Review: Spicy Disaster

Spicy Disaster by Lani Lynn Vale
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



View all my reviews

Marked by the Alpha

 

An alpha with a storied legacy. 

An independent woman rebuilding after grief. 

Forbidden desire—

for only one is human….

Marked by the Alpha

Tolstone Wolf Shifters Book 1

by Sheritta Bitikofer

Genre: Paranormal Fated Mates Romance

An alpha with a storied legacy. An independent woman rebuilding after grief. Forbidden desire—for only one is human….

After her mother’s death, photographer Erica Barrett, buys a home she and her mother obsessed over during her childhood in the quaintly historical town of Tolstone. Her magnetic next door neighbor intrigues and disturbs her. The sensual pull feels otherworldly.

Wolf shifter Dominic Beaumont never wanted to be the prime alpha of the sanctuary city, Tolstone, but when his father dies, he’s forced to step up as pack leader and prime alpha over all the wolf packs sheltering in his town. Erica’s arrival is dangerous. The attraction is fierce and instant, but duty comes first.

When revelations about Erica’s past and parentage create chaos, and she questions everything she thought she knew about herself, Dominic is her strength. But as tension builds in the pack, and his leadership is challenged, love becomes a risk that could cost him his authority, his people, and everything he’s sworn to protect.

Perfect for readers craving illicit wolf-shifter romance filled with fate, secrets, rebellion and an alpha willing to risk everything for love. 

 

**Releases June 11 – PreOrder Now!**

Amazon * Apple * B&N * Kobo * Tule Publishing * Bookbub * Goodreads

 

“Why are you lying to me? Lying to yourself?” Dominic beseeched, now his turn to interrupt. “I know you feel something between us because I feel it too.” He rushed forward, heedless of the consequences, and took her hand to press it to his chest. “You can’t tell me this is all one-sided. I knew the moment you walked into this store that you were special.”

Erica rolled her eyes and slipped her hand out of his grasp. “Those lines are so old, Dominic. If you think saying all the right things is going to make me change my mind, you’re wrong.”

As if he had been physically slapped in the face, Dominic staggered. “Lines? Is that what you think this is? Like I’m just playing you?”

“Aren’t you?” she sneered. “Isn’t that what guys like you do? Say all those pretty things like ‘I read in my spare time’ and ‘It’s such a burden to be needed’ and all that bullshit. Then, when you have the girl, you dump her for the newest thing that comes along. You’re only interested because I’m something new in town, right? Someone new to win over.”

His mouth hung open. “Why would you—"

Then he stopped. He was going to ask why she would believe something so heinous, so stereotypical and cynical. Then he remembered what she had told him last night. She never grew up with a father, and if he could take a wild guess, he would have said that her mother planted those ideas in her head. No man could be trusted. A woman should rely on herself and no one else. Erica’s entire childhood would have been one jaded, dysfunctional mess, and this was the kind of baggage she carried into adulthood.

The mating bond was there and he knew everything out of her mouth was forced. She might have believed what she said, but her heart wasn’t in her accusations. Below the anger, below those hateful words, Erica really didn’t want this to end. The mating bond told him that much, otherwise, this thing between them would have unraveled already, wouldn’t it?

Too dumbfounded, he just stared into her beautiful face, the one that was on the verge of bursting into fresh tears. Her pride denied her the release. He would have loved for her to come apart in his hands, just so he could have the privilege of comforting her when she needed it most and put the pieces back together the right way.

“What can I do to make you believe me?”

Erica looked away, and he saw her throat work. “I don’t know if there is anything you could say.”

Just then, his pocket buzzed and chimed, and he was ready to smash the damned cellphone.

“Go ahead,” she said as she marched away. “Go play hero for someone else.”

 

Sheritta Bitikofer writes paranormal romance with a particular fondness for wolf shifters and witches. Her stories are driven by one guiding belief: love inspires courage. Through fierce romances, unbreakable pack bonds, and the magic of covens and family, her characters fight for the lives—and loves—they deserve. Sheritta lives in northwest Florida, where she drinks far too much coffee and joyfully balances life as a wife and mother while crafting her next heartfelt paranormal love story.

 

When she's not writing her next novel or taking care of her daughter, Sheritta enjoys diving into the fascinating and complex history of the American Civil War. With a BA in American History from American Public University, her primary focus of study is the many human-interest stories that embody the spirit of the mid-nineteenth century. 

 

Website * Facebook * Instagram * Bookbub * Amazon * Goodreads

Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!

Enter the Marked by the Alpha Giveaway Here

Undercover Lover

Title: Undercover Lover

Author: Jacqueline Francis

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Tropes: Fake Dating; Forced Proximity; Billionaires/Millionaires Romance; Law Enforcement/Action Romance; Reverse Grumpy x Sunshine; Opposites Attract

Release Date: June 11, 2026

I didn’t join the force to play dress-up in designer heels and pretend to be someone’s girlfriend, but apparently life has a sense of humor. And mine comes with a six-foot-something ego, a movie-star smile, and a peculiar knack for getting under my skin.

Marco Dal Santo is everything I don’t trust: cocky, charming, reckless, and way too comfortable in a world built on smoke and mirrors. I’m supposed to use him to get close to people who hide crimes behind champagne and expensive suits. He’s supposed to be a means to an end. Convenient. Temporary. And fake.

The problem? It doesn’t really feel fake because every time he touches me, every time he pushes past my defenses and makes me feel something real, I forget that we’re supposed to be pretending.

One minute we’re trading sarcastic barbs and sharing one very inconvenient bed; the next I’m laughing at his terrible jokes and wondering how a man who looks at me with nothing but raw lust can possibly be faking it. Somewhere between the staged kisses and very real arguments, the lines get blurred, and I can’t tell what’s part of the job…and what isn’t.

Now we’re caught up in a world where one wrong move can get us killed, and I’m starting to realize the most dangerous part of this case isn’t the criminals we’re chasing.

It’s him.

Because if anyone finds out I’ve fallen for my informant, I’ll lose my badge, my mentor’s trust, and possibly my heart in the process.

So yeah…I’m in way over my head.

And the worst part?

I’m not sure I want to be rescued.

Number cruncher by day, raging romance novelist by night; Jacqueline’s creative inspiration stems from romance and all its literary and rom-com depictions. Matters of the heart are what fascinates her, because ultimately, what makes a life out of - what would ordinarily be a typical existence - is Love

HOSTED BY:

A Forced Bond

Title: A Forced Bond

Series: Dark Pack Series Book 1

Author: Ann D. Lang

Release Date: May 15, 2026

Forced together. Fated forever.

She was supposed to find her fated mate under the full moon.

Instead, she is ordered to bond with a stranger.

The full moon after Rhia’s twentieth birthday was meant to be the happiest night of her life. Among wolf shifters, it is the first full moon after turning twenty when a wolf might finally recognize the mate chosen by the Moon Goddess.

Rhia has always hoped that mate would be Caleb, the boy she has loved for years.

But when an entire neighboring pack is brutally wiped out, everything changes.

Fearing they could be next, the Red Moon Pack forms a desperate alliance with the powerful Silver Lake Pack. And alliances between alpha families require one thing above all else: a mating bond.

As the only unmated alpha daughter of Red Moon, Rhia’s future is decided for her. Instead of discovering her fated mate under the coming full moon, she is ordered to form a bond with Jalen, the future alpha of Silver Lake.

Leaving her home, her family, and the life she thought she would have.

Jalen never wanted a forced bond any more than Rhia did. But protecting their packs comes before everything. What neither of them expected was the instant pull between them, a connection that feels far too real to be political.

But if the Moon Goddess had a plan for their bond all along, it may be because the Dark Pack is not finished yet—and their own may be the next target.

"Race you to the rocks?" Rhia points to the little collection of rocks well off the shoreline.

"They are further away than you think," I try to warn her from experience, but she has already taken off.

As I soon realize, she is not only an excellent fighter but also a very good swimmer. I love it. I am a decent swimmer myself, but it is not exactly my strongest form of movement. Plus, I am still a little slower than usual. At least that is what I am telling myself as I try hard to keep up with Rhia.

I am right behind her, but there is no hiding my labored breathing when we reach the rocks. On warm days, my friends and I love to climb onto the smooth stones and sunbathe. Unfortunately, it's not quite warm enough for that yet.

Unlike me, Rhia is not even a little winded, and I admire her strength. "You're an amazing athlete. I can't wait to see what you can do without the necklace," I grin at her.

'Oooh, well she's hot!' Hunter's voice comes through the mind link, and I let out a growl. Turning to the tree line behind me, I easily spot his wolf in the bushes.

'Leave now, or I will end you! This is your future luna!'

'Jealous, huh? Relax, man, I was just going for a quick hunt. I'll leave you two lovebirds to it.' His wolf actually gives me a wink before he turns around.

"Are you coming in?" As I turn back around, Rhia is already swimming away from the shore.

We head back at a slower pace, leisurely swimming next to each other.

"Do you think they would mind if we skipped the communal dinner tonight?" Rhia asks.

"Not in the mood for a crowd?"

"Not really. It's just all a little much," she shrugs, then adds quickly: "I'm sorry, I don't want you to get the wrong impression. I am looking forward to spending more time with your pack. Just not quite yet."

"You need some time to process everything, I get it."

She gives me a questioning look when I reach for her hand before I get up, pulling her with me. The contact sends tingles up my arm. "We need to head back and talk to our parents if we want to avoid dinner. They might whip us and throw us in the dungeon, and I don't think I could take that." I wink at her to make sure she knows I am joking about that last part.

She chuckles, gripping my hand a little tighter. We are silent on our way to the packhouse, and it feels good to be walking with her like this. Her smaller hand fits into mine just right.

When Ann D. Lang isn’t writing, she can be found with her family and her cats — who treat everyone in the house as their personal servants and are entirely unbothered by deadlines. A lifelong lover of paranormal romance in all its forms, from vampire courts and fae kingdoms to witch covens and wolf pack politics, she has spent years falling in love with other people’s worlds — and one day simply decided to open the doors to a world of her own.

HOSTED BY: