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Laced in Longing
Not yet published
Expected 29 Sep 26This has happened before, though she doesn’t remember.
She has lived a thousand lives, and in each one, he has found her.
But in every lifetime, she runs.
He is tired of waiting for what belongs to him. What was promised to him centuries ago.
This time, he will not let her go.
And this time, there is no escape.
This is a standalone paranormal romance based on the inner workings of PMDD. Please review the trigger warnings on the author's website or the front of the book before reading.
She has lived a thousand lives, and in each one, he has found her.
But in every lifetime, she runs.
He is tired of waiting for what belongs to him. What was promised to him centuries ago.
This time, he will not let her go.
And this time, there is no escape.
This is a standalone paranormal romance based on the inner workings of PMDD. Please review the trigger warnings on the author's website or the front of the book before reading.
258 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication September 29, 2026
About the author
Dakota Monroe
9 books157 followersDakota Monroe lives in a dark world and dreams of even darker fantasies. She has been a fantasy-obsessed reader since she was a child and now brings hers to life through her writing. As a neurodivergent woman, Dakota has always felt out of place with her thoughts and ideas; but books have been her savior, and a nonjudgmental place for her to escape the colorless world we call reality. She hopes her characters, and stories, provide an outlet for others, even if just for a little while.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
September 6, 2026
I wish I could give more stars to this. We have an absolute masterpiece of a book right here!
Laced in Longing shows what can happen and go on thru someone’s mind when they have PMDD. Now the character doesn’t out right have it but it is definitely implied.
If you suffer from this like I do, then reading this will bring you to tears. You can feel the pain and raw emotion coming off the page as you keep turning.
Maven and Ash have a beautiful story and a beautiful relationship. Their story needs to be read!
Laced in Longing shows what can happen and go on thru someone’s mind when they have PMDD. Now the character doesn’t out right have it but it is definitely implied.
If you suffer from this like I do, then reading this will bring you to tears. You can feel the pain and raw emotion coming off the page as you keep turning.
Maven and Ash have a beautiful story and a beautiful relationship. Their story needs to be read!
Review of advance copy received from Author
Beautiful, Dark & Complicated
An obsessive god, a forgotten connection and centuries of yearning combine in a dark paranormal romance that completely consumed me.
⭐ 4/5
🌶️ 4/5
Laced in Longing by Dakota Monroe is a standalone dark paranormal romance told through Maven and Ash’s dual first-person perspectives. It combines Gothic atmosphere, reincarnated lovers and obsessive immortal devotion with a psychological metaphor for PMDD—and it left me feeling fulfilled, heartbroken, haunted and more than a little conflicted.
Maven has always felt slightly out of step with the world around her. She is exhausted, isolated and convinced that there is something fundamentally wrong with her. The only place she feels truly seen is in her recurring dreams, where a mysterious veiled man watches her from just beyond her reach. Then dried flowers begin appearing beside her bed every morning, despite all the locks on her apartment.
The dreams. The flowers. Wintry Montréal. That strange, aching feeling that Maven is missing something she cannot even name.
I was hooked.
Maven’s narration is bleak, introspective and intentionally repetitive. She returns to the same fears, reaches conclusions she has already reached and sinks back into emotions she appeared to be moving beyond. The author’s note explains that this reflects PMDD: the cyclical thoughts, emotional reversals and frightening experience of becoming someone you barely recognise depending on where you are in your cycle.
I would not have identified PMDD specifically without the author’s explanation, but I could feel Maven repeatedly losing and rediscovering herself. Her suffering never follows a neat path because that is the point. She can understand that something has happened before and still be completely overwhelmed when it happens again.
Thankfully, Maven is also wonderfully sarcastic. That humour keeps her narration from becoming emotionally flat and allows flashes of her personality to break through the darkness. She is curious, compassionate and far more stubborn than she gives herself credit for. I desperately wanted her to see herself as something more than the pain she was carrying.
And then there’s Ash.
Obsessed feels like far too small a word for this man.
Ash’s longing for Maven is possessive, consuming and centuries deep, yet I loved how seriously he takes her ability to choose. Destiny might connect them, but he never treats that connection as automatic permission. His refusal to influence Maven’s emotions just to receive the answer he wants was one of the things that made me trust him. He wants her desperately. He also wants her decision to belong to her.
The slow burn is slowwww. Painfully so at times—but in a way that had me desperate for every tiny shift between them. Their relationship develops through dreams, recognition, conversation and trust long before it becomes physical. When the spice finally arrives, it feels like the release of all that accumulated yearning rather than a scene added simply because the book needed one.
Ash does not know how to want Maven gently. Luckily, she does not seem particularly interested in being wanted gently.
The flower symbolism might be my favourite part of the entire story. At first, the dried flowers are unsettling: beautiful things that have already lived and died, preserved long after they should have crumbled. Maven understands them because she sees herself in them. As their meaning develops, the flowers become connected to memory, identity, devotion and the difference between being broken and never having been given the right conditions to flourish.
It was beautiful. Devastating too.
Dakota Monroe maintains that haunting Gothic atmosphere throughout the book. The deserted dreamscapes, dead flowers, winter streets and Ash’s veiled presence create this constant mixture of romance, melancholy and unease. Maven’s contemporary sarcasm contrasts perfectly with Ash’s more formal, worshipful narration. His POV matters, too. Without it, parts of his behaviour could feel purely obsessive or manipulative; through his eyes, we see the grief, fear and restraint beneath that obsession.
I did want more from the mythology. Several fascinating ideas surrounding Maven’s true nature, the gods and their promised souls are introduced without being explored as fully as I hoped. The final section also accelerates after such a carefully restrained beginning, leaving the ending feeling slightly abrupt even though the emotional payoff worked for me. There is SO much potential in this world. I would happily read interconnected standalones about the other gods and their promised souls.
Then there is the ending.
It is technically a paranormal HEA, and within the literal supernatural story, I found it beautiful and emotionally satisfying. Reading it through the PMDD metaphor is much harder. The connection between suicide, peace and finally finding somewhere to belong made me deeply uncomfortable. I believe that contradiction is intentional, but it will not work for every reader—and I am still not entirely sure how I feel about it myself.
Beautiful, dark and complicated really is the only way I know how to describe this book.
Tropes
Fated Souls
God × Mortal
Reincarnated Lovers
Possessive and Obsessive Hero
He Falls First
Slow Burn
Centuries of Longing
Morally Grey Love Interest
Consent-Conscious Romance
Dream Encounters
Gothic Atmosphere
Mental-Health Metaphor
Content Warnings
Suicide and Suicidal Ideation
On-Page and Previous Suicide Attempts
Self-Harm and Scarring
Severe Depression and Feelings of Worthlessness
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
Death and Murder
Childhood Abandonment and Foster-Care Trauma
Social Isolation and Food Neglect Associated with Depression
Unwanted Sexual Contact and Sexual Coercion
Physical and Verbal Abuse
Stalking and Obsessive Behaviour
Torture and Violence
I would recommend this to readers who love dark paranormal romance, Gothic atmosphere, painfully slow burns, reincarnated lovers and obsessive immortals whose devotion crosses lifetimes. I wanted more from the wider mythology, but Maven’s distinctive voice, Ash’s intense yet consent-conscious devotion and the gorgeous flower symbolism made this impossible to forget. If Dakota Monroe ever returns to these gods and their promised souls, I’ll be there.
Thank you to Dakota Monroe for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
An obsessive god, a forgotten connection and centuries of yearning combine in a dark paranormal romance that completely consumed me.
⭐ 4/5
🌶️ 4/5
Laced in Longing by Dakota Monroe is a standalone dark paranormal romance told through Maven and Ash’s dual first-person perspectives. It combines Gothic atmosphere, reincarnated lovers and obsessive immortal devotion with a psychological metaphor for PMDD—and it left me feeling fulfilled, heartbroken, haunted and more than a little conflicted.
Maven has always felt slightly out of step with the world around her. She is exhausted, isolated and convinced that there is something fundamentally wrong with her. The only place she feels truly seen is in her recurring dreams, where a mysterious veiled man watches her from just beyond her reach. Then dried flowers begin appearing beside her bed every morning, despite all the locks on her apartment.
The dreams. The flowers. Wintry Montréal. That strange, aching feeling that Maven is missing something she cannot even name.
I was hooked.
Maven’s narration is bleak, introspective and intentionally repetitive. She returns to the same fears, reaches conclusions she has already reached and sinks back into emotions she appeared to be moving beyond. The author’s note explains that this reflects PMDD: the cyclical thoughts, emotional reversals and frightening experience of becoming someone you barely recognise depending on where you are in your cycle.
I would not have identified PMDD specifically without the author’s explanation, but I could feel Maven repeatedly losing and rediscovering herself. Her suffering never follows a neat path because that is the point. She can understand that something has happened before and still be completely overwhelmed when it happens again.
Thankfully, Maven is also wonderfully sarcastic. That humour keeps her narration from becoming emotionally flat and allows flashes of her personality to break through the darkness. She is curious, compassionate and far more stubborn than she gives herself credit for. I desperately wanted her to see herself as something more than the pain she was carrying.
And then there’s Ash.
Obsessed feels like far too small a word for this man.
Ash’s longing for Maven is possessive, consuming and centuries deep, yet I loved how seriously he takes her ability to choose. Destiny might connect them, but he never treats that connection as automatic permission. His refusal to influence Maven’s emotions just to receive the answer he wants was one of the things that made me trust him. He wants her desperately. He also wants her decision to belong to her.
The slow burn is slowwww. Painfully so at times—but in a way that had me desperate for every tiny shift between them. Their relationship develops through dreams, recognition, conversation and trust long before it becomes physical. When the spice finally arrives, it feels like the release of all that accumulated yearning rather than a scene added simply because the book needed one.
Ash does not know how to want Maven gently. Luckily, she does not seem particularly interested in being wanted gently.
The flower symbolism might be my favourite part of the entire story. At first, the dried flowers are unsettling: beautiful things that have already lived and died, preserved long after they should have crumbled. Maven understands them because she sees herself in them. As their meaning develops, the flowers become connected to memory, identity, devotion and the difference between being broken and never having been given the right conditions to flourish.
It was beautiful. Devastating too.
Dakota Monroe maintains that haunting Gothic atmosphere throughout the book. The deserted dreamscapes, dead flowers, winter streets and Ash’s veiled presence create this constant mixture of romance, melancholy and unease. Maven’s contemporary sarcasm contrasts perfectly with Ash’s more formal, worshipful narration. His POV matters, too. Without it, parts of his behaviour could feel purely obsessive or manipulative; through his eyes, we see the grief, fear and restraint beneath that obsession.
I did want more from the mythology. Several fascinating ideas surrounding Maven’s true nature, the gods and their promised souls are introduced without being explored as fully as I hoped. The final section also accelerates after such a carefully restrained beginning, leaving the ending feeling slightly abrupt even though the emotional payoff worked for me. There is SO much potential in this world. I would happily read interconnected standalones about the other gods and their promised souls.
Then there is the ending.
It is technically a paranormal HEA, and within the literal supernatural story, I found it beautiful and emotionally satisfying. Reading it through the PMDD metaphor is much harder. The connection between suicide, peace and finally finding somewhere to belong made me deeply uncomfortable. I believe that contradiction is intentional, but it will not work for every reader—and I am still not entirely sure how I feel about it myself.
Beautiful, dark and complicated really is the only way I know how to describe this book.
Tropes
Fated Souls
God × Mortal
Reincarnated Lovers
Possessive and Obsessive Hero
He Falls First
Slow Burn
Centuries of Longing
Morally Grey Love Interest
Consent-Conscious Romance
Dream Encounters
Gothic Atmosphere
Mental-Health Metaphor
Content Warnings
Suicide and Suicidal Ideation
On-Page and Previous Suicide Attempts
Self-Harm and Scarring
Severe Depression and Feelings of Worthlessness
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
Death and Murder
Childhood Abandonment and Foster-Care Trauma
Social Isolation and Food Neglect Associated with Depression
Unwanted Sexual Contact and Sexual Coercion
Physical and Verbal Abuse
Stalking and Obsessive Behaviour
Torture and Violence
I would recommend this to readers who love dark paranormal romance, Gothic atmosphere, painfully slow burns, reincarnated lovers and obsessive immortals whose devotion crosses lifetimes. I wanted more from the wider mythology, but Maven’s distinctive voice, Ash’s intense yet consent-conscious devotion and the gorgeous flower symbolism made this impossible to forget. If Dakota Monroe ever returns to these gods and their promised souls, I’ll be there.
Thank you to Dakota Monroe for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Author
"Laced in Longing" is a standalone dark paranormal romance told through dual first-person perspectives of Maven, our FMC, and Ash, the MMC. Maven is starting a new job in her 9th city in 8 years. She's always felt an emptiness she can't describe or understand, and has a hard time connecting with people. Her days consist of going to work, barely seeing the sun, and heading home to maybe read before collapsing into sleep before starting it all over again. Oh, and a once weekly call to her therapist to ensure no one calls for a wellness check.
Then, dried flowers begin showing up at her bedside every morning, and she begins having vivid dreams of places she's longed to visit. A veiled man soon appears in her dreams as well, but it isn't until he's appearing during her waking hours that Maven thinks she may have finally cracked.
Ash is tired of waiting. If Maven gives in to the attraction...there's no going back.
What to expect:
🥀Reincarnation
🪻Fated souls
🥀God x Mortal
🪻Mental health rep/PMDD
🥀Slow burn
🪻He falls first, and hard
🥀Dream encounters
Check the content warnings! (full list on author's website)
⚠️Childhood abandonment/foster care
❗Self-harm/suicidal ideation and attempts
⚠️Severe depression, anxiety, panic attacks
❗Stalking and obsessive behavior
⚠️Death by suicide
❗this is not a complete list
This is an "ouch" this one hurt 5-stars, and absolutely isn't for everyone and doesn't need to be, but is still a beautiful, hard, awful, lovely, painful and realistic look at PMDD and mental health struggles spun into a dark, gothic-esque paranormal obsessive love story that transcends thousands of lifetimes.
The author did a stunning job using the story and book as a whole as a metaphor for PMDD - as someone who struggles with PMDD, there was *so much* in this book that resonated with me, and it was so beautifully written, dark, complicated and deeply moving.
It was validating to see a book with such a singular and purposeful reason for how it was written - one that doesn't shy away from the painful and darker parts of life, and the mental health struggles that are so real for so many women - and that depicts what the characters go through so eloquently, especially in today's society when so many women are ignored, silenced, and told their struggles aren't valid.
I would have loved to see more about the mythology, but overall, the book felt complete even with few side characters and primarily seeing things from Maven's perspective. The repetition of her thoughts, the changes in her behavior, the self-isolating, pushing people away, punishing herself by not eating, etc were all so hard to read, but weren't done gratuitously. The spicy scene felt warranted, and even though Ash is a god with obsessive, stalker tendencies, he was still about the consent, so *applause*
Thank you to the author for the eARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Then, dried flowers begin showing up at her bedside every morning, and she begins having vivid dreams of places she's longed to visit. A veiled man soon appears in her dreams as well, but it isn't until he's appearing during her waking hours that Maven thinks she may have finally cracked.
Ash is tired of waiting. If Maven gives in to the attraction...there's no going back.
What to expect:
🥀Reincarnation
🪻Fated souls
🥀God x Mortal
🪻Mental health rep/PMDD
🥀Slow burn
🪻He falls first, and hard
🥀Dream encounters
Check the content warnings! (full list on author's website)
⚠️Childhood abandonment/foster care
❗Self-harm/suicidal ideation and attempts
⚠️Severe depression, anxiety, panic attacks
❗Stalking and obsessive behavior
⚠️Death by suicide
❗this is not a complete list
This is an "ouch" this one hurt 5-stars, and absolutely isn't for everyone and doesn't need to be, but is still a beautiful, hard, awful, lovely, painful and realistic look at PMDD and mental health struggles spun into a dark, gothic-esque paranormal obsessive love story that transcends thousands of lifetimes.
The author did a stunning job using the story and book as a whole as a metaphor for PMDD - as someone who struggles with PMDD, there was *so much* in this book that resonated with me, and it was so beautifully written, dark, complicated and deeply moving.
It was validating to see a book with such a singular and purposeful reason for how it was written - one that doesn't shy away from the painful and darker parts of life, and the mental health struggles that are so real for so many women - and that depicts what the characters go through so eloquently, especially in today's society when so many women are ignored, silenced, and told their struggles aren't valid.
I would have loved to see more about the mythology, but overall, the book felt complete even with few side characters and primarily seeing things from Maven's perspective. The repetition of her thoughts, the changes in her behavior, the self-isolating, pushing people away, punishing herself by not eating, etc were all so hard to read, but weren't done gratuitously. The spicy scene felt warranted, and even though Ash is a god with obsessive, stalker tendencies, he was still about the consent, so *applause*
Thank you to the author for the eARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
September 8, 2026
*Review of advanced copy received by Author*
In a world where women struggle in silence and go through emotion after emotion and ride the roller coaster of life dealing with conditions such as PMDD, Endometriosis,PCOS, and so many more, Dakota took this ugly part of life and turned it into a beautiful story that features different parts of PMDD.
Laced in Longing is a beautiful, deep, emotional story that uses PMDD at the core of everything, and that it’s almost gut‑wrenching how vividly you feel Maven’s pain through the pages. Ash’s obsessed, tortured energy doesn’t just make it a romance, it makes it feel like this intense, validating mirror for anyone who’s lived with cycles like
On top of the raw, visceral look at PMDD, this story also delivers some truly mouth watering intimacy. There’s a moment where Maven defies her own brain long enough to do something out of her comfort zone, and the reaction she gains from Ash is perfection.
Even if you have never heard of PMDD, this still reads as this stunning love story between a girl who feels like she is no one and nothing, and a man who would literally wait centuries to be with her and risk the Gods wrath for her.
In a world where women struggle in silence and go through emotion after emotion and ride the roller coaster of life dealing with conditions such as PMDD, Endometriosis,PCOS, and so many more, Dakota took this ugly part of life and turned it into a beautiful story that features different parts of PMDD.
Laced in Longing is a beautiful, deep, emotional story that uses PMDD at the core of everything, and that it’s almost gut‑wrenching how vividly you feel Maven’s pain through the pages. Ash’s obsessed, tortured energy doesn’t just make it a romance, it makes it feel like this intense, validating mirror for anyone who’s lived with cycles like
On top of the raw, visceral look at PMDD, this story also delivers some truly mouth watering intimacy. There’s a moment where Maven defies her own brain long enough to do something out of her comfort zone, and the reaction she gains from Ash is perfection.
Even if you have never heard of PMDD, this still reads as this stunning love story between a girl who feels like she is no one and nothing, and a man who would literally wait centuries to be with her and risk the Gods wrath for her.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Laced in Longing by Dakota Monroe resonated deeply for me. As someone who is 27 that struggles with PMDD, ideation, CPTSD, and chronic depression, I saw myself in Maven (the FMC). While parts were gut-wrenching, other parts were beautiful and Monroe’s intention in this novel shines through every word. Ash, the MMC, waits patiently for Maven in every lifetime and loves her through everything. Dispelling the harmful thought of “you can only be loved or deserving of love if you love yourself” and instead writing an MMC that loves her throughout it all as she learns to love herself just as much as she loves him. Telling her not to apologize for or diminish how she feels, quietly taking care of her when it’s too hard to do herself, and promoting her hobbies/likes all makes it more real seeing their love for each other. This story was excellently written and will sit with me for a long time. Thank you for writing and representing experiences that often get glazed over to be more “consumable” and giving us something real, gritty, and hopeful.
Thank you Dakota Monroe for providing me an eARC to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.
Thank you Dakota Monroe for providing me an eARC to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Thank you to the author for the ARC of this book, Laced in Longing.
Okay I loved this book. I think Dakota did a FANTASTIC job with the mental health representation and the steps that many people are taking just to get through life. I thought the steps that Maven took (going to a crystal shop and seeing a priest) on top of mental health professionals felt like very real life steps a person would take if they were going through something like this.
With that being said, I LOVED Ash. He was down BAD for Maven. "she could ask for anything, and I would cross realms to secure it for her. Nothing is beyond my power when it comes to her happiness." I could probably write every single line of his in this review and that would all be the same.
My heart BROKE for him and I hated Maven for a chapter because of her actions. I think that goes to show how good of writing this was because I had an emotional connection to the characters and for me to feel for them is huge.
In the end, I loved the ending and think that Dakota might have left it open enough to explore more within the realm and I would 10/10 read that next book!
Okay I loved this book. I think Dakota did a FANTASTIC job with the mental health representation and the steps that many people are taking just to get through life. I thought the steps that Maven took (going to a crystal shop and seeing a priest) on top of mental health professionals felt like very real life steps a person would take if they were going through something like this.
With that being said, I LOVED Ash. He was down BAD for Maven. "she could ask for anything, and I would cross realms to secure it for her. Nothing is beyond my power when it comes to her happiness." I could probably write every single line of his in this review and that would all be the same.
My heart BROKE for him and I hated Maven for a chapter because of her actions. I think that goes to show how good of writing this was because I had an emotional connection to the characters and for me to feel for them is huge.
In the end, I loved the ending and think that Dakota might have left it open enough to explore more within the realm and I would 10/10 read that next book!
Review of advance copy received from Author
Paranormal romance with tropes like unrequited love, past lives and sacrificial love.
I really enjoyed this book. Maven’s feelings of how she felt empty, like something was missing, and what if she was just imagining everything, were well written. And her doing and being “just enough” to survive was relatable.
The idea of past lives and how Maven had forgotten, but Ash never did was interesting. He was tired of waiting and being rejected over and over again and he just wanted her to remember. And she was tired of living and feeling empty.
The yearning and longing were well written and I really enjoyed the relationship development between Maven and Ash.
I’m not really familiar with PMDD but that didn’t affect my reading experience.
“Are you…are you even real? Or just something my mind made up?”
I received an ARC of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review. Receiving ARC didn’t affect my opinion of the book.
I really enjoyed this book. Maven’s feelings of how she felt empty, like something was missing, and what if she was just imagining everything, were well written. And her doing and being “just enough” to survive was relatable.
The idea of past lives and how Maven had forgotten, but Ash never did was interesting. He was tired of waiting and being rejected over and over again and he just wanted her to remember. And she was tired of living and feeling empty.
The yearning and longing were well written and I really enjoyed the relationship development between Maven and Ash.
I’m not really familiar with PMDD but that didn’t affect my reading experience.
“Are you…are you even real? Or just something my mind made up?”
I received an ARC of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review. Receiving ARC didn’t affect my opinion of the book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I can definitely give this book 6 stars, it was absolutely amazing. This book has a clear representationof what can happen is someones mind who has PMDD. The main characters show signs of this and it relate on how the story goes and how we see Maven and how she behaves.This is a paranormal romance, and I was her for it all. The way Maven continues to see this person in her dreams, the way she feels they know them but can't figure out why, the way she moves thorugh life trying to do the day to day things without loosing her essence. Ash has waiting many many years to have her by his side but life has had a differrnte plan every single time. This time, he is going to make sure not only to be present but to show her the life she was meant to live. This story is beautiful, is heartwarming and you will fall in love with the characters time and time again. Dakota does an amazing job with her wirting, and this was no exeption. Love it all!!
September 20, 2026
4.75⭐️
Oh my god! I absolutely loved this book. Dakota is one of my favourite authors (totally not biased at all), I love everything she writes and this one was no different. The writing was so beautiful, I had sooo many kindle highlights from this book. I adored this story, it felt so raw and beautiful, it was more than just a paranormal romance. Of course I loved the romance aspect of this with all the longing and the yearning, but it truly felt like Dakota has poured her heart and soul into writing this book in terms of PMDD and mental health struggles. I really felt a connection with Maven and although it was difficult at times I loved being inside her head. Going back to the yearning though, it was SO good it was almost painful. I could go on and on about this book, I absolutely recommend it!
Oh my god! I absolutely loved this book. Dakota is one of my favourite authors (totally not biased at all), I love everything she writes and this one was no different. The writing was so beautiful, I had sooo many kindle highlights from this book. I adored this story, it felt so raw and beautiful, it was more than just a paranormal romance. Of course I loved the romance aspect of this with all the longing and the yearning, but it truly felt like Dakota has poured her heart and soul into writing this book in terms of PMDD and mental health struggles. I really felt a connection with Maven and although it was difficult at times I loved being inside her head. Going back to the yearning though, it was SO good it was almost painful. I could go on and on about this book, I absolutely recommend it!
September 14, 2026
This is a paranormal romance, but it is also so so so much more. This book sets out to embody PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder) as a whole. With that being said, I think there are many people who suffer from conditions like these that you can’t physically see, who can find pieces of themselves in this book.
Maven has lived thousands of lives, none of which she remembers. In every lifetime, the MMC finds her, but she always ends up running away. These pages are filled with such raw emotions, I really felt Maven’s pain throughout each and every chapter. Laced in Longing was a tragically beautiful story. I definitely recommend it and this author! (be mindful of the triggers)
Maven has lived thousands of lives, none of which she remembers. In every lifetime, the MMC finds her, but she always ends up running away. These pages are filled with such raw emotions, I really felt Maven’s pain throughout each and every chapter. Laced in Longing was a tragically beautiful story. I definitely recommend it and this author! (be mindful of the triggers)
Review of advance copy received from Author
"I know every version of you that has ever existed. I know the shape of your soul. I know the weight of your longing.”
Just finished reading the ARC for Dakota Monroe's Laced in Longing. True to it's name, the book is one of epic longing, from a couple who have been separated by centuries and who are meant to be together. The only catch is that the FMC doesn't remember the MMC and her love for him. She must remember and choose him in order for them to finally be together. It is a beautifully written book.
The FMC does have depression and her pain just jumps off the page. It also mentions thoughts of suicide, so please check your triggers when you read it.
Releases September 29th!
Just finished reading the ARC for Dakota Monroe's Laced in Longing. True to it's name, the book is one of epic longing, from a couple who have been separated by centuries and who are meant to be together. The only catch is that the FMC doesn't remember the MMC and her love for him. She must remember and choose him in order for them to finally be together. It is a beautifully written book.
The FMC does have depression and her pain just jumps off the page. It also mentions thoughts of suicide, so please check your triggers when you read it.
Releases September 29th!
Review of advance copy received from Author
I loved it. I loved Ash and Maven. I loved their relationship and the yearning was so good. I loved the writing and the world building. The pacing was excellent. I loved the storytelling. I loved the emotional journey the characters took. I also loved the magical realism within the story. I loved reading from the two different POV’s. I loved the ending. It was great seeing the characters together. Overall, a great book. One of my favorite reads by the author. I want to thank the author for giving me an earc early from joining the street team.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
The feelings I have for this book are deafening! Relating to Maven in some aspects of overthinking or not being good enough really stuck with me to the point where I was yelling into a void and I couldn’t help but sob.
Over a thousand lifetimes, Ash has waited for Maven and the universe be damned if she doesn’t say yes this time… but a pure side of Maven always seeps through even though in this life she’s isolated from others with attempts of ending everything. Day in day out, she’s feeling alone and ignored until Ash shows up.
Things start changing! 🥹
Sorry feelings are everywhere!!!!
Over a thousand lifetimes, Ash has waited for Maven and the universe be damned if she doesn’t say yes this time… but a pure side of Maven always seeps through even though in this life she’s isolated from others with attempts of ending everything. Day in day out, she’s feeling alone and ignored until Ash shows up.
Things start changing! 🥹
Sorry feelings are everywhere!!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Well I didn't like it. I skipped so much of it and only read the interaction. Once I got to like 40% I just couldn't do much more. It did get dark and depressing. I just wasn't getting into it like I wanted to. I skimmed the rest of it and the ending is cute. But I won't be reading this again.
September 22, 2026
Such an emotional read it was fantastic and kinda refreshing there isn’t much spicy but it wasn’t needed
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