Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Scared Sexy by Ali Hazelwood, Christina Lauren, J. T. Geissinger, Ruby Dixon, Katee Robert, Kimberly Lemming Published by Amazon on September 23, 2025
Genres: Paranormal Romance
Length: 11 hours, 6 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: NetGalley
Goodreads
Amazon,Ā Audible
From amnesiac vampire slayers to fallen angels, space vampires to cursed tattoo artists, sleep paralysis demons to ancient wish-granting entitiesāsix stories prove that even monsters deserve a happily ever after. Treat yourself to a collection that's equal parts spooky and steamy.
Hot for Slayer by Ali Hazelwood
Beautiful Nightmare by Katee Robert
Falling by Christina Lauren
Space Vampire by Ruby Dixon
My Boyfriends Are All Monsters by Kimberly Lemming
Spicy Little Curses by J.T. Geissinger
I enjoy these compilations of some fun short stories from various authors written to celebrate different holidays.Ā While it is unusual for me to love all six stories, I did have a good time with the Halloween vibe all of the stories brought and it was a fun way to try out a few new to me authors.Ā Remember this is the sexy collection so each story is going to have at least one spicy scene to get your heart pumping.
4.5 Hearts – Hot for Slayer was my favorite out of the collection.Ā Ali Hazelwood really captured a fun story of a vampire and slayer falling in love.Ā This seemed like the most established couple in the selection as their overall story spanned centuries. I enjoyed seeing snippets of Ethel and Lazioās past as enemies and how once Lazio had a case of amnesia his obsession seems to change and Ethel learns what it is like to be close to a person again.Ā Great short story with a kick of romance for Halloween.
3.5 Hearts – Both Fallen and Spicy Little Curses had something to really like in them.Ā I love a broken man and in both stories the man in question was cursed and only the right woman could save him.Ā They are very different stories though and I was happy to be along for the ride.Ā Fallen had me wanting more at the end because I liked the couple so much, I really wanted to see what could happen with them next.
3.5 Hearts with a setting in New Orleans and some voodoo type curse, I was drawn into the story immediately.Ā I love a good grumpy/sunshine type romance to go with my doomed relationship.Ā Any woman who falls in love with Dax is doomed to die.Ā Petra was just there to interview the cursed broody bartender.Ā But when her name gets inked into his skin she is marked for death.Ā Petra will need to help Dax find a way to break his generations long curse or she will end up in the grave.Ā I enjoyed their banter and nicknames for each other.Ā They were a fun couple that wasn’t lovey dovey but so much fun to spend time with.
4 Hearts – Space Vampire by Ruby Dixon ended up being a lot of fun for me.Ā This is probably because I have read some of her works set in this world so my knowledge and foundation for the story was set.Ā Humans are rare pets in space, most abducted for not so nice, slavery type reasons.Ā Dana is left on an abandoned space station with one of the lab creations once he escapes and kills a few of the scientists.Ā She has become good at handling male aliens so this new spliced creation should be no trouble either.Ā Vlad has been created for a client but some of the cloning didnāt go quite right and he has an aversion to sunlight and needs blood to survive.Ā Dana and Vlad will need to band together to get off of the station before reinforcements arrive. Ā Another good story with some sexy and happy endings.
3.0 Hearts ā Beautiful Nightmare was my first experience with Katee Roberts.Ā It is a decent short story but was not really for me and my least favorite story of the collection.Ā A demon needs to scare a man to eat, except he isnāt very scared of her and instead has some pretty sexy thoughts.Ā But a girl demon needs to eat, so Gemma changes tactics and something unexpected comes from it.Ā There is a lot of consent talk in this and yes yesā¦important in the real world but in this fantasy, it seemed too much, a bit heavy and forced.Ā So while some might enjoy it more, for me this was just an okay story.
3.0 Hearts ā All My Boyfriends are Monsters was the first time Iāve read anything by Kimberly Lemming.Ā She was funny and I had a good time with the characters, especially the girl friend group.Ā Plus, what women doesnāt want a wish made in a well to come true, even if the creature granting it isnāt your typical Halloween haunt.
Narration:
There are some great narrators picked out for these stories.Ā I think all of them really captured the Halloween fun and played with it well in their performances.Ā Some great voices that seemed to fit the characters in the novellas. You only get about two hours with each story so even if one narrator isn’t your favorite it is time for the next story and the next set of narrators.Ā I was able to listen to every story at my normal 1.5x speed.
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Sound Effects: none
Listen to a clip: HERE
About Ali Hazelwood
I’m Ali, and I write contemporary romcom novels about women in STEM and academia. I love cats, Nutella, and side ponytails. I’m also currently learning to crochet, so as you can tell I’m a super busy gal with an intense and exciting life!
About Christina Lauren
Yes, there are two of us! Lauren (on the left) and Christina (on the right).
Christina Lauren is the combined pen name of long-time writing partners/besties/soulmates Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. The #1 international bestselling coauthor duo writes both Young Adult and Adult Fiction, and together has produced fourteen New York Times bestselling novels. They are published in over 30 languages, have received starred reviews from Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal and Publishers Weekly, won both the Seal of Excellence and Book of the Year from RT Magazine, named Amazon and Audible Romance of the Year, and been nominated for several Goodreads Choice Awards. They have been featured in publications such as Forbes, The Washington Post, Time, Entertainment Weekly, People, O Magazine and more. Their third YA novel, Autoboyography was released in September, followed by a contemporary romance, Roomies in December, and their first Womenās Fiction, Love and Other Words in April.
Lauren Billings (but everyone calls her Lo) has a Ph.D. in neuroscience and before she made writing her full-time job, would spend her days doing nerdy research-type things wearing a lab coat and goggles. She is silly Mommy to two littles, wife to one mountain biking homebrewing scientist, and an unabashed lover of YA and romance.
Christina Hobbs (but youāll always hear Lo call her PQ) used to spend her days in a junior high counseling office surrounded by teenagers. These days you can find her at her desk, writing or watching BTS videos. She grew up in Utah and is absolutely not old enough to be the mom of a 17 year old (right??), thinks sheās the luckiest person in the world to write books with her best friend, and is an unapologetic lover of boy bands and glitter.
About J. T. Geissinger
***I write to tell my truth. My work is emotionally honest, therefore some readers may find it āunsafe.ā All my books include explicit sex, hard language, and occasional random violence, which is reflective of my experience on earth as a human being. I tell you this not to alienate or titillate, only to inform. Caveat emptor.***
A former headhunter, J.T. Geissinger is the author of more than a dozen novels in contemporary romance, paranormal romance, and romantic suspense.
She is the recipient of the Prism Award for Best First Book, the Golden Quill Award for Best Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, and is a two-time finalist for the RITAĀ® Award from the Romance Writers of AmericaĀ®. Her work has also finaled in the Booksellersā Best, National Readersā Choice, and Daphne du Maurier Awards
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Iāve started this collection and am enjoying. Glad you are, too, Robinš
Totally a fun way to pre-game October and Halloween vibes.
This collection looks and sounds good. I’m glad to see you enjoyed. Thanks for sharing.
Really fun collections of sexy Halloween stories.
It does sound like a pretty fun Halloween holiday collection to take bite by bite. A good variety of situations and settings, too.
I almost wish I would have just read one a week up to Halloween. Now I need to find another fun seasonal read.
This collection sounds like a good one for this time of year.
Yes!!! Perfect time of year for it.
I want to read these even though I’ve found these collections to be hit and miss. These seem interesting.
I think this is one of the better overall collections. I liked it better than the Christmas one last year.
I just picked up “Hot for Slayer”! š
My favorite out of the bunch. Good choice!
I have listened to two so far, and have not been thrilled with them. Hoping I’ll like one of the other better. It looks like your ratings are similar to mine so far. Thanks for sharing!