Since it's well established I'm an idiot, I'll explain why I kinda ruined this book for myself by accident.  See I love Linda Kage and her Forbidden Men series is one of those series I often think about because it just hit perfectly when I read it. So I also can't re-read it, I just think about it dreamily. Look at the covers and smile, kinda creepily.

 

When the descendants started getting their own books I didn't realise it was kind of a series so I picked up one or two here and there, then I realised it was a series I had read completely out of order. I then promptly added them to my TBR to read in order and since the blurbs for them weren't working for me I just left it. But I got a craving for more so I grabbed Secrets That We Keep and loved it and figured I was all good to just continue. Then I started this book and realised it was set at basically the same time as Every Time My Heart Breaks and realised I knew what was coming.

 

I spent half of the book trying to match up timelines in my head from what I remembered from a few months ago when I read it. And I drove myself a little nuts worrying about when and how things were going to play out from this side of the story. Then when it did hit I realised how much I had over built it in my head. Because I was still thinking about it from the other side of the story and from this side it was a lot less impactful to the actual story. Plus I knew how it ended so I wasn't hit with the oh god where is this going next?

 

What I did get was the sweetness and the love and support from Vaughn and Lucy and I just loved them. They had so much to overcome but they did it with grace and compassion and communication and it just made them super relatable and likeable.

 

I'm so glad I finally picked this book up. I just really wish I had read it in order. Oh well like we know, I'm an idiot.

 

 

Vacancy
Linda Kage
Publication date: December 13th 2023
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

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EXCERPT:

Completely out of my depth with this guy, I picked up one of the pillows from his bed and hugged it to my chest, trying to muffle the impact he was having on me. But his smell rippled up from the fabric, and my body went into a state of hypersensitivity.

“So…” I said, drawing in a deep breath and trying to sound casual, even though every part of me was trembling with arousal.

Damien left the doorway to take a single, cautious step in my direction. “Did I pass inspection?”

I shrugged, still trying to play it cool. “For the time being.” Then, I took a step forward as well, holding my breath the entire time in anticipation.

Shaking his head, he eased closer. “I still can’t believe you’re standing in my room right now.”
Taking my turn, I shifted an inch toward him. “Why not?”

“I don’t know.” His whiskey eyes searched mine as if reading all my secret desires. “I kind of thought I may never see you again.”

I paused and tipped my head curiously. “But you’re my landlord.”

Lifting one shoulder, he narrowed the gap until there was only about two feet separating us. “I’ve had lots of tenants that I only met once and never saw again. And I didn’t want you to be one of those. I picked up my phone half a dozen times to text, but I didn’t know if it was okay to do that after…”

When he lifted his eyebrows in question, silently asking if it would’ve been okay, I merely sent him a mysterious smile. “What would you have said if you’d texted?”

His lips twitched, finding amusement. “Probably only that I wanted to see you again.”

Catching my breath, I squeezed the pillow against me tighter. “Say it now,” I commanded.

Damien’s eyes turned predatory. Moving in until only the pillow separated us, he whispered, “I want to see you again.”

“Okay,” I whispered back.

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I was absolutely obsessed with the Forbidden Men series. I think most of them were 5 star reads for me and I still smile like a loon whenever I remember them. But I think it's been about 10 years since I've read them, and I had no idea there were books for the next generation. And then I was in this one and it hit me like a stack of bricks. I'll be honest, I've had this on my TBR forever, but the blurb made me hesitate. I like a man who's all in and does the chasing.

 

Luckily for me I decided to read this anyway because that blurb feels like it's for a different book despite it being right. From the second I picked this up I was lost to my family; I couldn't put it down. I honestly forgot how completely amazing Linda Kage is. Her words, her ability to make me obsess over the characters and just be swept into this world with them.

 

Luke was not at all what I was expecting. Holy sweetness and perfection batman. Even though I was completely team Chloe, and I knew exactly where she was coming from, I loved Luke. And every single time he opened his mouth something stupid came out, but it was so firmly wrapped in love and care for his family. 

 

Luke and Chloe together were such a massive amount of emotions and I just strapped in and went along with the ride. Some of the twists and turns were predictable, others had me gasping and clutching my chest. The emotions in the last 10ish percent were actually hard for me to read. I had to keep putting the book down to clear my eyes but then I needed to keep reading so I had to pick it back up.

 

I finished reading this in the middle of the night and immediately went to stalk who else has a book. I love being back with these characters even if I'm a little vague on who everyone is after all this time. I just gotta hope Linda keeps on with these guys now that I've found them.

 

 

Never Gonna Happen
Linda Kage
Publication date: November 8th 2022
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult

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EXCERPT:

Author Bio:

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“You guys are totally off your rockers. I am not having sex with anyone just to get back at Topher. To me, that’d be like drinking poison and expecting him to die from it.”
Bentley gasped, affronted, and pressed a hand to her chest. “Sex isn’t poison.”
I rolled my eyes because SHE hadn’t been cheated on recently.
“Seriously,” Teagan went on. “Sex can be good for you. It’s actually the number one reliever in vaginal atrophy.”
I blinked. “In…what?”
“Inflammation, dryness, and thinning of the vaginal walls.”
“Huh?” I furrowed my brow, wondering how I’d landed myself in a sex-education class.
“You must massage the tissue down there, exercise it regularly and get the blood flowing so it remains healthy and elastic. Otherwise, it’s going to dry out like an unused rubber band and crumble apart.” She balled her hand into a fist as if wadding up something. “Just a brittle piece of hopelessness.”
Ouch.
Why did I suddenly want to wince and protectively cover my hoo-ha with both of my hands? Seriously, I’d just found an old rubber band last week. It had dried up and fallen to pieces as soon as I had picked it up.
Lord, I didn’t want my vagina to crumble apart like that.
But then Bella—bless her soul—rolled her eyes and muttered, “Oh, whatever. She doesn’t need a man to get the blood flowing down there. My faithful BOB has kept me more satisfied and elasticized than any human douche ever could.”
Teagan merely shrugged. “It’s more fun with a real penis though. Just saying.”
“Wow,” Lucy murmured, shaking her head. “JB must have some kind of magical cock to make you talk this way because, before him, you were all like, eww, men are so overrated. Sex is gross. Keep it away from me.”
Lifting her chin, Teagan sniffed proudly and rubbed her swollen belly. “He does. It even sparkles in the sunlight.”
“Ack,” I cried, covering my ears with my hands. “It is so impossible to think of JB that way. He’s like a cousin to me, T.”
“You know, you don’t actually have to have sex with anyone,” Bentley spoke up, making me glance at her in confusion. “You just have to make Topher believe you did.”
“Or…” Bella countered. “As much of a showboat as Topher is, the best way to get back at him would be to just move on and be happy. I have a feeling him seeing you moving on without him might drive him crazier than anything.”




Linda writes romance fiction from YA to adult, contemporary to fantasy. Most Kage stories lean more toward the lighter, sillier side with a couple meaningful moments thrown in. Focuses more on entertainment value and emotional impact.
Published since 2010. Went through a 2-year writing correspondence class in children's literature from The Institute of Children's Literature. Then graduated with a Bachelors in Arts, English with an emphasis in creative fiction writing from Pittsburg State University.
Now she lives with hubby, two daughters, cat Holly, and nine cuckoo clocks in southeast Kansas, USA. Farm girl. Parents were dairy farmers. Was youngest of eight. Big family. Day job as a cataloging library assistant.
Harry Potter House Gryffindor, Patronus White Stallion, character match Hagrid. Supernatural Team Dean. Game of Thrones Team Jon Snow and Tyrion Lannister. The Walking Dead Team Daryl. Outlander Team Jamie Fraser. Teen Wolf Team Stiles. Avenger Team Thor...or Hulk (can't decide). Justice League Team Flash. Arrow Team Stephen Amell. Stranger Things obsessed. Heard Laurel, not Yanny.
Started out reading with the Baby-Sitters Club. Then moved to Sandra Brown, Linda Howard, Julie Garwood, and LaVyrle Spencer in high school. Now all over the place with her romance reading tastes.

This is one of those books that was just so good I don’t even know where to start. I guess I should start by saying I am a massive Linda Kage fan, her Forbidden Men series is still one of my all time favourites. I absolutely loved Monster Among the Roses but this one has had me in it’s spell since the first page.
 
I found it a lot less emotional than Monster Among the Roses but that might just be me. I didn’t realise that it was Isobel’s brother in this book until he mentioned her and my little peanut brain perked right up. However this is a true standalone and in no way do you need to read that first it was just great to see Shaw and Isobel for the few brief times they came up.
 
Now obviously everyone knows this was based on Cinderella and I found that it was close enough in similarities but with unique enough twists that it kept me so sucked in and hanging on every word. 
 
Kaitlynn was the perfect Cinderella. She was everything you could want in the role and I immediately loved her. Despite having every reason to she never once played the victim or acted like an idiot. She was so determined to get what she wanted and she was fully prepared to do whatever she had to to get it. I just loved her. 
 
Ezra was the perfect companion for Kaitlynn. And the best prince charming you could ask for. I adored the secondary characters and I am praying that the next novel in this series features who I think it does but if I am wrong I don’t doubt I will still love it. I am sure Linda Kage could write a tampon ad and I would rave about it so if you aren’t already a fan you are missing out. If you are already a fan I am sure you have probably already one clicked this. Either way dive in ASAP.