Book Review: The Midnight Shift by Cheon Seon-Ran

The Midnight Shift
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Pub Date: 14 August 2025 (Original: 11 June 2021)
Genre: Paranormal Mystery

Panda Rating:

(3 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

For fans of A Man Called Ove, a charming, witty and compulsively readable exploration of friendship, reckoning, and hope, tracing a widow’s unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopus.

After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.

Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors–until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late.

Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Death, suicide, dementia, blood, drug abuse, debt, murder

TL;DR: I loved the premise The Midnight Shift more than I did the execution. I don’t actually have that much to say about the book—it didn’t leave a lasting impression on me in the way that I thought it could’ve. It’s an interesting take on a vampire story and one that I don’t recall having read before, but overall, I felt so little emotional connection to the story, that it just fell flat-ish.

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ARC Review: Temping Is Hell by Cathy Yardley

Special thanks to Literary Media Tours and the author for providing me a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Temping Is Hell (Necessary Evil #1)
Publication Date: 30 October 2025
Genre: Paranormal Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

WORST. JOB. EVER. Kate O’Hara can’t wait until this temp assignment is over. The woman who hired her is a psychotic drama queen, her coworkers are convicts-turned-clerks, and it’s so boring and pointless it makes her skin crawl. Even working with temptation-on-legs CEO Thomas Kestrel won’t sway her — he’s a billionaire with a rep for being ruthless, and as far as she’s concerned, that’s a hard pass. Once she makes enough to pay off her bills, she’s out of this corporate cube farm. Or so she thinks…

WHAT THE HELL? Next thing she knows, she’s accidentally signed over her soul. Literally. And she’s discovered Thomas’s real mission: to kill thirteen bad guys in one year, in order to get his—now his and Kate’s—souls back.

IT’S NOT JUST A JOB. IT’S A MISADVENTURE. From learning to boost the morale of some paper-pushing demons to navigating her way through blood-red tape, Kate has to work closely with her super-hot boss and get her flaky act together, before somebody clocks her out—permanently!

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Gaslighting, cancer, death (recounted, on-page), suicide, blood, violence, attempted murder

TL;DR: Temping Is Hell was a wild paranormal fantasy romcom romp! 🤣 It was definitely a bit bonkers but I mean that in a good way because it was so entertaining and I had a great time reading it! Kate, with her completely unfiltered chaos brain, and Thomas, the billionaire who needs to get his act together, were such an unlikely pairing, but I loved how her chaotic good energy grounded him. The ‘sold-my-soul-to-a-demon’ plot kept me completely engaged and it was fun learning about what happens when you do something like that—it’s not good, that’s for sure! I enjoyed the friendships, the banter, the sarcasm, and the chaos. Overall, this was a fun and humorous read that I would recommend if you’re looking for a paranormal romcom, especially for the spooky season~!

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Book Review: Whispers of the Deep by Emma Hamm

Whispers of the Deep
Pub Date: 7 January 2024
Genre: Adult Paranormal/Monster Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas!)

📖 SYNOPSIS

One of the many engineers that keeps Beta, the city under the sea, running, Mira only wants to make her family proud and to prove herself worthy. She knows the mysterious city better than anyone and it’s her dream to help it flourish.

But then, on a solo job in an abandoned section of the city, she encounters a monster of legend. An undine. A dangerous merman from an ancient civilization, long forgotten.

Arges has fought his entire life for his people. With deadly creatures under his control, he plans to eradicate Beta once and for all to protect his kind and their peaceful way of life. But when a human woman saves him, she unknowingly creates a bond between them, one he can’t ignore. Even though her flaming red hair haunts his dreams, he needs her for information on the undine’s enemies.

So he steals her. Keeps her. Feeds her. Only to realize their bond is far deeper than captor and captive. He cannot let her go—but he cannot keep her under the sea. In a battle to determine if love can survive a war beneath the waves, it will be their decision that changes the tides.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Xenophobia, attempted murder, gun violence, knife violence, stabbing, blood, death

TL;DR: Am I kicking off the 2025 spooky season with a monster romance? I sure am and I’m 100% here for it! 🤭 While it did take me longer than expected to finish due to some pacing issues, I overall really enjoyed it and I’m keen to continue the series. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a (very) slow-burn, enemies to lovers, mainly character driven monster romance set in a futuristic world where humans live in underwater cities.

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Book Review: The Agent and the Outlaw by Lily Riley

The Agent and the Outlaw (Les Dames Dangereuses#2)
Publisher: City Owl Press
Pub Date: 19 May 2022
Genre: Historical Paranormal Romance

Panda Rating:

(3.75 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

The murder of a marquis, an accidental kidnapping, an elite vampire death squad, and a beast stalking the French countryside? All in a day’s work for a member of the les Dames Dangereuses.

As the most enviable comtesse of the tonne, Charlotte de Brionne was almost satisfied with her wealth, power, and rather tepid marriage, until her murderous husband betrayed her.

Now she has seized the chance to make a more adventurous start with les Dames Dangereuses, an order of women spies in service to the French crown. But her latest assignment is rudely interrupted when she is kidnapped by a crossbow-wielding madman, who turns out to be not at all mad only rather surly and annoyingly handsome.

Lieutenant Antoine de Valle has no idea what to make of the exasperating, untrustworthy, and frustratingly beautiful woman he’s suddenly saddled with, but his honor demands he see Charlotte safely home. Especially since it’s his fault she accidentally witnesses his murder of a marquis, ends up on the wrong end of a brutal vampire death squad, and barely survives an encounter with the Beast of Gévaudan.

In fact, the more Antoine tries to keep Charlotte safe, the more trouble they find themselves in. And the harder it is for Antoine to remember his honor in the face of Charlotte’s dangerous charms.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Murder, blood

TL;DR: This was an action-packed supernatural/paranormal historical romance set in an alternate 1700s France where the blood plague runs rampant and vampires have taken over Paris. Despite being a little [too] instalust/love, I liked the romance between Charlotte and Antoine, and I found their dynamic, banter and chemistry to be fantastic. I didn’t know whether they would fight or give in to their feelings and tear each other’s clothes off, but I do know it kept me on my toes and eagerly anticipating what would happen next. If you like a lot of action and a bit of mystery with your slightly angsty and intense romances, I’d recommend it!

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Book Review: Black Water Sister by Zen Cho

Black Water Sister
Publisher: Macmillan
Pub Date: 11 May 2021
Genre: Speculative Fiction

Panda Rating:

(4.5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

A reluctant medium discovers the ties that bind can unleash a dangerous power in this compelling Malaysian-set contemporary fantasy.

Jessamyn Teoh is closeted, broke and moving back to Malaysia, a country she left when she was a toddler. So when Jess starts hearing voices, she chalks it up to stress. But there’s only one voice in her head, and it claims to be the ghost of her estranged grandmother, Ah Ma. In life Ah Ma was a spirit medium, the avatar of a mysterious deity called the Black Water Sister. Now she’s determined to settle a score against a gang boss who has offended the god–and she’s decided Jess is going to help her do it.

Drawn into a world of gods, ghosts, and family secrets, Jess finds that making deals with capricious spirits is a dangerous business. As Jess fights for retribution for Ah Ma, she’ll also need to regain control of her body and destiny. If she fails, the Black Water Sister may finish her off for good.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Gang violence, attempted kidnapping, sexual assault and attempted rape, attempted murder, murder, racism, homophobia

TL;DR: I’m so glad that I finally read my first book by Zen Cho. I’ve heard many great things about Cho’s work and even though this was well outside my comfort zone with all the paranormal activity (ghosts, possessions, etc.), I’m so glad I gave it a chance because I ended up loving it! There was so much to appreciate in Black Water Sister from the strong characters and themes to the simmering rage thrumming through these pages. On a more personal level, the sociocultural elements and parts of Jess’s story were so relatable as they are also part of my experience, which made the story more impactful for me as a reader. I would highly recommend this if you are looking for speculative fiction with non-Western roots, a flawed yet relatable main character, and a thrilling story about revenge, forgiveness, family, and belonging.

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Mini Series Review: Hidden Legacy by Ilona Andrews

If you’ve been on the blog lately you’ve seen that I developed a mild obsession with the Hidden Legacy Series by Ilona Andrews. I’ve finished the first three Nevada Baylor books in the series over the last two days and I’m already itching to read more! 😂 I do get wordy in these mini-reviews so… TL;DR: This series is amazing. With awesome world-building, a fascinating House magic system, and characters who are so easy to root for and who end up feeling like family, this is a series I would recommend to those who love their paranormal urban fantasies coupled with (a bit of) steamy romance!

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Book Review: Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews

Clean Sweep (Innkeeper Chronicles #1)
Publisher: NYLA
Pub Date: 2 December 2013
Genre: Paranormal Fantasy Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

his is a short novel, about 60,000 words.

On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is…different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, “normal” is a bit of a stretch for Dina.

And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night…Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans—an alpha-strain werewolf—and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Violence, gore, blood, explosion, disappearance of a parent, animal death

2023 is apparently my year of reading Ilona Andrews and I’m not mad about it at all. They have a pretty formulaic way of storytelling that I thankfully really enjoy and it also means I know exactly what I’m getting. Clean Sweep didn’t disappoint and I can’t wait to continue on with the rest of the series!

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Book Review: My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine

My Roommate is a Vampire
Publisher: Berkley
Pub Date: 29 August 2023
Genre: Contemporary Paranormal Romance

Panda Rating:

(3.5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

True love is at stake in this charming, debut romantic comedy.

Cassie Greenberg loves being an artist, but it’s a tough way to make a living. On the brink of eviction, she’s desperate when she finds a too-good-to-be-true apartment in a beautiful Chicago neighborhood. Cassie knows there has to be a catch—only someone with a secret to hide would rent out a room for that price.

Of course, her new roommate Frederick J. Fitzwilliam is far from normal. He sleeps all day, is out at night on business, and talks like he walked out of a regency romance novel. He also leaves Cassie heart-melting notes around the apartment, cares about her art, and asks about her day. And he doesn’t look half bad shirtless, on the rare occasions they’re both home and awake. But when Cassie finds bags of blood in the fridge that definitely weren’t there earlier, Frederick has to come clean…

Cassie’s sexy new roommate is a vampire. And he has a proposition for her.

TL;DR: My Roommate is a Vampire was a funny and entertaining romance. This was a romcom that had plenty of romance and comedy with an additional paranormal twist in its modern-day setting! Cassie and Frederick were an endearingly awkward and cute vampire and human duo who were simply trying to figure out how to share the same space without giving in to the burning attraction they felt for each other knowing what a bad idea it would be to give in. Ultimately, this was a story that didn’t seem to take itself too seriously and I think if you’re looking for a laugh-out-loud read with cute feel-good moments, plus a couple of steamy ones too, then I would recommend this!

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Book Review: A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating A Demon by Sarah Hawley

A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating A Demon
Publisher: Gollancz
Pub Date: 9 March 2023
Genre: Contemporary Paranormal Romance

Panda Rating:

(3 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Mariel Spark knows not to trust a demon, especially one that wants her soul, but what’s a witch to do when he won’t leave her side—and she kind of doesn’t want him to?

Mariel Spark is prophesied to be the most powerful witch seen in centuries of the famed Spark family, but to the displeasure of her mother, she prefers baking to brewing potions and gardening to casting hexes. When a spell to summon flour goes very wrong, Mariel finds herself staring down a demon—one she inadvertently summoned for a soul bargain.

Ozroth the Ruthless is a legend among demons. Powerful and merciless, he drives hard bargains to collect mortal souls. But his reputation has suffered ever since a bargain went awry—if he can strike a bargain with Mariel, he will earn back his deadly reputation. Ozroth can’t leave Mariel’s side until they complete a bargain, which she refuses to do (turns out some humans are attached to their souls).

But the witch is funny. And curvy. And disgustingly yet endearingly cheerful. Becoming awkward roommates quickly escalates when Mariel, terrified to confess the inadvertent summoning to her mother, blurts out that she’s dating Ozroth. As Ozroth and Mariel struggle with their opposing goals and maintaining a fake relationship, real attraction blooms between them. But Ozroth has a limited amount of time to strike the deal, and if Mariel gives up her soul, she’ll lose all her emotions—including love—which will only spell disaster for them both.

TL;DR: This has been one of my hotly anticipated paranormal romances and while it started out strong, the overall execution fell a bit flat for me. At first, I found the writing witty, the characters funny and their narration entertaining but somewhere along the way, I found myself connecting with it less and less until I was glad that it was finally over. Mariel and Oz have interesting arcs, the mystery of the sick forest was compelling and I was all for standing up against the environmental destruction of such a magical place and against toxic families. Ultimately though, I think there was too much stuffed into this to really do each part of it justice and I wanted more despite also thinking that this could have been shorter. Considering how well-loved this is though, this might just be an “it’s not you, it’s me” thing so take this review as you will! 🤷🏻‍♀️

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Book Review: The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Pub Date: 23 August 2022
Genre: Cosy Paranormal Romance

Panda Rating:

(5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

She found magic in the most unlikely of places.

Mika Moon follows three rules: hide your magic, keep your head down, and stay away from other witches. Mika is good at being alone, and she doesn’t mind it . . . mostly.

But when an unexpected invitation arrives to teach three young witches at the mysterious Nowhere House, Mika jumps at the chance for a different life. As she comes to care for its quirky inhabitants – and Jamie, the handsome but prickly librarian – finally belonging somewhere feels like a real possibility.

But magic isn’t the only danger in the world – is it worth risking everything to protect the found family Mika didn’t know she was looking for?

A warm and uplifting novel about an isolated witch whose opportunity to embrace a new family – and a new love – changes the course of her life.

TL;DR: If you’re looking for a cosy, heartwarming, and touching story about discovering your place, finding a family, and creating a home, then this is absolutely the book for you. If you want your heart to burst with all the feel-goodness this has to offer and if you love to read about endearing characters with giant hearts, a couple of secrets, and their share of trauma to work through, this is it. It honestly felt like I was reading The House in the Cerulean Sea but make it more diverse, inclusive, whimsical, cheekily sexy and romantic! 😍 If you’re a fan of cosy witchy goodness then what are you waiting for? Read this ASAP!

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