tempting the King finished. The story once again alternate's between Belle Hogan and Aiden, High King of the Fae. Belle Hogan is once again in a whole lot of trouble. She's been stolen from the human realm where she was trying to return home to, and taken to the Fomorian realm by those who betrayed her family, where she comes face to face King Lyric who claims that he wants what Aiden believes he already has; A wife. 

Take my world for it, it's been a really rough week for Belle as well as enlightening. Her care free life of helping anyone, witches, monsters, shifters, etc, find peace ended in a shocking manner, and suddenly she's the Fae King's Witch even though she tried to break her contract. Each encounter with the Fomorian has left a bad taste in her mouth. They look like creatures from the Black Lagoon. They are darkness, whereas Aiden's people are lightbringers. For this King Lyric to now imply that Belle is now tied to him as his wife, just makes her week even more sickening and devastating. 

Even as tempting as Lyric's offer is to open up and access more of her magic, nothing is ever free when it comes to any Fae or anyone else in this world. Meanwhile, Aiden has his hands full trying to figure out how to bring his people together in light of a dangerous enemy making advances into the Fae world while saving Belle. That includes trying to find out what happened to all the books that tell the history of the Fae. It makes Aiden begin to question everything he's been told about Fae history and what really happened between Reagan Logan and his grandfather, King Odin and why no records can be found. Anywhere. 

What's even more troubling is that if Aiden goes to war, it will likely affect all realms, including the monster realm, and the human realm where witches have always been the archenemies of the Fae. To make things even more consequential, Belle knows that she is the tool that is being used by various sides in this conflict to get what she wants. Her visions show her hundreds of possibilities and none of them are easy, or pleasant. Who can she really trust? Thankfully, Belle has some ideas which brings her to Chicago, and the House of Swords. Hint Hint

She also gets visited by a person known as the Night Witch who was visiting Boston. Hint Hint. For those who just finished the Monster Hunter Academy series, a character for that series makes a guest appearance. Nope, not spoiling. Belle and Aiden's connection, as well as their magic, grows leaps and bounds in this story. On a side note, I loved that Niall and Celia seemed to have found each other. After everything that's happened to Celia, they both deserve a moment of peace and happiness.  

When I received this copy from the author, I was pleasantly surprised when she told us that there would be a few surprises, call them Easter Eggs, in the book. I am eagerly urging the author to please, please do more crossovers in another series since that series seems to be ending soon. This is one of those series that you can't just pick up this book up, and expect to know everything that has happened over the previous two books in the series. 

Ain't happening. Instead, this book ties together every single previous storyline into one fantastic, and revealing finale. Did I mention revealing? This series just happens to be the third in the authors Boston Magic Academy cycle which includes Twyst Academy and Monster Hunter Academy.  

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#Review - Tempting the King by D.D. Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Witchling Academy # 2
Format: Kindle, 257 pages
Release Date: October 27, 2021
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Fantasy / Romance

What’s the only thing worse than fighting the king of the Fae? Pushing him too far.

I taught witchling magic to the High King of the Fae. I helped him defend his realm. And then in the fullness of his generosity, he set me free. Great story, right?

Only, like most things when it comes to the Fae, ditching a contract with these guys isn’t so easy.

Turns out the magic that binds me to the deeply sensual, fiercely proud, ridiculously hot High King is far more twisted than I realized. I’ve been marked for death…or something way worse.

Now I’m on the run, my home destroyed, being chased through a realm of myth and monsters by more enemies than I ever thought possible. To break free of this screwed-up Fae contract for good, I’ll have to unravel a scheme three hundred years in the making and convince the king—who’s been tricked into falling in love with me—that he’s been played for a fool.

This should go well. 

Tempting the King is the second installment in author D.D. Chance's Witching Academy Trilogy. This book begins where Teaching the King finished. As the story picks up, Belle Hogan is in a lot of trouble. The one thing she owns in the world has been attacked by her enemies which her mother and grandmother had been hiding from for years. Thankfully, a portal opened that sent Belle to a Monster realm known as Riven District. It appears as though those in charge are lizard like creatures with forked tongues and they may be into very dark, and dangerous magic. 

 

Riven district is apparently a place where outcasts, sleazeballs, and bad actors end up. Anyone who is sent to Riven has either been cursed, or decreed they be sent here. Belle has been cursed by witch magic. Belle discovers a woman named Celia who has been stuck in this world for the past 5 years. Who is Celia? Is she a witch? Is she a shifter? Is she trouble, or will she be Belle's ally against what's to come? Thanks to Aiden and his second in command Niall, Belle and Celia are brought back to Fae where Belle is to continue teaching at Witchling Academy. 

 

Belle has a contract, (which she hasn't yet had access to, but believes it may be held at the mountain Fae's Sakorn Castle), that states that she has to teach Aiden, the King of the Fae, and those in his line all about magic which has been fading away since her descendant Reagan Hogan found a way to escape Fae. With every day that passes, Belle's magic gets more powerful as does her connection to Aiden. But so doesn't Aiden's. The book also introduces readers to the Dwarves who live underground, just love to war on the Fae, and know all about Belle and her family.

To reiterate what has already happened, war is coming, and Belle is right in the middle of what's to come. The Fomorians have found a way back from their banishment, and have already started warring against Aiden's people which makes Aiden sit up and actually take notice that for far too long, the Mountain Fae, and others have been ignored by his family. If the Fae are to win, and survive, Aiden must stand up and be the king the Fae need desperately. That includes asking so called lesser Fae to stand with him and fight for their survival.

 

This is the second consecutive story that ends on a brutal cliffhanger ending. Thankfully, the author has promised the next installment sometime around Thanksgiving which isn't that far away. This series just happens to be the third in the authors Boston Magic Academy cycle following Twyst Academy and Monster Hunter Academy. 

 

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#Review - Teaching the King (Witchling Academy, #1) by D.D. Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Witchling Academy # 1
Format: Kindle
Release Date: September 29, 2021
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Fantasy / Romance

How do you break a promise to the King of the Fae?
Yeah. Good luck with that.

For centuries, Hogan witches were bound in a trumped-up contract to teach magic to the High King of the Fae. Then, a hundred years ago, we escaped that prison sentence and never looked back.

Now there's a new king in town. Brutally gorgeous, mouthwateringly fierce—and seriously pissed.

He's coming for me, and he won't take no for an answer.

But I don't care how much Mr. Tall, Dark, and Deadly makes my heart pound and head spin, a ridiculously unwanted side effect of that goddess-forsaken contract. I've dedicated my life to creating a safe haven for those in need—whether they’re rogue witches escaping their persecutors or monsters desperate for somewhere to hide. If I leave my tavern unprotected, every last soul I’ve helped will be hunted down, recaptured. Killed.

Not gonna happen.

So I'll just have to find the contract that’s bound me to the most deviously sexy ruler across all the realms…and break it for good.

Before the High King of the Fae breaks me.

Teaching the King is the first installment in author D.D. Chance's Witchling Academy series. 25-year-old Belle Hogan first appeared in the authors finale of the Monster Academy series. Now, she gets her own series and her own problems and even more sexier and dangerous Fae who refuses to take no for an answer. Belle is the owner/operator of White Crane Tavern. She's a healer as well as a barkeep, and she keeps the lights on for those who most need safety and security. 

For 100 years, the Hogan's have run the White Crane Tavern in the middle of the richest, most elite neighborhood in Boston where both Twyst Academy and Monster Hunter Academy are located. It's a safe place for Witches and monsters alike. Belle is the last of her line. Her grandmother is gone, and so is her mother, and she has no intention of swallowing her pride and returning to the coven of the White Mountains who would be shocked if they knew that the Hogans were right under their noses.

Whenever a new Fae king was crowned, a Hogan witch is supposed to travel to him and teach him witchling magic. 100 years ago, Belle's great-grandmother Reagan broke contract with the Fae and returned home leaving the Fae without a teacher and magic that is slowly fading. After years of avoiding her duties, Belle's time comes up when Aiden, the new King of Fae arrives at the Tavern and demands that she complete the Hogan agreement by teaching him magic. Refusal is not an option.

"The will come for you with shackles of steel and an emerald crown, and when they are fixed upon you, there is nothing you won't do for them."

For Aiden, he is in the middle of a war with dangerous wraiths and the worst thing could happen. His magic fails. Reagan Hogan supposedly gifted his grandfather with enough embedded magic into several precious artifacts to magically protect the High Fae for thousands of years. Thanks to his own fathers negligence, Aiden must travel to the human world and demand that whatever Hogan witch is alive, doesn't get to slip out of her commitment of teaching him and his people magic.

As I am the first reviewer out of the box, this is where I will end the summary of the book. I will say that this story alternates each chapter between Belle and Aiden. The situation between the two gets hot and heavy quickly, but don't let Belle fool you. She has a reason for agreeing to help Aiden. She knows her family needs to find a way to complete the contract so that she can be free, and so can any offspring she might have in the future. Especially since there has no seen benefits to her family helping the High Fae with magic. 

My final statement is this, there is a guest appearance in this book of a character you will know if you've read the authors previous series Monster Hunter Academy. I will also say that the book has two distinct cliffhangers one for each Aiden, and for Belle. In this case, the cliffhangers are a good way for me to remember to watch our for the sequel since I must know what's going to happen next, and what other troubles are in store for the couple. 

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#Review - The Hunter's Vow by D.D. Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Monster Hunter Academy # 4
Format: E-Book, 274 pages
Release Date: April 5, 2021
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Fantasy / Romance

t’s the end of the Academy as we know it…

Grim Lockton is the biggest, roughest, and surliest member of our monster hunter team. And he hates me.

From the moment I set foot on Wellington Academy’s campus, the brutally fierce hunter has kept me off balance with cutting insults and cryptic taunts, his pale gold eyes full of withering disdain. To him, I’m nothing more than monster bait.

Despite his sneers, I can’t help watching Grim, wanting to understand him…get close to him. And maybe I hope he wants me, too. That the bone-melting heat I feel building between us is real.

Wrong on all counts.

With a shocking betrayal, Grim launches a winner-take-all monster war that threatens to destroy everyone I’ve come to love at Wellington Academy. But there’s more to Grim’s story than he’s ever shared, and when the truth comes out, it shatters everything I thought I knew about monsters, the academy—and Grim himself. Now, I just can’t quit my savagely beautiful monster warrior…

So I’m going to have to save him instead. 

 

The Hunter's Vow, by author D.D. Chance, is the fourth installment in the authors Monster Hunter Academy series. If you've read this series or my reviews, which I hope you do, you'll know that the previous book, The Hunter's Snare, ended on a breath taking cliffhanger ending. You'll also know that the author has chosen four unique male characters, Tyler Perkins, Liam Graham, Zach Williams, and Grim Lockton, who attend Wellington Academy along with our heroine Nina Cross. 

Even though this is the fourth book, only 3 weeks have passed since Nina arrived in Boston looking for information about whether or not she has any family remaining in the area. Over the past 3 books, Nina has found a home, and a family albeit a dysfunctional one at best and lots of trouble. Literally. Even with all the resources at her finger tips, it took her awhile until she could finally find out who her mother really was, and why she was trained to be the person she is. It's hard to go into this review without spoiling anything. 

Grim is the final piece of this series puzzle and holds answers that Nina needs to close the book on what really happened to her mother. Grim is a strange and dangerous character who has many secrets including who he really is, and how he is connected to Nina. It's interesting that we finally get to understand the quiet but dangerous Grim in a setting along with his own people. In the past three books, Grim was the character who was there one minute and poof, gone the next. Now we know why.

As usual, Nina's best asset, literally, is her ability to power up each of her teammates who each have their own abilities which put together are unbeatable. But don't discount Nina's own abilities which have also grown over this series. She can more than hold her own and then some. This story ends on a really fantastic action packed finale. So much is at stake for everyone from the Hunter's themselves, to the school, to the Hunters who graduated from Wellington but went missing, to finding how more about possible future missions for Nina and her team. 

I dare say that if this wasn't the scheduled finale of the series, I would be willing to read any future adventure with Nina and her team. I also want to learn more about Belle Hogan who readers have met over the course of this series but really get a peak into what may lay ahead. 

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#Review - The Hunter's Snare by D.D. Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Monster Hunter Academy # 3
Format: E-Galley, 267 pages
Release Date: March 1, 2021
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

At the academy, funny is the new black…magic.

Reckless, brilliant and incredibly resourceful, Liam Graham can handle any crisis with a devilish grin—but his razor-sharp sense of humor hides a desperate truth. In an elite society where magic is the most coveted commodity, he’s been judged as second-rate, a castoff. Weak.

Liam hasn’t let his lack of inner magic slow him down, of course. He’s mapped all the secret passageways beneath Wellington Academy, he’s stolen the most arcane lore, and he’s managed to siphon energy out of the very air. When he touches me, we light up the room, and when we kiss…it’s pure fire.

We need that fire, too. A new threat has stormed into Wellington Academy, an illusionist magician who threatens to destroy our team of monster hunters and take down the whole academy once and for all.

Even worse, the only way Liam can access his full magic is if he and I fully bond…but he’s determined not to take advantage of me. So if I want to get this party started, I’m going to have to take control.

…Not a problem.  

The Hunter's Snare is the third installment in author D.D. Chance's Monster Hunter Academy. The series features Nina Cross, a 24-year-old woman who, 2 weeks ago, traveled to Boston from her home in Asheville, North Carolina to find out if she has any family left. Nina is a harbinger, monster bait, and cipher. Monsters follow her wherever she goes. Readers are slowly learning piece by piece why this is happening. She's found herself as a student at Wellington Academy where demon hunting is considered a minor degree after years of being a primary focus. 

She's become part of a team which includes Commander Frost, Zach Williams, Tyler Perkins, Liam Graham, and Grim Lochton. At the end of The Hunter's Curse, there was a huge revelation that leads to all sorts of questions about Nina and her mother Janet Cross. There was also a worry that former monster hunters have gone missing and the school is preparing for something drastic to turn the tide back to their favor. As with the previous installment, this book features one of Nina's four teammates: Liam. With his trusty backpack never far from reach, Liam could legitimately be called MacGyver. 

He's brilliant, resourceful, and capable finding a solution to every problem. He's already mapped out the entire campus of Wellington Academy. Liam’s exterior hides his own insecurities. He is thought of as the black sheep of the family because he doesn't have access to his own magic. Or does he? If you are Liam, who just saw two of your friends get a boost from bonding with Nina, you hope that your time will come sooner rather than later. Sooner and he can help the collective defeat the enemies that are getting closer to the school and who may already be instead. 

Sooner means he can handle attacks by a powerful Illusionist who seems to set their sights on Nina for some reason. Sooner and maybe Liam can finally break through of the insecurities that have weighed him down for so many years.

In many ways, this story is brutal so I will not spoil my reasons for saying so. Nina is still being left in the dark about her abilities as well as who family she might actually belong to. Liam knows more than he's saying and I may have missed the alleged Easter egg, but I don't remember him telling Nina why she's called a harbinger. I have said this for awhile now, I don't fully trust Grim. I do know that Grim will be the final piece of the puzzle when the series ends with The Hunter's Vow three days after my birthday in April so maybe we can find out why he's so mysterious and dangerous. 

This is an honest review of a Review Team ARC.

 

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#Review - The Hunter's Curse by D.D. Chance #Paranormal #Romance

Series: Monster Hunter Academy # 2
Format: E-Book, 255 pages
Release Date: January 28, 2021
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Paranormal / Romance

Never let a demon see you sweat.

Zachariah Williams isn’t just the darkest, most gothically gorgeous member of my new academy monster hunting squad…he’s broken in a way I deeply understand. The son of a small-town preacher with a big-time skillset, he’s faced down monsters his whole life, a natural-born demon hunter whose deep empathy and shattered soul makes me crave his glance, his smile, and, okay…his hands all over me.

Trouble is, he’s also got one killer of a family secret: right after he falls in love, Hell on earth breaks out. The only way to stop it? Sacrifice whoever’s captured his heart.

Talk about a second-date buzzkill.

Of course, I haven’t been fighting monsters practically since the cradle to back down now. Zach and the entire Wellington Academy monster hunter squad are becoming my stand-in family, and that means more to me than I ever expected.

And if someone’s gotta take out a bunch of fire-breathing demons without getting hot under the collar, I’m still the right girl for the job.  

D.D. Chance’s The Hunter’s Curse is book 2 in the authors Monster Academy Series. The series features Nina Cross, a 24-year-old woman who traveled to Boston from her home in Asheville, North Carolina to find out if she has any family left. Nina is a virtual monster magnet. They follow her wherever she goes. She's found herself as a student at Wellington Academy where demon hunting is considered a minor degree, and the leader of the school is a real loser.

Nina, who has been fighting monsters all her life, found four hunters in training: Tyler Perkins, Liam Graham, Grim Lochton, and Zachariah (Zach) Williams. With the first book, readers got to learn about Tyler Perkins as well as the collective. This time around the author introduces you to Zach who grew up the son of a small-town preacher. He’s a natural born demon hunter who carries a dark secret as well as the ability to read minds.

The huge family secret could complicate any relationship he might discover with Nina, because like it or not, Zach and Nina have more in common than just their natural ability to hunt monsters. With everything that’s happened so far, it’s hard to ignore the fact that Nina has a large target on her back. There are people who know that she’s looking for answers about her family and her mother. As she and we as readers continue forward in this series, the more those people are starting to come forward.

Some have an agenda, some like Commander Frost, may hold answers to Nina’s past as well as her future and her connection to the four boys who she has fallen in with. I am eager to see what the ramifications are for Nina joining with the 4 boys in this collective, especially with what appears to be a demon uprising coming soon. I try awfully hard to leave spoilers out of my reviews. I eagerly accept each of these novels that I receive in lieu of an honest review. I have stated in my previous review of The Hunter’s Call that there are similarities between this series and the authors Twyst Academy series.

First, there’s one young woman and four boys. Second, each boy will get their own introduction in each installment. Next up is Liam, while Grim, who I am eager to learn more about, will bring the series to a close. There is always something special when the one young woman gets with each of the young men. Let’s just say it gives them wings! As I just said, I think I am more eager to learn about Grim, than I am Liam, but after Liam’s shocking discovery at the end of this book, I want to know what happens next.

The Monster Hunter Academy series is a slow-burn urban fantasy romance with a fast-talking, sharp-witted heroine, four hunters-in-training hot enough to make your palms sweat, and way too many monsters to hide in a closet. You should absolutely be reading this series!

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#Review - The Hunter's Call by D.D. Chance #Fantasy #Romance

Series: Monster Hunter Academy # 1
Format: E-Book, 260 pages
Release Date: December 29, 2020
Publisher: Elewyn Publishing
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Genre: Urban Fantasy / Romance

These monster hunters are about to get schooled…

Fighting monsters is all I’ve ever known—and I’ve always fought alone. Until the night I stumble onto an elite monster hunter academy and into the arms of four hottie hunters who not only know the exact Latin classification of the thing trying to eat me, but how to kill it dead.

Then Tyler Perkins, the crazy rich and shamelessly sexy leader of this monster hunting squad, kicks it up a notch. He challenges me to stay. To fight. He’s arrogant and entitled and did I mention gorgeous…and the way he pushes me makes want to push back. Hard.

Tyler and his whole smokin’ hot team tempt me in ways that are far more dangerous than any monster throwdown. I know I should split town—but I can’t.

Because for all its gorgeous old buildings and shiny bright classrooms, something dark, sinister, and deadly is lurking in the shadows of Wellington Academy, waiting to attack…

And I’m just the kind of girl for that job.  

The Hunter's Call, by author D.D. Chance, is the first installment in her new series called Monster Hunter Academy. This series is set in the same world as her Twyst Academy series. This series features Nina Cross, a young woman who was taught everything she knows about hunting monsters by her now deceased mother from a young age. After discovering a letter her mother meant to send, Nina travels to Boston in order to search for any remaining family and above all, answers to her mother's past. Curiously, or not, Nina finds that Boston has the same issues as her home of Asheville, North Carolina.

She can't go anywhere without monsters showing up out of nowhere. While being chased by monsters like ghouls and Tarken Land Worms which haven’t been seen in hundreds of years, Nina stumbles across Tyler Perkins, Liam Graham, Zachariah Williams, and Grim Lockton who are students at Wellington Academy. Wellington is a magic only school now, but it once turned-out monster hunters. Monster hunting is now a minor subject since monsters are no longer an issue. If you’ve read the Twyst series, you know that the author tends to identify one of the four boys and feature them in separate books.

The Monster’s Call begins with Tyler Perkins whose family is one of the one percenter living in Boston. Not unlike Connor Warin from Twyst Academy who is richer than Elon Musk. Nina’s connection to Tyler is immediate. But what’s clearly evident is that Nina has no clue about why she is able to see things nobody else can. Why the monsters are attracted to her, and why there’s no record of her mother anywhere. Nina never had a father in the picture. Her mother claimed she once taught at the Beacon Hill Preparatory Academy for Exceptional Young Women. The most curious question is why Grim calls her Monster Bait.

There are plenty of similarities between this series and Twyst. First is the reverse harem aspect of the story. One woman, 4 boys. There’s also the sex part of the equation which I won’t spoil but to say that sex gives them wings! If you’ve read the Twyst Academy, you know that Maddigan had the innate ability to make the team stronger so that they could participate and win the Mage Trials. This time around we are introduced to the Collective which Nina’s mother warned her to stay away from at all costs. Mother always knows best even when we fail to give her credit.

So, Nina comes to Boston looking for answers and puts her own pre-med path on hold only to end up matriculating to Wellington Academy which is close to shutting down their Monster Hunting curriculum. There are supposed to be answers in something called the apocrypha which Commander Frost believes holds answers. It will be interesting to see where the author takes this series next. No spoilers, but I do know that Zach is the next man up to take on Nina in The Hunter’s Curse which releases January 28, 2021. 

 

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