Ryder: Shadows and Desires – Charlotte Mallory

4/5 stars

The sheer POWER and sex appeal that Ryder exudes is absolutely ridiculous. God, that man….as an MMA adjacent wrestling fan, GOD BLESS Charlotte for writing this! Time to sigh over another fictional man for ages lol

I appreciate Julie’s growth in this book. She was really coming into her own with the gym towards the end. Her whole life practically stopped when Jeremy died, and it was nice to see her finally starting to process what had happened and pick herself back up. I’m in love with Dolores and Tiffany; they’re so good for Julie!

I think Heather might end up being one of my most disliked characters. What an absolute psycho! I’m really interested in seeing what sort of chaos she tries to pull in the next book and how Julie weathers the storm. She’s a lot stronger now, and I hope that carries into book 2!

I’m definitely looking forward to more dirty talk from Ryder, too…..the MOUTH on that man **swoon**