No Place Like Home by Annabelle Jacobs Blog Tour

Will Oliver get the gift he’s hoping for this Christmas?

Oliver Walker’s Christmas is shaping up to be a quiet one. That is until hunky neighbour Ed Middleton moves in next door.

Attraction is instant, but Ed is only there temporarily and neither wants to start something with an expiration date.

As the festive season approaches, holiday cheer wraps around them, and giving in to temptation is inevitable. But Ed is still set on moving in the new year—a fresh start, miles away from those he’s closest to.

If Oliver doesn’t want to lose his heart, he’ll have to show Ed that home is wherever he wants it to be, and love is possible no matter what.

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Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
I really enjoyed this holiday story – it may be centred around Christmas, but actually it would be a good read at any time of the year.

Ed and his sisters have inherited their aunt's home, and decide to do it up and sell it. Ed moves in so that he can work on it, and because he has recently sold his house in readiness to moving up North. All his family are local, but after a bad break up he is moving back to work with Uni friends. As we learn later, this is mainly due to unkind accusations made by his (obviously) nasty ex-boyfriend.

Oliver lives next door with his grandmother, as he and his brother are assessing how much care she might need, and he is saving for his own property, so it seemed like a double win. Thing is though, he really enjoys her company, and now there is the benefit of his very fit new neighbour, Ed!

As the two men get to know each other and live with the knowledge that it is a time limited relationship due to Ed moving away, we (and almost all their friends and family) can see that they are perfect together. Ed, however, is still suffering from the hit to his self-esteem – read on to find out how everything gets straightened out and why – it is very neat.

Well written, with a good range of characters and a lovely rescue cat, this did an excellent job of bringing some Christmas cheer!

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Connect with Annabelle

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Escape by Annabelle Jacobs Blog Tour

This isn’t the life Cole dreamt of, but what choice does he have?

With his twenty-fifth birthday behind him, Cole Moreton now faces the shifter compatibility test which will decide his future. Testing positive means joining a pack and eventually taking the bite. Unfortunately, with enviable skills in self-defence and hand-to-hand combat, the kind of packs interested in him aren’t any he’d want to join.

Logan has been a member of the McKillan pack for most of his life. Pack is family and loyalty is everything, but when the shifter government turns out to be no better than the oppressive humans before them, he questions everything.

Right from their first meeting, Logan knows that a life with the McKillan pack isn’t right for Cole, but with his alpha taking a keen interest in Cole’s skills, Logan’s hands are tied. Mutual attraction builds between them, but acting on it is futile—helping Cole will put their lives at risk and an end to any future they could’ve had.

Book 1
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~  Also Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
This is a creepy, action-packed dystopian thriller set in London. In the not too distant future, humans are ruled and controlled by shifter packs. When 25-year-old Cole takes his mandatory Shifter Compatibility Tests, he is faced with terrifying options for his future. To escape, Cole is forced to place his trust in Logan, the shifter tasked with easing him into the McKillan Pack. The result is a terrifying game of cat and mouse as Logan attempts to help Cole to safety.

This is an exciting read. I’m not always a fan of dystopian writing but I really loved the world building here. I also love the familiar UK setting. I’m not sure if this is futuristic or set in a parallel now, but I enjoyed the nods to current and historic events. Some scenes made me reflect on current politics while others reminded me of the Resistance in WW2 or the Underground Railway in America.

It took time for me to warm to the characters in this book, mostly because they all need to work hard to blend in to survive their oppressive shifter government. At the start, Cole and Logan are both deliberately bland and beige and it isn’t until they start taking risks that they begin to feel more like individuals. By the end, I really loved them both and they are both interesting enough characters to carry the series. While this is marketed as m/m romance, there really isn’t much romance in the book. It’s a dystopian thriller. I really enjoyed this first book and I’m already looking forward to the next book in the series.


Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Escape is the debut in a new series by Annabelle Jacobs, Rebellion.

With a mix of dystopian and urban fantasy, Escape had a dark, hopeless vibe, which had me turning the pages at a rapid pace.

At the start, we get a small prologue showing the events that led to the current administration. Shifters were the minority, held under what was essentially a police state. With an uprising to even the balance, it pitched the opposite direction, with the humans being held under a police state, with the shifters in power. Opposite ends of the same atrocity.

Twenty-three-year-olds are forced to be tested to see if they're compatible to be changed into a shifter. Bitten. Then they are affiliated with packs, which hold varying amounts of power, as well as contribute to different parts of the governmental structure.

Cole is terrified, as it's a one-in-four chance of having the gene, with his parents and two siblings testing negative. The odds weren't on his side, as he was terrified of becoming a monster. Having tested high in the martial arts and weaponry, Cole knew he would be enlisted into the most cruel sector, where they patrolled/controlled the humans, and if the rumors were correct, he would be forced to take the bite.

Logan is a recruiter, the one who touches base with those who test positive, making sure they're placed where they best fit, signing the contract.

Cole and Logan's lives collide, showcasing how dark and hopeless their lives are on each side, both human and shifter.

What I want to applaud Annabelle Jacobs for is the world building. Solid, easy to understand, a fully formed world, with structures explained in a non-info-dump fashion, unfolding organically as the story was told.

Dark and depressive, a hopeless air that lent perfectly to a rebellion. The pacing was swift, unraveling all the reader needed to know, ending on a slight cliffhanger as the setup for the sequel.

The reason I couldn't pass out a five-star rating is simply because the character development and the romantic entanglement suffered with how thorough the world building was presented. Honestly, I preferred the world building being explained to the character building.

While I adore slow-burn, I wouldn't call it slow-burn between Logan and Cole, because of how very little they share page-time together. So that connection for me was missing. Lust, I could understand. But even though it was near the end of the novel, declarations of love felt out of place and too soon, because of how very little they interacted with one another prior to that to build the foundation necessary.

Highly recommend to fans of the author and those looking for something different, with a solid world building structure, bridging the gap between dystopian and urban fantasy.

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Connect with Annabelle

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Escape (Rebellion #1) by Annabelle Jacobs to read and review for this tour.

Wounded Soul by Annabelle Jacobs Blog Tour

One night can change everything…

Jesse Sykes has lived far longer than his youthful appearance suggests. Becoming a vampire after tragedy struck seemed the only option when his soul was shattered, after all he’s no stranger to having to hide what he is from the rest of the world. But eternal life isn’t without problems or heartache.

With a good job and great friends, Ian Moreton’s life would be almost perfect—if only he wasn’t in love with his best friend. His feelings are unrequited, and in an effort to move on, he takes a chance on a one-night stand with the handsome stranger he meets in a bar.

Jesse knows the risks of becoming attached to a human, but with neither of them looking for anything serious, where’s the harm? At least, that’s what Jesse thinks until his chemistry with Ian proves off the charts.

A second hook-up solidifies their connection… and brings Jesse to his senses. He scrambles to protect Ian from danger, but it’s already too late. With Ian unwittingly drawn into a world he knows nothing about, events are set in motion that will change both of their lives forever, and it’s up to Jesse to steer them safely through it.

Buy Links

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~  Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
3 Frustrating Stars

While maintaining a spoiler-free review, I will begin by saying my opinions will undoubtedly be in the minority.

I felt the characters' actions were driven to push the plot forward to a predetermined ending, with little regard to whether or not those actions were in line with who and what the character was written to be.

Example: a coven leader making the choice to send an antagonist to watch someone for the person he antognizes, which he's personally witnessed for decades. Raph ensured a trusted task to the very man who tests his authority and is outwardly trying to usurp him, then believes the lies he spins. This bumbling behavior by the man in charge was out of character but meant to be ignored, simply because it caused the drama to propel the plot forward. Using the excuse of how they were currently getting along, for like three pages, doesn't erase how ridiculous this was. Time runs differently for an immortal. Three pages would be a second to a human's day. It would take years of Peter and Ian getting along before Raph would have believed that, after 70 years of constant torment.

The villain progressively getting careless, yet no one could thwart him? How was Peter to explain the staked vampire back at the coven? No proof? IAN WAS THE PROOF.

Quote: Jesse hated it when Peter made sense. Hated having to agree with him. ... There wasn't anything out of Peter's mouth that made sense, so the entire cast of characters ended up looking like fools.

I truly enjoyed the beginning, finding a real connection between Jesse and Ian, even if I felt their actions were too juvenile for their ages. There was some banter, steam, and delicious forbidden angst. But when the action started, I felt nothing but frustration as I witnessed the characters turn, not turn into vampires, but turn into ignorant children.

Obviously this book wasn't meant for me. I'm a huge fan of both MM Romance and Paranormal Romance, but how unintelligent the characters behaved was a major turn-off for me.

To sum the book up in a nutshell: siblings fighting, both holding secrets over the other's head, one wants to tell Daddy but is too scared, and the other is the older bully sibling playing on the younger brother's ignorance and cowardice. Yet they were grown men who had lived an upwards of 100 years... and Daddy was too busy to pay attention to his battling children, and innocents got caught in the crossfire.

At the top of my pet-peeve list is how vampire characters never act their actual age, with maturity and reasoning, but end up coming off as young teens, no matter how old they are portraying.

Not every book can be a hit for every reader, and this was a miss for me. While I personally wasn't a fan, that doesn't mean I don't recommend this novel for readers who enjoy a warm and fuzzy take on vampire culture. As I said, I was rooting for Ian and Jesse from the start, but didn't enjoy the turn the book took.

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Connect with Annabelle

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Wounded Soul by Annabelle Jacobs to read and review for this tour.

Old Acquaintance by Annabelle Jacobs Blog Tour

There are two sides to every story, even those buried in the past.

When Sam spots the hot guy moving in next door, he’s all for going round to introduce himself. That soon changes when it turns out his new neighbour is Charles Whitmore, an old school acquaintance. Sam didn’t like him back then, for good reason, and fifteen years haven’t altered that.

Splitting up from his long-term boyfriend means a move across the city for Charlie. As luck would have it, his immediate neighbour is a guy he went to school with, Sam Gellar. While Sam is less than welcoming, his best mate is more than happy to invite Charlie into their social circle. Whatever problem Sam has with him, Charlie resolves to get to the bottom of it because, frosty beginnings aside, Charlie likes him.

With Christmas just around the corner, fate pushes them together, and they get on much better than they ever did at school. Despite his efforts not to, Sam develops feelings for Charlie, and they appear to be reciprocated. If Sam wants to take things further, he needs to either confront Charlie about their past—a past Charlie seems to have forgotten entirely—or let it go and move on. Sam knows deep down that he can’t let it go, but can’t find the right time to bring it up either.

Buy Links

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~  Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
4 Holiday Warmth stars

Old Acquaintance was the perfect way to spend a chilly afternoon, while donning Christmas jammies, with the tree flickering, and the virtual yule log burning on the TV. In case you're curious, that is indeed how I spent yesterday afternoon, indulging in the holiday spirit while engrossed in some yummy escapism.

Sam and his best mate are lounging around the house when a newcomer arrives to move in to the apartment next door. Come to find out, it's a guy they had gone to school with, one who left a bad taste in Sam's mouth. Too bad Charlie grew up to have an even nicer personality than his equally nice body, making it impossible for Sam to hold a grudge. There's no avoiding Charlie at their complex, the fact Sam is now renovating Charlie's sister's house means they have to spend far too much time together. This all creates a hearty portion of angsty deliciousness.

With a small cast of characters, featuring friends from school and close relatives, this holiday novella is warm and romancy, but still manages to bring depth from fear of being on the rebound and building new relationships.

Definitely recommend to those who love MM romance, looking for some stress-free escapism to get into the holiday spirit.


Angie – ☆☆☆
I think I will probably be in the minority about this story. I was honestly bored through most of the book. I tried to connect with Charlie and Sam, but I just couldn't. Sam is holding a grudge since school and he can't muster the balls to confront Charlie until well over halfway through the book. I wanted to reach through my e-reader and shake some sense into both of them. Ugh... this book had potential, it just didn't hit the mark for me.

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Connect with Annabelle

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Old Acquaintance by Annabelle Jacobs to read and review for this tour.

Butterfly Assassin by Annabelle Jacobs Blog Tour

Clapham Common—a new pack with their own set of problems…

Shifter Aaron Harper gets drawn into illegal underground fighting to keep an eye on his best friend. The thrill of the fight keeps him coming back for more, but discovery could mean imprisonment and banishment from their pack. Without a beta to watch over them, common sense takes a back seat.

Michael Archer of the Shifter Crimes Task Force is investigating recent murders. Despite the brutal cause of death pointing to the work of a shifter’s claws, instinct tells him a well-known nightclub owner is involved, but they have no proof.

Aaron and Michael’s paths cross after another body with the same injuries is discovered. With Aaron finding himself on the wrong side of the SCTF and Michael looking for a killer, any attraction between them is both ill-advised and unlikely. But fate has other ideas.

Set in the Regent’s Park pack world.

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~  Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Annabelle Jacobs is a new-to-me author.

Butterfly Assassin has a dark and gritty vibe of a police procedural novel involving the mafia, with a side of shifter politics as the paranormal world-building. Aaron is a shifter fighter in an illegal bare-knuckle fighting ring, doing so to protect his gambler of a best buddy.

Michael is a detective trying to solve a string of shifter murders, which he assumes is done by 'Mr. Smith,' lord of the illegal underbelly.

Extremely fact-based, Butterfly Assassin is the epitome of a police procedural combined with Urban Fantasy. Without any humor, no spark of flirtation or romance, my mind played a trick on me by reading the narration in a flat, dry tone, which is completely on me.

The premise was plotted well, which is why I rated a book that wasn't my cup of tea four stars. Tight and concise, the dark and gritty vibe was consistent from start to finish. While there was a thread of interest by the narrators, and they do eventually give into temptation, personally for me, I needed a bit more character and relationship development. I could buy there being attraction but absolutely nothing past a quick hookup to satisfy an urge, because there was no intimacy shown on page to solidify a partnership of any kind.

The sleuthing and mystery was so intense, any and all romance was buried deep, to the point I didn't develop an emotional connection to the narrators. That was my issue in a nutshell. While well-written and developed plot-wise, the characters didn't resonate with me because I couldn't/didn't connect with them emotionally, which had me losing interest in their journey. Not just on the romance front, but I never connected to either narrator.

I continued to the end to see how the murder plot was solved, having no hook with either Aaron or Michael or the side cast of characters.

While not to my tastes, I do recommend to readers looking for a serious take on a police procedural featuring Urban Fantasy elements.


Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
I loved the world building in this book. Straddling the line between Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance, the author presents readers with a gritty and slightly dystopian version of London where humans and shifters live uneasily together.

The urban fantasy elements of the story add interest to a relatively simple police procedural. I enjoyed the conflict between the human police and the shifter packs, and the intricate pack hierarchies makes the investigation even more complicated.

But while I enjoyed the police hunt for a shifter serial killer, I didn’t fully engage with the romance between Michael and Aaron. I think my main problem is that there really isn’t any romance. The hook-up to happily ever after connection between these two offers a few hot scenes but bypasses the emotions, the friendship, and the building sexual tension that get me to invest in a romance. The happily ever after in this book is a paranormal romance construct that sits awkwardly on an otherwise gritty urban fantasy read. I like these characters and with proper development they could easily support a series. They didn’t need a happily ever after in this book.

I’d like to see more stories in this world. This book has great promise as the start of a series if it ditches the paranormal romance constructs and develops the gritty and non-conventional elements of this story.

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Connect with Annabelle

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Butterfly Assassin by Annabelle Jacobs to read and review for this tour.

Maybe This Time by Annabelle Jacobs Blog Tour

Moving into a new home starts with a bang when Ryan Blackwell celebrates turning thirty. Being hungover means he’s bleary-eyed and clumsy the next day, but even in that state, he can appreciate how sexy and fit his neighbour is.

Matt Thomas isn’t looking for anything long-term—one and done is usually his life rule. Why settle down early, like his sister, when casual relationships are so easy? With Ryan living in the same building, chance encounters are inevitable. When one night together becomes two, a friends-with-benefits deal seems a natural progression.

There’s only one problem: sex with no strings relies on matching expectations, so Ryan can’t help worrying. His huge heart always wants more, but Matt’s been clear about his limits. As passion leads to caring, they’ll have to make some tough decisions—maybe this time, breaking some rules will be worth it if that means they’ll get to share a future.

Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
~  Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆
This is a sweet, easy read, which had some slightly dopey moments, and I wasn't a fan of the whole Ryan being permanently three sheets to the wind situation.

It was nice not to have any great dramas, just two guys who somehow work out what is really important to them and take a risk. There were definitely some interesting side characters and some really annoying ones!

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Connect with Annabelle

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads


Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Maybe This Time by Annabelle Jacobs to read and review for this tour.