Book Review: Skylark (The SEAL Saga, #1) by Megan Michelle

Skylark by Megan Michelle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Gripping military action and slow-burn romance!

Skylark is the first book in author Megan Michelle’s new military action romance series, The SEAL Saga, and it is a gripping and addictive beginning. With its engaging main protagonists, well-defined secondary characters, intriguing storyline, and atmospheric settings, the book provided a cinematic reading experience that was nearly impossible to set aside.

Commander Rachel Ryker is the first female SEAL, and her team’s current assignment sends them back to Afghanistan in search of a dangerous and well-known but elusive terrorist, who has stolen secret malware that could destroy the power grid of any country it is deployed in, including the United States. As she and her close-knit group settle into their Khost safe house, her immediate role in their mission is to befriend the women at the local mosque, in hopes of gaining insight into the whereabouts of their target.

Rachel is a strong woman, a strong leader, with strong opinions and an unwavering belief in herself and her ability to make a difference in the world. Her independent nature has created a complicated relationship with her family, particularly with her father, a high-ranking naval officer, to whom she has lied about her true position as a SEAL, believing he would interfere with her assignments. She has instead developed her own “family” of sorts, consisting of the men under her command. The team’s second-in-command, Lieutenant Commander Christopher Williams, is her best friend. Still, there is a palpable attraction between the two that they refuse to acknowledge, preferring to maintain their working relationship and career momentum, at least for now. The camaraderie among team members is great, and the author excels at clever yet natural-sounding repartee.

While the book is fairly lengthy for its type, coming in at over 450 pages, it is necessary as there is a lot of ground to cover, missions to set up, and relationships to establish. The author achieves this by weaving it all together in diverse ways as the story progresses, without relying on simple info-dumping. The descriptions of the settings are vibrant and lively, making even a shopping excursion come to life. Every step through Afghan society and every drive through town is laden with suspense as the characters never know where danger may be lurking. Action sequences are electric, well-choreographed, and easy to follow, at times with tragic consequences that kept me truly and emotionally invested. These characters quickly became more than words on a page, evolving into the people I felt I really knew.

I recommend SKYLARK to readers of military action stories, especially those who enjoy a touch of slow-burn romance.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy through WOW! Women On Writing Book Tours.


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Review Tour & Giveaway: The Winter Sorcerer and the Summer Witch by D. Lieber

THE WINTER SORCERER AND

THE SUMMER WITCH

by

D. Lieber

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by

Goddess Fish Promotions.

Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Fantasy Romance

Publisher: Ink & Magick

Publication Date: May 20, 2025

Page count: 320 pages

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SYNOPSIS:

Modern witches from rival factions. A marriage of convenience. Spells and sparks fly in this slice-of-life fantasy romance.

 

Whittaker Crawford is the perfect winter sorcerer—practical and self-reliant—but his quiet life is turned upside down when his grandfather gives him an ultimatum. If he wants to inherit the ancestral home he’s spent years restoring, he has to get married. In need of cheering up, his friend convinces him to do something dangerous: crash a summer witch party.

 

Clover Bronwen is an average summer witch—free-spirited and optimistic. But lately she has longed for a change. A masked stranger at a Halloween party is just the sort of intrigue she’s looking for.

 

The centuries-old feud between the summer and winter factions may no longer be an all-out war, but their rivalry and disdain are still very much alive. As Whit and Clover adjust to one another, their bonds with family and friends fray. How much are they willing to sacrifice for an enemy they just met?

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ENJOY AN EXCERPT:

With a sudden gust of wintry wind, the warm campfire was blown out, and everyone was plunged into darkness. 

Gasps and murmurs traveled through the group. “A bad omen,” someone whispered near Whit over the sound of Alexandre’s snickering.

 

Of course, Alexandre wasn’t about to let an opening like that go.

 

“Don’t worry,” the Swedish Chef said. “Even the darkest night comes to an end. Take the hands of those on either side of you.”

 

Whit took Alexandre’s hand and squeezed it in warning. That’s enough. Even if their magic is waning, they could mess us up with this many of them here. We aren’t at full power either.

 

Whit stiffened as a jolt ran through him when the woman on his other side slipped her hand into his.

 

Her hand was small and thin but warm.

 

“Fear not the darkness, fear not the night,” the Swedish Chef said.

 

Everyone else, including Whit and Alexandre repeated his words.

 

“We spark this fire with inner light.”

 

As everyone repeated the spell, the magic of the summer witch holding Whit’s hand flowed into him. It was heady and intoxicating like a humid rain in a garden bursting with violets, lilies, orchids, and gardenias. The sweetness of honey and plum were mellowed by the depth of amber and vanilla. Whit’s head spun as her magic filled him with giddiness.

 

He turned his head toward her while the fire sparked back to life, reawakened by the collective magic.

 

Her face tilted up at him, and their eyes met in the dim flicker of the fire’s glow.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

D. Lieber has a wanderlust that would make a butterfly envious. When she isn’t planning her next physical adventure, she’s recklessly jumping from one fictional world to another. Her love of reading led her to earn a Bachelor’s in English from Wright State University.

 

Beyond her skeptic and slightly pessimistic mind, Lieber wants to believe. She has been many places—from Canada to England, France to Italy, Germany to Russia—believing that a better world comes from putting a face on “other.” She is a romantic idealist at heart, always fighting to keep her feet on the ground and her head in the clouds.

 

Lieber lives in Wisconsin with her husband (John) and cats (Yin and Nox).

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REVIEW:

5 stars!

An “opposites attract” spark sets off a delightful slow-burn romance in this magical marriage of convenience tale! 

The Winter Sorcerer and the Summer Witch by D. Lieber is an absolutely delightful tale combining an ‘opposites attract’ and slow-burn romance with a marriage of convenience storyline. I enjoyed this book so much that I’m still smiling about it days later! 

Winter sorcerer Whittaker “Whit” Crawford must marry before the upcoming winter solstice, or his grandfather is going to change his will and leave the ancestral home, the only home Whit has ever known and has lovingly restored room by room, to a cousin with children. As all the winter witches he’s familiar with tend to be very cautious, careful planners and loath to make any decision without time-consuming deliberations, time Whit doesn’t have, he puts his chances of marrying one before the deadline as slim to none. Depressed and in need of cheering up, Whit and his best friend secretly crash a Halloween party in the woods held by the summer faction. There, he rescues a summer witch named Clover from the annoying attentions of one of the other guests. He is surprised and intrigued when she rewards his actions with a kiss. The next day, he begins to wonder if Clover Bronwen might be the answer to his problems. 

Clover and Whit are an adorably fun and relatable pair, both with hopes and dreams that aren’t much different from each other, although she’s sunshiny and spontaneous while he’s deliberate and far from impulsive – usually. They are perfect for each other. Their interactions, as they got to know each other, made me smile from the start, and I was all in for them to overcome all obstacles on their way to a happy ending. 

While the plot has all the earmarks of several romance tropes, they are combined with an unusual backstory that makes them feel fresh, fun, and exciting. The existence of two factions of magic users, based on the seasonal solstices of winter and summer, was an intriguing element that set up a wildly different “mixed marriage” scenario. Their slow-burn romance progressed at a pace that kept me completely engaged, making me read “just one more chapter” again and again. 

I recommend THE WINTER SORCERER AND THE SUMMER WITCH to romance readers who enjoy a paranormal element in their stories and fresh takes on the opposites attract, sunshine/grumpy, marriage of convenience, or slow-burn romantic tropes.

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