Twisted Fates by Adam J. Ridley

Happy Wednesday Scribblers. I hope you’re all doing well. As some of you may have seen, I have closed up my Twitter/X platform. I’m still keeping the landing page, however I won’t be posting there any longer. I don’t know if I’ll be moving to another SM platform, but I’ll keep you posted. In the mean time you can still find me on Facebook (here), Instagram (here), Goodreads (here), BookBub (here) and YouTube (here).

Now onto some much more fun stuff. This week I’m reviewing another book from the Tales of Tarot Collection; Twisted Fates (find the book here) by Adam J. Ridley (find him here). Let’s get to it.

Blurb:

With his newfound powers, can the new Legacy Wizard save the man he loves, or will a backward turn of the Wheel of Fortune cost him everything?

In a world where the Wheel of Fortune spins their destinies, two souls collide in a whirlwind of magic and desire.

Damian, an ordinary taxi driver, is thrust into an extraordinary fate when a mysterious ring transforms him into a legacy wizard, bound to the eternal struggle between light and darkness.

Owen, a young lawyer, is drawn into Damian's world as he untangles the legacy left by Damian’s predecessor.

When their paths intertwine, a dangerous attraction ignites, threatening to unravel the delicate balance Damian must uphold.

With newfound powers at his command, can Damian protect Owen or will all hope for love and balance be lost to the darkness?

Review:

Another Brilliant novel in the Tales from the Tarot Collection

I couldn’t put this story down. The novel, the characters, and the writing were fantastic. Ridley is a brilliant author who creates such wonderful stories that you don’t want them to end. This was the case with Twisted Fates. I had such a good time getting to know the characters that when the story ended; I was bummed. The secondary characters were equally as enjoyable adding to the brilliance of the story.

I can’t go into too much detail about this novel without giving plot points away. There are a couple of bugaboos I have about this story that I’m going to share. First, I felt that the story was rushed to meet certain beats and plot points, which bothered me. When I enjoy a book, I want the author to dive deep so I can get to know the characters and the world. The other nit I have with this novel is that as much as I understood why things happened the way they did, I felt like the characters didn’t have much of a say in what was emerging around them, which did annoy me. However, that said, I get it and I appreciate why everything occurred the way it did. And despite this critique I really enjoyed the writing and the story. I hope Ridley revisits this world because I would love to know more and see what else these characters get up to.

That’s all I have for today. Until next time have a great week.

The Magician's Heart by J.P. Jackson

Happy Wednesday Scribblers, I hope you are having a wonderful week. Today I want to bring to your attention this wonderful new novel by J.P. Jackson (learn more here) The Magician’s Heart (click here). Before I share my review of the book, here are the details.

Blurb:

Patrick leads a nice quiet life with his dog companion Argus, and his pet raven Kaos. The quiet and calm of this lakeside cabin is the perfect place to be the area’s most powerful water witch and the local representative Magician on the Mage’s Council. Other than the odd task assigned by the Council, his only other responsibility is to answer the call from the local police when they come across a situation that might be magical. It’s a serene life, mostly, if not a little lonely. Could he have fallen into a bit of a rut? Is Patrick fulfilling his witchy duties and being the Magician he really could be?

Allan’s life is a mess. His friends regularly lead him into bad situations, and life never seems to go his way, until one night when his buddies drag him and his abusive ex along on an ill-fated camping trip. After a night of drinking, and another nasty encounter with his ex, Allan discovers he’s not exactly human. Once his witchy side takes hold, there’s no turning back. But in order to get a grip on his newfound abilities, he's going to need some expert guidance, not to mention making things right with the local Fae population who he’s managed to anger.

Patrick doesn’t want a student. Allan has no need for a mentor. But when the two of them come together, a new kind of magic blossoms that just might save them both.

The Magician's Heart is a standalone MM paranormal romance novel as part of the multi-author collaboration Tales from the Tarot. This book is based on the major arcana card The Magician.

Here are my thought of the book:

I believe I have read everything published by J.P. Jackson to date, and as with all his other novels this one is brilliant. I’m not going to gush and go on and on about what a fun read this is. Just know that this is another amazing story by Jackson with rich colorful characters that you’ll enjoy reading about.

Allan and Patrick are an unlikely pair and I found them a bit of an odd couple at the beginning of the story. However, the more I read the more they grew on me. There were times I felt the story was a bit rushed and there were a couple of plot points that, in my opinion, got waved away. I would have liked deeper explanations into certain events of the story that never came. However, that all said I enjoyed the story and found it a lot of fun to read. I especially liked the dog and the raven. They provided some hints of levity and fun throughout the story that I appreciated.

One-bit of a bonus for me in this novel, was how encapsulated the story telling was. You really focus on the two main characters and you don’t have a lot of background characters fluffing out the story or getting in the way of the plot (this is also one of my bugaboos as well. When you read the story, I think you’ll understand why). All said, by the end of the story I felt like I really understood both of the characters and I wanted more.

This novel is part of a larger universe, so if you are so inclined you can read the additional stories, by different authors and see their take on the overall universe. But don’t let that sway you, this is a wonderfully crafted standalone novel that any reader of MM Paranormal will love and eat up.

That’s all I have for this week. If you enjoy Horror Novels then this is a must get (click here). Until next time have a greet week.