Creature from the Monster Smash Book Bash

by Dakota Cockaday

Malcolm
It’s a weird place to be both happy and incredibly jealous of people who are practically family, but watching the men who are practically brothers to me live in domestic bliss with their newly bonded omega gives me hope. As astronomical as the odds are, maybe my omega is out there somewhere.

Elizabeth
I'm not expecting much of anything other than maxing out my credit card when I arrive at the Wyatt Hotel for the Monster Smash Book Bash. But the hot man dressed as a mascot for the trade show at the convention next door has got my attention like no one else before, though he sees really attached to that lizard suit he's wearing...

The Creatureverse takes place in an alternate world Baltimore where government experiments managed to escape the lab and hide in the hidden underground water ways, become secret vigilantees for what's right, all while also hoping to stumble across their Omega, of course.

It is an MF Omegaverse and campy homage to the Monsterotica Book Con.

106 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 20, 2026

About the author

Dakota Cockaday is the pen name of the most unexciting woman in the world. Dakota loves paranormal and true crime podcasts, romance books about aliens, and chicken tamales. She always wants to pet your dog or see pictures of your cat. Dakota hoards blank notebooks like it’s her job. She has no spare time, so she writes when she really should be cleaning the house. You can reach her at dakota.cockaday@gmail.com.

Reviews

[Puppets & Paperbacks · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an ARC read

This is a monster romance and omegaverse romance with spice. Make sure you know what those things mean before you read

This is book two in the Creaturverse series, but can be read as a standalone. Just note characters from book one are mentioned and you may be spoiled. If you don’t care about such things the we 100% suggest you dive right in here.

I also highly suggest this book for anyone who isn’t into the omegaverse ( OV), or anyone who isn’t into it, but maybe has FOMO and wants to be into it.

There are scent matches, an alpha, an omega, and a heat, but that’s it when it comes to OV. Like, there isn’t weird Alpha stuff or angst with the omega learning what she is. The OV part is almost like a side character which is why I think this would work for anyone OV averse or just unfamiliar with OV. It’s a great introduction to those things

The story is also a story-within-a-story and it kills le, but like in a good way. Like, I can’t believe the story is over. Like wait, give me more Sir Paco de Gallo and then Malcom and Elizabeth. Wait! I wasn’t finished 🫨

You’ll love this story. The main OV story is about Malcom and Elizabeth. Clearly Elizabeth is the human omega and Malcolm is the mutant with a tail. He’s obviously an Aloha, but he’s a pack less alpha 😭and his little back story is sad. If you’re familiar with book one you know. Don’t worry he shares here I. This book two, so you don’t miss out

This story line is precious. It’s a great ode to the book convention, Monster Erotica. It will make you want to go so bad and give you FOMO if you haven’t been. It was a helpful read for anyone with anxiety about going ( i.e me) because some things are explained and the vibe of the convention is also explained.

However, I got terrified when Malcom got swarmed by ladies and now I fear my own swarming happening 😰 though the author did note in a foot note this was only for the story sake and it didn’t actually happen.

It’s also obviously about Malcom and Elizabeth and them finding or scenting each other and kind of just going all in on their relationship together. It’s cute and it’s got spice.

The other story has a demon dog, Sir Paco de Gallo and a human owner? Companion? They seem to be getting into some trouble with a wolf and vampire. There is a connection to Ghost Light Falls😱

This second story is actually part of a monster romance that is very popular in the Monster Smash Book Bash Convention. We believe it and assume it’s real, of course, but it’s a fictional story in this true creatureverse story

Go read it! You’ll have a lot of fun and want more!

[Flirting with Fiction💕 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly “meta” story that’s a story within a story within a…monster book convention? Yes. And it’s wonderful.

I really enjoyed this! Dakota has created a fun little love letter to Monsterotica and the monster romance community. Her footnotes made me laugh and have me even more pumped for the convention next month.

While I obviously enjoyed Elizabeth and Malcolm’s story, I’m surprised by how invested I became in Kira and Sir Pico de Gallo. Like, I need to know what happens next!!

Seriously though, this second book in the Creatureverse is SO FUN and includes a sexy lizard monster and ridges. But not the potato chips.

Thank you to Dakota Cockaday for this gifted egalley. This is my personal review.

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

You guys…I loved reading this one SO MUCH. It literally brought so much joy to my heart. And with all the footnotes and nods towards MEBC…it makes me SO FRIGGIN EXCITED that MEBC will be my first ever book convention.

Okay, so Creature from the Monster Smash Book Bash is technically Book 2 of the Creatureverse. And *technically* should be read in order to be best enjoyed, buuuuut you *could* read this as a standalone and not have too many issues. Although I don’t recommend because both books are so danged enjoyable. Perfect amount of endearing characters, spice, plot, and sentimentalness (is that a word? Nope, just made it one). Anyways, I legitimately can’t wait for the continuation of this series.

Thank you so much for trusting me with your ARC.

[Kitm0nster · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a cute love story between both Elizabeth and Malcom and to Monsterotica! It does capture that kind of magic and chaos that comes with a convention and dualing conventions at that!

The story burned fast and hot, and the secret second story weaved throughout was awesome! Gimme the full story Dakota!!

Yes if: Ridges 😉

No if: An FMC being a monster romance girly hits too close to home

🦎 She's a data analyst
📚 He's a waste water specialist
🦎 A love letter to Monsterotica
📚 Slutty little glasses
🦎 Chihuahua
📚 Story within a story

[Nat BookNerd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dakotaaaaaaa I need more. Lol this was amazing. I love her writing and the wild stuff she comes up with. A true genius. Lol I adored Malcom and Elizabeth. They are so good together but that poor man during her heats. I just know he’s going through it. It was fun to see Mari and her guys for a little bit too. Spice was good too. Lots of details but not like gross. Lol don’t get wrong I love gross but this amount was perfect for the story. And I can not wait for the spin off. Go readddd it!!

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC review
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

Every single time I read a new book by Dakota, I think “this is my favorite thing she’s written”. Surprise…. I’m saying it again this time! That’s a credit to how much her writing, ability to bring together humor, emotion, and spice all continue to grow (and they’re already impressive).

Monster omegaverse
Lizard man alpha X human woman
These are grown up adults!
Dog sidekick (who has his own POV and would like bacon)
Story-within-a-story
Takes place at a bookcon
Footnotes

Elizabeth, her bestie and her inherited chihuahua descend on Baltimore’s Inner Harbor for the annual Monster Book Bash. They’ve got preorders to pick up, a spreadsheet and map of authors to visit, and money to burn on monster romance. Relatable.

Malcolm is also attending a wastewater engineering conference at the same hotel. Much less interesting. But when he smells her perfection in line for coffee? Instant attraction. And this man isn’t afraid to make an approach.

This book is such a love letter to monster romance, the people that write and those that love it. To people that love book conventions and being around their people. And to those people who dream of someday finding their own green lizard mutant man engineer in a button down shirt. It’s a low angst slow burn where most of the narrative focuses on the people themselves. I adored it.

Easter eggs to past (and future?) works galore! Whatever comes next, I’ll read it.

Thanks so much to Dakota for the review copy.

[Sarah-Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd like to start by thanking Dakota for providing me with an advanced copy of this book to review. All thoughts and opinions shared are my own.

I had such a fun time with this one! It's a short and fact paced read packed with instalove, a demon dog and total book convention chaos!! It is an omegaverse, but not in a usual sense because there are scent matches, an alpha and omega and a heat but it's not got any angst or overly possessive alpha dominance. It feels like the perfect introduction the the genre and world of omegaverse.

Malcom is a mutant lizard like man who was tested on by the military, and Elizabeth is a human omega who is an author and lover of monster romance. They have the best meet cute at a convention centre where the Monster Smash Book Bash is happening, and from there they move quickly pulled together by this electric draw. Their story was great and it had everything I wanted from a cute monster romance for sure!

There is also a story within the story and I BLOODY LOVED IT!!! It just added to the fun and the chaos. What I loved most though was that I could see myself as Elizabeth exploring the convention and having fun with my chaos gremlin dog along for the ride. It was an amazing read, and I loved every second!

What to expect:
🐾 Monster romance omegaverse
🐾 Dog sidekick
🐾 Book Convention chaos
🐾 Footnotes!!!
🐾 THE SOCKS COME OFF DURING SEX

[Joanne Love · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this — it was fun, easy, relatable and such a perfect little treat of a story.


The setting is honestly the star here. A monster romance book convention? I loved it. Even though we don’t see every detail, it felt immersive enough that I fully wanted to be there myself.


Elizabeth and Malcolm’s romance is sweet, quick, but still believable. It has that instalove energy, but it works within the context and feels genuine rather than rushed.


The side story with Sir Paco De Gallo was such a highlight — I am absolutely going to need more of that. It added a fun extra layer and hinted at a bigger story I’d happily read.


This worked for me because I love stories that celebrate the romance community itself, and honestly… I fully related to Elizabeth. At this point, if I met a monster, I’d also be completely fine with it.


This is for readers who love easy monster romance, bookish settings, quick but heartfelt love stories, and a touch of humour and meta fun — it is the perfect second instalment of the Creatureverse after Creatures on a Half Shell.

[Denise O · Rating 4 out of 5]

Malcolm a victim of government experiments afraid he’ll be alone because he still doesn’t have a pack of his own and he’s that he won’t find his fated mate.

But he meets Elizabeth in an unlikely place a monster romance book convention and when he accidentally bumps into her, her scent has an effect on him. When Elizabeth sees him she’s lost for words.

She thinks he’s wearing a costume, she doesn’t know it’s actually not a costume he’s wearing it’s who he is a military experiment.

He will prove to her that he’s a worthy Alpha, when he realises she’s an omega.

This was a fun read especially with Milton, Elizabeth’s pet chihuahua that she inherited from her grandmother, he’s the real star of the show 🌟 plus there’s also a story within this story that I found very interesting as well!

This book has:
🦎instalove
🦎omega verse lite
🦎set at a Book Con
🦎story within a story
🦎adorable grumpy chihuahua named Milton
🦎a cult...uh club for a spicy pet sidekick

[Lisa Bing · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun follow-up to book one and while you could read this as a stand-alone, the characters from book one are in here, which may cause spoilers for you. The setting is a Monsterotica book convention and Malcom is there, as himself, but peeps think he's disguised for the con. Lol! Elizabeth meets him and these two strike sparks ;) This story, although shorter, actually has a story within a story and I loved it - demon dog Sir Paco's story isn't finished yet and I need more! The author kindly gave us footnotes that bring connections to Ghostlight Falls and generally expands the Creatureverse universe. Love this, too ;) Expect to be caught up in this entertaining reading ride that gives Malcom and Elizabeth and fab and steamy HEA, but opens up so much more. I'm really looking forward to the next book :D

[volatilisanguis]

Sometimes, you just want a palate cleanser. This is your novella if that's what you seek. It has two narratives, one the flesh-and-blood story of Liz and Malcolm, a man-gone-part-lizard who the government preyed on, exploited, and experimented on resulting in his viridian complexion, and another of a fictional woman and two supernatural men she meets on an airplane, along with her demon chihuahua.

Liz, who is attending a book con that resembles MEBC, takes Malcolm for a mascot for the water sanitation conference next door. Malcolm, after one whiff of Liz, falls to insta love. Over the course of the day, we see their relationship, as unlikely as it is, blossom.

There's not one, not two, but THREE quirky and interfering pets packed into this lil bite.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and foremost, I would like to say this book made me incredibly jealous that I’ve never been to a Monsterotica Book Con. It is now my life goal to be able to go to one. Do they even hold those in Michigan? Probably not, living in Michigan is lame.

I was absolutely in love with the fact that the female main character’s name was Elizabeth and she had a pet Chihuahua. I also am an Elizabeth and I also have a pet Chihuahua so basically this book was made for me •hair flip•. Unfortunately, I do not have a genetically altered man with an extremely interesting peen. But I suppose there’s still a lot of my life to live, aye?

[DJJarvisReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creature from the Monster Smash Book Bash is such a cute read. I loved it so much! This is a tribute to the Monsterotica Book Con event, which made the story so relatable being a fellow monster lover. I think that Dakota Cockaday did a really good job with this story and making it as a tribute. I have already read the first Creatureverse book, which is where our MMC Malcolm comes from, so I already loved his character and needed more of him! I’m glad that he is the character that Dakota picked for this story, it just works out so perfectly.

I 100% recommend this book. Especially if you are a monster lover who loves going to book cons!

[Kate Brasington · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨✨ARC REVIEW✨✨

This book is secretly Dakota’s love letter to Monster Erotica Con 🥹 we get little nods to that Con in this book, there are also foot notes in which Dakota explains things to us and I honestly loved those tidbits so much.
Not only is this the story of Malcom and Elizabeth in the creature verse but we also get a story within the story about a demon dog named Sir Paco and although that story hasn’t reached its conclusion yet I still enjoyed the breaks with this side quest!
Altogether this was a fantastic read and I cannot wait to see what gets added onto it!

[Katie Welder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you ever wonder what it would be like to meet a monstrous mate at the best book convention ever!? Well that's exactly what Elizabeth did. And to say I am jealous is putting it mildly. Girl is living the dream.

This book is so fun getting my little dose of Monsterotica outside of it is amazing. The addition of the book inside a book is top notch. I now need this book because I NEED to know what happens!

The characters are too cute and just a bit of spice. Definitely wished there was more but that poor guy during her heats 😆.

Can't wait for what comes next!

[Kyla Sixkiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book felt wonderfully real, the small, accurate details and the footnotes added so much charm. It was an enjoyable, breezy read, and I’m thrilled we’ll eventually get Kira’s full story. I love how it expands the Creaturverse while maintaining connections to book one and Ghostlight Falls. The dynamic between Elizabeth and Malcolm was a highlight; their scenes were fun, gentlemanly and well drawn up.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this read it was quick, fun, and spicy. Dakota always does a great job with her characters I really liked Malcolm in book one and this story was so sweet. The setting of a smutty convention was fun and unique, the interfering sidekick Milton was a great animal addition. Who doesn’t love a good grumpy old man animal. loved the book inside the book aspect and look forward to the next read

[Donna Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, This is an incredibly “meta” story that’s a story within a story within a…monster book convention? Does that make any sense to you. Yes then good because you wanna know what. it’s wonderful. I totally enjoyed this and devoured it in one sitting! Dakota has created a fun little love letter to Monsterotica and the monster romance community. Even her footnotes made me laugh and have me even more pumped for the convention next month.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

His secret security job takes him to a plumbing conference at the same hotel as a Monster Book event. He runs into, literally, his mate in the line for coffee, and he takes advantage of their time together, but he has to show her the truth about him, that he's not wearing a costume as everyone thinks. Will she accept him?
Classic, delightful Dakota, complete with a 'helpful' animal. Enjoyed every second. Couldn't put it down.

[Robyn G · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute addition to the creatureverse!
Elizabeth goes to the monster book convention when she quite literally bumps into Malcolm at the coffee shop.
Malcolm is instantly interested in her and asked her out for lunch just to get some more time with her.
Milton was a fun addition to their story and I loved seeing Mari and the guys again!

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Creature for the Monster Smash Book Bash was such a fun, campy ride! I loved the quirky convention setting and the sweet, hopeful vibe behind Malcolm and Elizabeth’s connection. The mix of humor, monster romance, and Omegaverse elements made it feel light, cozy, and easy to binge. Overall it was a really entertaining read that left me smiling.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

My monsterotica loving heart adored this book and it was sooooo so factually accurate. The best book con in the world celebrated by a super cool fantasy of meeting a monster man of our own at the con!!! Live laugh love lizard.

[lunchbrary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I roll my eyes. “Malcolm, I’m at a literal convention where nearly every book is about a human woman hooking up with a monster. I think a mutant is a little tame in the scheme of things.”

I absolutely DEVOURED this ARC, thank you Dakota for blessing my eyes!

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am new to omegaverse but the first book in this series was so good I had to read more! I fell for Dakota's writing from an alien serial she was a part of and since then I have been hooked. If you want some obsessed monsters, fmcs who are adventurous and some spice, check this out!

[tessa richards · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely amazing Dakota does it again with her weird and entertaining as all get out mosnter books. Definitely funny and so much fun to read.

[Miss S · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG I loved this so much. The book within a book was a genius stroke. I love Malcolms story and cant wait for more from the Creatureverse and Kira's Curse.

[Dog Eared Reads (Jen) · Rating 3 out of 5]

An adorable little story based around the Monsterotica Book con. It’s short and cute and very low stakes.

[Shreya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have nothing negative to say.

Malcolm? Perfection. I never thought I would find the name Malcolm hot, but I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by Cockaday anymore XD

[Summer Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the story. There is a story within the story too. It's a good little Omega verse story. There's a lot going on and I enjoy the romance book bash idea.

[Sophie Hutchins · Rating 5 out of 5]

“It’s pretty normal, I think, to notice a persons appearance, but Malcom’s scent has me completely distracted.”

Short sweet and spicy.

Malcolm is honestly adorable. I love his lizard ness, and how he braves being out in the open. Their story is very instant connection, but I loved the way he immediately swooned over her.

Elizabeth is fun, obviously I loved her dog Milton. She’s a reader at a monster con and honestly probably the perfect person for a mutant to be matched with.

They were really sweet and god I wanted more of them!
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

“A smart, beautiful, talented woman who smells like the greatest thing I’ve ever encountered. How did I get so lucky?”