Guest Review: Ripping Off the Mask by Harper Jewel

Can injured Sgt. Cooper Brandt, with the help of Dr. Westley James, rip off the mask he donned as self-imposed penance at the end of high school, or will fate determine a different path for both men?

Thirteen years after high schooler Cooper Brandt suffered a life-altering tragedy, Newark Police Sergeant Cooper Brandt suffers yet another earthshaking misfortune while on duty. As a result, he lets the mask he donned because of his first grief-filled setback slip. When overwhelming guilt consumes him for a second time, an unexpected, and oftentimes unwanted, helping hand tries to force him into making a choice: face his demons and rip the mask off, or continue living a lie while his facade stays put.

Upon his move to New Jersey, aqua therapist Dr. Westley James meets his toughest patient yet when a snarly police sergeant accuses him of duplicity at the start of their first session. When he discovers the reason for Cooper’s ornery attitude, an odd, empty feeling he’s lived with for as long as he can remember begins to fill in like missing pieces of a puzzle.

As a fragile relationship between Cooper and Westley grows, an unhinged sociopath threatens to ruin everything. Will fate force the emotionally bruised sergeant to fasten his mask on even more tightly, or will the couple’s blooming love and partnership be strong enough to help Cooper rip his mask off for good?

Reviewer: NeRdyWYRM

Unmask Me Anytime, Baby

There isn't anything I didn't like about this story. It was really phenomenal. Cooper tugged on all my heartstrings. There is something to be said for someone who is a professional self-flagellator. I was pulling for him to pull his head out of his ass the whole time. In some ways it was exhausting, but I was invested in his journey and that made it easier.

Westley was a rock for Coop. There was a lot going on. A lot that had to be hard to deal with. Cooper certainly didn't make it easy with his cactus routine, either. Thankfully, Wes was no stranger to hard work or going after what he wanted even if it was hard ... and painful.

I had to reread the blurb so I don't spoil anything too much and it's making this review hard going, I won't lie, because there's so much to say that I just can't! So I'll leave it with a bullet point summary.

There are some great themes in this one: repeated personal tragedies loosely tied to one MCs sexuality, a 'chance' meeting paving the way for a second-first-chance, hurt-comfort, personal growth/realization, lost family ties, a small paranormal twist, murder, mystery, general mayhem and all of that and uniforms, too. Mm-hmm.

You'd think that that many complications in one book could turn into one hot mess, but no. Jewel did an excellent job of twining everything in the plot into a cohesive and fluid story that pushed all my buttons.

I'm going to keep it simple because I really can't do anything else. Read this book. Read it now. It's that good.



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An ARC copy of this title was provided for an honest review.

Review: Mirror of Obsession by Harper Jewel

When fifteen-year-old Devin Hughes created his phantom lover to help him keep his sexual identity a secret, he never imagined that Brice would materialize in the flesh ten years later. Convinced that the mind-blowing encounters he had with his hunky specter were nothing more than fevered hallucinations, Dev attempts to push Brice to the back of his mind and concentrate on his rising career as an advertising executive. 

With the help of his newest client, Englishman Matthew Lyons, CEO of Lyons Security, Devin is able to forget Brice once and for all. Sparks fly between Dev and Matt, and they speed full-throttle into a relationship. During a month-long separation, Devin struggles with uncertainty and reverts to his “hurt them before they hurt you” attitude, forcing him to get a grip and make things right or lose Matt altogether.

When an obsessed Brice finds out about Devin’s new relationship, his rage reaches an all-time high. The two men have ruined all his plans, and he will stop at nothing to reach his goal: harvesting Devin’s soul. 

Will Devin, with Matthew’s help, find a way to banish Brice forever, or will they both succumb to the satanic powers of a maniacal demon?

The story sounded pretty cool. Dev has an "imaginary friend" in his mirror who ends up being real. Not only real, but a demon. He becomes obsessed with Dev and becomes jealous of his new boyfriend, to the point of attacking. Sounds good to me! I'm in.

Nope. Nope, nope, nope.

1.) I can't stand blurbs that tell the entire story. With spoilers! What's the points of reading the book? I already know what happens.

2.) It felt like two separate books. One paranormal story and then a contemp romance. The demon storyline was completely separate from Dev and Matt's relationship, except for a little in the beginning and a little in the end. The demon was gone for most of the story, or when he did show up he was with someone else. I guess I was expecting more of a haunting type situation. A melding of the two story lines throughout the entire novella, with more anticipation for the big climax ending, would have really helped.

3.) The big climax ending.  The demon said stuff like, "Too fucking bad, losers." while they were having their fight to the death. Oh boy. It came off as really cheesy to me, like a corny supervillian or something.

4.) The dialogue and pet names. They called each other 'boo' and 'ducky'. I've never heard anyone call someone 'boo' in seriousness. And I've never heard anyone use 'ducky', ever. It was weird and off-putting. I'm sorry, but screaming, "You really know how to push my buttons, ducky!" during an orgasm is just not sexy. Not at all. 

One more thing...

5.) Matt and Dev were sooooooooooo sappy and fake. "Devin... there's a wildfire raging inside of me that only you can extinguish." *gags* I don't think people actually talk like that. Or if they do, I never hear it. Thank jebeezus for small favors. There was so much insta-love I was drowning in it. I don't mind a fast-paced relationship when I can feel it. I felt nothing between them. Just lots of filler-type banter and sex. 

The story was choppy, the relationship was contrived, the dialogue was just... off. 

A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.