Monthly Archives: May 2018

Sazon / Roman (Bratva Blood Brothers 4 & 5) by K.J. Dahlen-reviews

Posted on by
12

SAZON / ROMAN (Bratva Blood Brothers  #4 & 5) by K.J. Dahlen-reviews

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk/ Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ROMAN
Bratva Blood Brothers #5
by KJ Dahlen

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 3, 2018

Roman

Broken. Scarred. Powerless.
I’ll destroy that f$$ker even if I have to come back from hell
He defaced my childhood innocence
The monster, arrogantly spent out his years doing to same
I’ll never be that vulnerable child again.
Barely surviving a life on the streets that took my brother
For years, I thought I was living.
But the truth I have hidden all these years has made me cold and distrustful.
I have done things I’m not so proud of.
But I have tried to live honorably since.
I am ruined though.
There will be no happy ending for me.
Like there is for my brothers.
I have already faced this truth.
One man’s moment of kindness
Drawn into a dark world i will never escape
Until, I met her.
She uncovered my dark secret
Brought me face to face with my past
Though my inner demons won’t go quietly
And now she knows the monster that I am
Can her light illuminate my darkness, or will I destroy us both?

Note: All books in the Bratva Blood Brother series are standalone, full length super sexy, raw mobster romance novels. They can be read in any order and do NOT contain cliff-hangers. It includes lots of steamy scenes, slang, cursing, some violence, dark themes, and elements about a fictional Russian mafia. HEA guaranteed.

••••••••••••

REVIEW: ROMAN is the fifth instalment in KJ Dahlen’s contemporary, adult BRATVA BLOOD BROTHERS erotic, Russian mafia, romance novella series. This is forty-year old warehouse owner Roman Salizar, and Stephanie ‘Stevie’ Angelica Grace’s story line. ROMAN can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary. The author begins each instalment in the series with the prequel short story BLOOD BROTHERS that reveals the background and history of the characters.

NOTE: Due to the story line content including child abuse, assault and graphic violence, there may be some triggers for more sensitive readers.

SOME BACKGROUND: Five young boys and childhood friends (Yuri, Sazon, Barshan, Mikial and Roman) survived the mean-streets of Russia only to be rescued and reared by a local gym owner Ivan Russo, who would meet his death by a local gang. Seeking revenge against the gang, local Russian Bratva member and soon to be New York Russian mafia leader Nikoli Silvanic would mentor the five young men until they were ready to take on the world, with the approval of Russian Bratva leader Sergi Constantine. When the time came Nikoli Silvanic would take over the New York territory, while the five ‘blood brothers’ would take over New Orleans. These are their stories.

Told from several third person points of view including Roman and Stevie, ROMAN is a complex and detailed story line that follows several intersecting paths including the take down of the deviant individuals whose goal in life to take control of the seedy underworld of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Stevie, and her ‘brother’ Benny have been on the run, hiding in the shadows, in the hopes of escaping their life of pain and misery. Injured and sick, Stevie and Benny escape to New Orleans where they will come face to face with the Russian mob. Enter Roman Salizar, and the man with whom Stevie will fall in love. What ensues is the quick building relationship between Stevie and Roman, and the hunt for the sick and twisted minds who have destroyed so many lives.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful secondary and supporting characters including all of Roman’s blood brothers, the Bratva leader Nikoli Silvanic, several members of the Devil’s Advocate MC, a local drug cartel, and an abhorent family of pedophiles, abusers and killers. The requisite evil has many faces including the man who all but destroyed Roman’s life.

ROMAN is a dark, sexy and sensitive tale with mature themes and spirited characters. The premise is edgy; the characters are dynamic; the romance is an insta lust/love seduction.

ROMAN is a quick read that ends at 20% on the Kindle e-reader. There is additional material including the author’s bonus content, Spawn and Spitfire Volume 1, as well as Sin’s Volume 2 & 3. This is not unusual as most of the books (story lines) in the series thus far end between 10-20% on the Kindle, with the remainder filled with additional story lines.

Own a copy

Reviewed by Sandy

_____________

SAZON
(Bratva Blood Brothers #4)
by KJ Dahlen

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Re-release Date April 23, 2018

Sazon
I am a man of honor and what I have I earned with my own two hands.
I am ruthless against those who would seek to destroy my family.
Our undying loyalty makes us family.
I would live and die for the brothers I found when I was nothing more than a child.
Till she came.
As soon as I touched her our connection was bonded. She is the missing half of my soul and to be without her now would leave me half alive.
I plan to protect her whether she wants it or not, she’s a stubborn as I am and her quest might just kill her.
To be with her will be heaven. To be without her would send my soul into a lifetime of hell.

Ana
I may be small but I’m determined. I was taught by the men in my life to stand up for what I believe in and nothing will take my honor away from me. I won’t let it.
When I met him it was like meeting the other part of my soul. He completes me like no other ever would.
I loved him at first sight even if I didn’t recognize the feeling but not even he will stand in my way. I must get justice for the death of my grandfather. Family honor demands it.
I’m torn in two direction, I want justice but now I finally has something I can’t bear to lose, Sazon. Everyone is telling me I can’t face him but I’ll have no one else stand in my stead. I must face this particular killer.
I must face a monster and win, using everything I was ever taught. Will it be enough to win or will I fall under my own blade?

••••••••

REVIEW: SAZON is the fourth instalment in KJ Dahlen’s contemporary, adult BRATVA BLOOD BROTHERS Russian mafia, romance series focusing on a close-knit group of friends, originally from Russia. This is gym owner Sazon Demikoff, and metal forger Anastasia ‘Ana’ Petroff’s story line. SAZON can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary. The author begins each story with a short story prequel (Blood Brothers) focusing on the history of the ‘brothers’ and how they came to be.

NOTE: SAZON is the re-release of the author’s November 2017 release FORGED IN BLOOD.

SOME BACKGROUND: Five young boys and childhood friends (Yuri, Sazon, Barshan, Mikial and Roman) survived the mean-streets of Russia only to be rescued and reared by a local gym owner Ivan Russo, who would meet his death by a local gang. Seeking revenge against the gang, local Russian Bratva member and soon to be New York Russian mafia leader Nikoli Silvanic would mentor the five young men until they were ready to take on the world, with the approval of Russian Bratva leader Sergi Constantine. When the time came Nikoli Silvanic would take over the New York territory, while the five ‘blood brothers’ would take over New Orleans. These are their stories.

Told from several third person perspectives (Sazon and Ana) SAZON is an ensemble story line that brings together a large number of characters from the author’s Bratva Blood Brothers, Satan’s Spawn MC and Sin’s Bastards series in an attempt to take down a serial killer that has brought his game to the city of New Orleans. Days earlier Ana and Drago Petroff lost their beloved grandfather to a killer-a man who special ordered a Russian-designed sword from the victim, a sword that was used to murder Ivan Curcovic Petroff. In her attempts to track down the killer and her grandfather’s missing Russian blades, Ana finds herself in New Orleans, falling in love with a member of the Russian mob. Enter Sazon Demikoff, gym order and a member of the Russian Bratva. What ensues is the hunt for a killer, and the discovery of information regarding fourteen years of mayhem and murder.

The relationship between Ana and Sazon is quick to develop; a case of insta-lust/love wherein our hero claims Ana as his own declaring his protection for the rest of their lives within a matter of hours of meeting. The $ex scenes are passionate, and quick to resolve without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text. Saying that, Ana and Sazon’s relationship took a backseat to the search and investigation into a series of murders linking back fourteen years.

Like the previous instalment Barshan, Sazon takes liberty with some of the history of the Russian Imperial Romanov family, and the Russian revolution- a history fictionalized and fantasized by many authors and historians throughout the years.

Sadly SAZON, like the previous instalments, requires another round of editing in that there are numerous problems including missing letters, possessive errors, as well as several instances of issues with name changes including Ana to Anna, and Drago to Deago. SAZON is the re-release of the author’s November 2017 FORGED IN BLOOD, therefore there is no excuse for the publication of a book without another re-read, round of editing, grammar and spell check. I also struggled with the lack of connection between the killer and the Russian blades. There is no apparent information linking the killer to the blades, or how he was able to ascertain their importance, location and history as it concerns the late Russian Tzar. The ‘missing information’ leaves a feeling of incompleteness to the overall story.

SAZON is a quick read that ends at 20% on the Kindle e-reader with additional material including a never before release novella-Saving Her, as well as Spawn and Spitfire Volume 1, Sin’s Volume 2 & 3. This is not unusual as most of the books in the series thus far end between 10-20% with the remainder filled with additional story lines.

Own a copy

Reviewed by Sandy

Share

A Rancher’s Song (Heart Falls #2) by Vivian Arend-Review & Excerpt

Posted on by
12

A RANCHER’S SONG (Heart Falls #2) by Vivian Arend-a review and excerpt

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 15, 2018

Can love help a champion bull rider face his fears and find his future? Welcome to Heart Falls, a new series from New York Times bestselling author Vivian Arend.

Ivy Field’s heart nearly broke when she left Heart Falls, but her high school sweetheart insisted she follow-through on her dream of becoming a teacher. She thought that meant putting their relationship on hold briefly, but it’s taken eleven years to return. Now she’s back, no longer a painfully shy young girl but a confident woman who knows exactly what and who she wants–a home and a family–with too-sexy-for-his-boots Walker Stone. He was her first; she wants him to be her last.

Walker “Dynamite” Stone was still reeling from his parents’ unexpected deaths when Ivy left. He let her go, throwing himself into work on the Silver Stone ranch and dangerous living on the rodeo circuit. But lately Walker’s adrenaline junkie ways have crashed–he’s having panic attacks. Potentially devastating to his budding music career, they’re a deadly handicap when shooting for eight seconds aboard an angry bull. He needs to learn to face his fears to save the family fortunes. If he succeeds, this time Walker will be the one to leave Heart Falls, and Ivy, behind.

Will Ivy and Walker have to give up on forever, or can they turn this rancher’s song into a winning duet?

••••••••••••••

REVIEW: A RANCHER’S SONG is the second instalment in Vivian Arend’s contemporary, adult THE STONES OF HEART FALLS / HEARTS FALLS erotic cowboy, romance series focusing on the Stone siblings of Heart Falls, Alberta. This is rodeo champion Walker ‘Dynamite’ Stone, and grade school teacher Ivy Field’s story line. The HEART FALLS series is a spin off from the authors SIX PACK RANCH series but you do not have to have read the original series to follow or understand the current story lines.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Ivy and Walker) A RANCHER’S SONG is a second chance story line between rodeo champion Walker ‘Dynamite’ Stone, and grade school teacher Ivy Fields. Years earlier Ivy Field left her home town of Heart Falls, Alberta to pursue a post secondary education but in doing so left behind her high school sweetheart, who continues to suffer with the loss of his parents years before. Enter rodeo champion Walker ‘Dynamite’ Stone, the man with whom Ivy is still in love, but a man who struggles with his path in life including claiming the woman who stole his heart. What ensues is the rekindling romance between Ivy and Walker, and the potential fall-out as their time together comes with an end date as Walker is pushed to make a life altering decision that will affect the family ranch, and the rest of his life.

Walker Stone suffers with mind-numbing panic attacks that leave our hero with no memory of the how or why. The return of Ivy Fields finds Walker reconsidering the future, a future that may or may not involve staying in Heart Falls with the woman he loves. Ivy is often overwhelmed at family gatherings and public affairs, in this Walker and Ivy are more or less kindred spirits in heart and love.

The relationship between Ivy and Walker is one of second chances; a rekindling romance between high school sweethearts who have never stopped loving one another so much so that neither one moved forward in their personal lives. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic, and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There are a large number of colorful secondary and supporting characters including Walker’s brothers Dustin, Luke and Caleb (Tamara) Stone; ranch hand Kelli James, local firefighter Bradley, single mom / office cleaner Hanna and her eight year old daughter Crissy, as well as Ivy’s sisters Tansy, Fern and Rose; their parents Sophie and Malachi Fields; and an assortment of Stone extended family, cousins, siblings and friends from the Six Pack Ranch Series. Brad and Hanna’s story is next in A FIREFIGHTER’S CHRISTMAS GIFT September 2018.

A RANCHER’S SONG is a story of family and friendship; romance and love; second chances and a happily ever after. The premise is seductive and engaging; the characters are charismatic and dynamic; the romance is hot and provocative. A RANCHER’S SONG is an energetic, inspiring and encouraging story of romance and love.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one A RANCHER’S HEART

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Excerpt kindly supplied by the author and is not intended for duplication or copy. Due to language and content, the excerpt is recommended for mature readers only 18+

She played with her cup, staring into its depths. “I’m a little uncertain on the whole contact part.”

Walker hesitated. “Contact. As in getting in touch with them via cell phone, text or whatever?”

She lifted her gaze to his, quicksilver eyes so cold they were burning hot. “Contact as in physical contact. It’s been a long time for me, and while I know it’s not a case of getting rusty or anything, you know I’m really shy.”

“You seem to have improved in that area,” he offered deadpan. “You talking about sex, Snow? Because I’m pretty sure I didn’t ever get you to actually say the word back when we were in high school.”

And this was one impossible conversation. Not at all what he’d expected, although truth be told, he’d kind of just rushed out with no real agenda other than he needed to be with her.

Her cheeks turned red at his words, but her gaze was rocksteady. “It’s still hard to say, and a lot harder to do. I mean the thought of doing. So I was wondering if maybe…if you’d consider…it. Help me warm up a little.”

There was a special place in hell reserved for men like him. Men whose first thought after being offered sex by a timid young woman was to throw her over their shoulder and haul said woman to the nearest flat surface.

Walker closed his eyes, pretending he hadn’t just been propositioned by the woman he wanted more than his next breath. “I don’t know if that would be a good idea.”

“Oh, I understand how bad of an idea it is, but at the same time I think it’s exactly what we both need. I suppose we don’t have to do it,” Ivy offered. “Just fooling around might help.”

Goddamnfuckinghell. “Ivy.”

Share

Can’t Fight The Feeling/ Can’t Let Her Go (Nashville Dreams 2 & 3) by Sandy James-reviews

Posted on by
10

CAN’T FIGHT THE FEELING (Nashville Dreams #2 & #3) by Sandy James-reviews

CAN’T FIGHT THE FEELING
Nashville Dreams #3
by Sandy James
Release Date: May 8, 2018
Genre: adult, contemporary, romance

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 8, 2018

In Nashville the men are strong, the women are bold, and love comes to those willing to fight for it.

Russ Green is an expert at keeping people out – physically and emotionally. After a career-ending injury, the former quarterback was lucky to find a place as a bouncer at Words & Music. All he wants to do now is stay out of the limelight – alone. With his background, he’s nobody’s Prince Charming. His life is routine, and he likes it that way. Gym, work, home. No surprises. Until a bar brawl lands him in the emergency room, and in some very capable hands…

Nurse Joslynn Wright found her calling during a childhood bout of leukemia. While the fast-paced ER keeps her adrenaline pumping, it’s nothing compared to being with Russ. Her illness made her cautious, though, and Russ’s closed-off nature certainly doesn’t make things any easier. But she can’t help being intrigued by the contradiction of a burly bouncer who can gently strum a guitar. If she’s learned anything in Nashville, it’s that love may take work, but the rewards can be well worth the effort…

•••••••••••

REVIEW: CAN’T FIGHT THE FEELING is the third instalment in Sandy James’ contemporary, adult NASHVILLE DREAMS romance series focusing on three friends who own and operate Words and Music-a bar in Nashville, Tennessee: Brad Maxwell, Ethan Walker and Russell Green. This is co-owner/ former quarter back Russell “Russ” Green, and ER nurse Joslynn ‘Josie’ Wright’s story line. CAN’T FIGHT THE FEELING can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary. Josie is best friends with Savannah Wolf (Can’t Walk Away).

Told from dual third person perspectives (Russ and Joslynn) CAN’T FIGHT THE FEELING follows the building relationship between Words and Music co-owner/ former quarterback Russell “Russ” Green, and ER nurse Joslynn ‘Josie’ Wright. Having met months earlier at Savannah and Brad’s wedding Joslyn wasn’t surprised when former quarterback turned bouncer landed in her hospital ER.

Struggling with his personal life, and the fall-out of his father’s rapidly, decreasing health, Russ believes he is in no position to pursue the woman that make his blood sing but pursue he does, only to be shot down on numerous occasions. Joslynn Wright has seen it all, and in the past has suffered her own share of childhood trauma and loss but Russ’ attraction to, and need for Josie, is met with our heroine’s ongoing reluctance to make a commitment, a commitment that pushes the boundaries between friendship and love. Never one to claim ownership or be in a relationship for very long, Josie’s developing friendship and romance with Russ is at odds with her attitude and the emotional fall-out of falling in love. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a fine line between fiercely independent and feminist b*tch, and Joslynn Wright crosses the line on more than one occasion. Unable to let go of the past Joslynn’s need to be self-reliant comes across as a negative component of her character development, and I was less than enthusiastic with my enjoyment of both the character and the story line premise.

We are reintroduced to Ethan’s business partners Russell Green, Brad Maxwell and Savannah Wolf (Can’t Walk Away #1), Ethan Walker and Chelsea Harris (Can’t Let Her Go #2), as well as the introduction of Ethan’s struggling parents Baron and Yvonne Green.

CAN’T FIGHT THE FEELING is a well written, character driven story of family and friendship; struggle and letting go of the past; realization and acceptance. The premise is engaging with some wonderful world building; the characters are colorful, dynamic, frustrating and flawed; the romance is seductive and hot.

Reading Order and Previous reviews
Can’t Walk Away
Can’t Let Her Go (see below)
Can’t Fight The Feeling

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

_______________

CAN’T LET HER GO
(Nashville Dreams #2)
by Sandy James
Genre: Adult, contemporary, romance

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date January 16, 2018

In Nashville the music is louder, the dreams are bigger, and love can bring a cowboy to his knees.

Ethan Walker is Nashville royalty. Born to the King and Queen of Country Music, he’s spent his life trying to escape the spotlight of his parents’ fame, even walking away from his own promising singing career. He’s the kind of cowboy who prefers flannel to flashbulbs, hay fields to hit records, and the solitude of his horse farm to the nightlife along Music Row. The last thing he wants is attention, especially when it comes from country’s latest star…

Chelsea Harris’s meteoric rise up the charts and string of celebrity boyfriends mean that wherever she goes, the paparazzi follow. A duet with Nashville’s favorite son is exactly what her new charity album needs, but when she approaches Ethan, he turns her down flat. To win the camera-shy cowboy over, Chelsea will have to approach him on his terms. Trouble is, the more time she spends on his farm, the more Ethan wants to keep her there

••••••••••

REVIEW: CAN’T LET HER GO is the second instalment in Sandy James’ contemporary, adult NASHVILLE DREAMS romance series focusing on three friends who own and operate Words and Music-a bar in Nashville, Tennessee: Brad Maxwell, Ethan Walker and Russell Green. This is reluctant, former teen singing sensation Ethan Walker, and country singer Chelsea Harris’s story line. CAN’T LET HER GO can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Chelsea and Ethan) CAN’T LET HER GO follows the building relationship between former child star Ethan Walker, and country music celebrity Chelsea Harris. Ethan Walker is the progeny of country music’s hottest couple but when his father tried to outrun the paparazzi, our hero was left an orphan with a great disdain for everything music and celebrity represents. Enter rising country music star Chelsea Harris-the woman with whom Ethan would fall in love. Chelsea is hoping to release a charity album of duets featuring the children of former music stars, and Ethan Walker is her only hold-out. What ensues are the contemptuous relationship between Chelsea and Ethan, and the fall-out when their friendship and association becomes fodder for the tabloid press.

Ethan Walker is content to work on his ranch, and sit behind the bar serving drinks to his friends and customers but Chelsea Harris’ persistence as it pertains to a duet with our story line hero pushes all of Ethan’s buttons including the buttons that stir up too many memories of his parents and the past. His behaviour and reluctance to help is fuelled by the loss of his parents, and a loss of power over his life as a singing star but I have to questions his lack of maturity on too many occasions. Chelsea is determined to release a charity album in honor of her father, who passed away, an album meant to bring awareness and raise funds for cancer research.

The relationship between Chelsea and Ethan begins acrimoniously as Chelsea persists in her attempts to bring Ethan on board. Ethan is determined to remain out of the music business having had to deal with the fall-out of fame and paparazzi at a very young age. The $ex scenes are intimate but mostly implied.

We are reintroduced to Ethan’s business partners Russell Green, Brad Maxwell and Savannah Wolf (Can’t Walk Away #1), as well as introduction of Chelsea’s agent Addie, her mother Betsy , and Chuck Austin, a man who sets out to destroy the building relationship between Ethan and Chelsea.

The world building focuses on two things close to the author’s heart: horses and cancer research. We are up close and personal as Sandy James takes the reader into the world of raising horses, as well as the struggle with which many families have to deal-losing a loved one to cancer.

CAN’T LET HER GO is a story of friendship and family; of betrayal and loss; of letting go of the past and moving forward with life. The premise is engaging and thought-provoking; the romance is hindered by memories of the past; the characters are colorful and charismatic.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

Sandy James lives in a quiet suburb of Indianapolis and is a high school psychology
teacher. She owns a small stable of harness racehorses and enjoys spending time at
Hoosier Park racetrack. She has been an Amazon #1 Bestseller multiple times and has
won numerous awards including two HOLT Medallions.

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

Share

Deuces Wild 1-3 by Taryn Quinn-Series Review

Posted on by
10

Deuces Wild 1-3  by Taryn Quinn- Series Review

 

PROTECTING HIS ROCKSTAR
(Deuces Wild #1)
by Taryn Quinn
Release Date: April 14, 2018
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, romance

ebook ONLY 99¢ or £0.99 Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 14, 2018

She’ll help him get his ball back into play…

Sidelined after an elbow injury, former Major League Baseball pitcher Chase Dixon ends up working security at a club—and his first assignment? Crowd control for singer Summer Maitland’s biggest rock show yet.

Summer, his little sister’s best friend.

Summer, the woman he once kissed and hasn’t been able to stop thinking about since.

Summer, who is younger, and off-limits, and oh yeah, now she’s his client too.

Turns out she needs protection—and not just the kind in foil—and he’s putting together a bodyguard agency. He’s more than willing to make sure she’s safe.

All night long.

Even if the explosive heat flaring to life between them is anything but.

Author’s note: Protecting His Rockstar has a HEA, no cheating and no cliffhanger!

Author’s note part deux: Protecting His Rockstar was previously published as Protecting His Assets by Cari Quinn through Samhain Publishing in 2014.

•••••••

REVIEW: PROTECTING HIS ROCKSTAR is the first instalment in Taryn Quinn’s contemporary, adult DEUCES WILD erotic, romance series. This is thirty year old, former major league baseball pitcher Chase Dixon, and twenty-four year old, up and coming music star Summer Maitland’s story line.

NOTE: PROTECTING HIS ROCKSTAR was previous published as Protecting His Assets by Cari Quinn (2014)

Told from dual third person perspectives (Chase and Summer) PROTECTING HIS ROCKSTAR follows the frenemies to lovers, litter sister’s best friend relationship between injured major league baseball pitcher Chase ‘Deuce’ Dixon, and singer/songwriter Summer Maitland. As a fledgling musician Summer never expected or required security but her first major sell-out at a local bar found it necessary to reconsider in the face of her own personal safety. Enter her best friend’s brother, and injure major league pitcher Chase Dixon, and the man that Summer has loved for most of her life. What ensues is the building but acrimonious relationship between Summer and Chase, and the potential fall-out as miscommunication, the probable end of Chase’s professional career, and Summer’s chance to take her show on the road find our couple struggling with the emotional ups and downs of a secret relationship that is about to come crashing down.

Chase ‘Deuce’ Dixon knows his baseball career is on the downslide. A career-ending injury found our hero struggling with the future, a future he never envisioned with his sister’s best friend. When an opportunity presents to open his own security firm, along with his childhood friend and former MLB player Jason ‘Jax’ Wilder, Chase jumps at the chance including offering his services to the woman with whom he would fall in love.

Summer Maitland’s past is mired in heartbreak and loss. A sheltered childhood marked by the death of her beloved father found Summer in the hands of her over-protective mother, a woman who has chosen seek a new life, without the daughter she once loved. Summer’s music has been her dream and fantasy in the hopes of making it big, all on her own.

The relationship between Summer and Chase is one of long-term attraction that has never crossed the line between friendship or love. Summer is Chase’s sister’s best friend, and in that Chase believes Summer is off-limits to a man who isn’t willing to commit to one woman or settling down. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and intense without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text. The sexual attraction is palpable and hot.

We are introduced to Chase’s sister, Cassidy Dixon, and his best friend Jax Wilder. Cassidy and Jax’s relationship is mired in secrets and pain. Their story is next.

PROTECTING HIS ROCKSTAR is a slow building story line; a predictable but engaging tale about two people whose lives are about to go in opposite directions: an up and coming musician whose career is about to take off vs an injure MLB player who knows his days are numbered in the show. The premise is impassioned; the romance is captivating and provocative; the characters are real, spirited and dynamic.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

_______________

ebook ONLY 99¢ or £0.99 Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon. au / Amazon.uk /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 26, 2018

He’s the town player. She’s the untouchable good girl. Game on.

Former MLB player Jax Wilder is back home again. After leaving the fame of professional baseball behind, he’s starting a new career as a bodyguard with his closest friends. He just never expected one of his first clients to be his best friend’s little sister, Cassidy Dixon.

The gorgeous, off-limits woman he grew up with and grew to have a baseball-sized…thing for is being stalked. Not that Cass ever would guess he has the hots for her. She’s too busy hating him.

Cass came to Jax for help because she trusts him. She also can’t stand him for leaving town without keeping in touch. And now the dirty-talking, pompous jerk had the nerve to make her want to forget all their bad blood.

At least long enough to get naked a time or seventeen.

But Jax will do whatever it takes to keep her safe. Because this time, he’s pulling out all the stops to win Cass’s heart…if he can catch her stalker before it’s too late.

Author’s note: Guarding His Best Friend’s Sister has a HEA, no cheating and no cliffhanger!

••••••••••••

REVIEW:  GUARDING HIS BEST FRIEND’S SISTER is the second instalment in Taryn Quinn’s (Cari Quinn and Taryn Elliott) contemporary, adult DEUCES WILD erotic, romance series. This is former MLB player Jax Wilder, and ice-cream parlor owner Cassidy Dixon’s story line. GUARDING HIS BEST FRIEND’S SISTER can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary.

NOTE: GUARDING HIS BEST FRIEND’S SISTER is the re-release of Cari Quinn’s April 2014 Guarding His Heart with a new cover, and some re-editing.

Told from dual third person points of view (Jax and Cassidy) GUARDING HIS BEST FRIEND’S SISTER follows the building romance between former MLB player Jax Wilder, and ice-cream parlor owner Cassidy Dixon. Cass Dixon was being stalked; a series of threatening letters proved that someone was following our story line heroine. In desperation Cassidy approaches her brother’s best friend and business partner at Deuces Wild Bodyguard Agency for help. Enter Jax Wilder, the man with whom Cassidy will fall in love. What ensues is the building romance between Jax and Cassidy, and the continuing threats against our story line heroine.

Jax Wilder’s reputation with the ladies precedes his rekindling friendship with our story line heroine. A love-em and leave-em kinda guy, Jax wasn’t looking for anything permanent but his need to protect his best friend’s sister came with the side benefits of a potential happily ever after with the woman he has lusted after for many years. Cassidy Dixon suspected who was behind the threats to her life, although it didn’t make much sense, but when the threats began to escalate, something had to be done.

The relationship between Jax and Cassidy is one of immediate attraction but for Jax it was the forbidden aspect as Cass was off limits by decree of her brother. Jax likes to talk dirty both in and out of the bedroom; Cassidy, although naïve in some regards, is willing to play along with Jax’s ideas. There is plenty of sexual innuendo between our leading couple. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and provocative.

Chase and Summer (Protecting His Rockstar #1) return as secondary and supporting characters. We are introduced to Jax’s mother Mrs. Wilder, as well as Chase and Cassidy’s father Dale Dixon; Cassidy’s ex boyfriend Russ, and his new girlfriend Amanda; and Chase and Jax’s business partner Sterling. Sterling and Ang’s story is next in SHIELDING MY BABY.

GUARDING HIS BEST FRIEND’S SISTER is a story with several familiar romance tropes including best friend’s sister /forbidden romance, childhood crush, and threats to our story line heroine. The premise is engaging; the romance is seductive and highly sexual; the characters are colorful and charismatic.

I did have a couple issues with the story line that were a little disappointing to my overall enjoyment. Our hero Jax is supposed to be guarding Cassidy Dixon but on more than one occasion he is doing something else; working another job thusly leaving our heroine exposed and unguarded. Also, the suspense / stalker aspect of the story line took a back seat to the building romance, and was virtually non-existent throughout most of the story.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

______________

SHIELDING HIS BABY
(Deuces Wild #3)
by Taryn Quinn
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, romance

ebook only 99¢ or £0.99 Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.au / Amazon.uk /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Re-release May 2, 2018

She’s too young for him. Pregnant. And irresistible.

Bodyguard Sterling Vance’s job becomes personal when the daughter of a friend, Angelina McFee, admits she’s being stalked by her ex.

Angelina is knocked up and oh yeah, temporarily without a place to live. Then her daddy’s seemingly conservative friend offers to help with her stalker problem…by moving her into his home so he can guard her and her unborn baby.

With his body.

Only problem with that scenario? Angelina wants Sterling to use his body all right, but in a carnal fashion not suitable for his prim and proper lifestyle.

Until she messages him incognito on a dating site and discovers Sterling can get down and dirty in ways she never imagined. Tie optional.

But falling for him? That’s not optional at all.

Sterling wants to build a family with Angelina and longs to be a father to her baby. But the woman he loves is in danger and the secrets she’s keeping—both in and out of bed—may jeopardize both her and her child’s lives.

Author’s note: Shielding His Baby has a HEA, no cheating and no cliffhanger!

Author’s note part deux: Shielding His Baby was previously published as Proving His Worth by Cari Quinn through Samhain Publishing in 2014. This edition has a new cover and has been lightly re-edited.

•••••••••••••

REVIEW: SHIELDING HIS BABY is the third instalment in Taryn Quinn’s (Taryn Elliott and Cari Quinn) contemporary, adult DEUCES WILD erotic, romance series. This is thirty-one year old bodyguard and businessman Sterling Vance, and twenty-three year old Masters’ student Angelina McFee’s story line. SHIELDING HIS BABY picks up immediately after the events of book two Guarding His Best Friend’s Sister but can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

NOTE: SHIELDING HIS BABY is the re-release and re-edited version of Cari Quinn’s August 2014 release Proving His Worth.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Sterling and Angelina) SHIELDING HIS BABY follows the building relationship between childhood friends bodyguard and businessman Sterling Vance, and Master’s student Angelina McFee. Pregnant, alone, and recent college dropout, twenty-three year old Angelina McFee struggles with what’s to come next including the ongoing threats by the man who fathered her unborn child, a man who is unwilling to step up and take responsibility for yet another fatherless child. Requiring help, and a possible bodyguard for the foreseeable future Ang comes clean with her childhood friend, businessman and newly minted protector Sterling Vance, and the man with whom Ang will fall in love. What ensues is the building relationship and romance between Sterling and Ang, and the potential fall-out as Ang’s past threaten everything she wants, and the man that she loves.

SHIELDING HIS BABY is an erotic story line; a highly sexual tale about two people pulled together by need, desire, and a palpable sexual attraction that does not go unnoticed by our leading couple. Angelina McFee is a pierced, tattooed, strong willed, sexually competent young woman who isn’t afraid to go after the man she wants, a man to whom she has been lying – a fake dating profile, and papers served force Angelina to go it alone or come clean and reveal the depth of her lies. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic, seductive and intense. Angelina likes to talk dirty forcing a once stoic and old-fashioned Sterling out of his comfort zone, willing to try something new.

All of the previous story line couples play secondary and supporting characters including Chase and Summer (Protecting His Rockstar #1), and Jax and Cassidy (Guarding His Best Friend’s Sister #2). We are introduced to Angelina’s father Marcus McFee; Sterling’s ex Tricia; and the requisite evil-the baby’s father-Pete Lamont.

SHIELDING HIS BABY is a sexy and spicy, character driven story line. The premise is spirited; the romance is captivating and provocative; the characters are colorful, lively, dynamic-a passionate couple struggling against the odds, and the secrets that threaten them all.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed By Sandy

Share

Bare (Nudes #2) by Sarah Robinson-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour

Posted on by
11

BARE (Nudes #2) by Sarah Robinson-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour

BARE
Nudes #2
by Sarah Robinson
Release Date: May 8, 2018
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, romance

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca /  Amazon AU / Amazon UK / B&N / Chapters Indigo / iBooks 

ADD to your Goodreads account

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 8, 2018

Reed Scott is the hottest actor in LA…
Being a Hollywood heartthrob has its perks, and I’ve damn sure enjoyed every one of them, both on and off the silver screen. The tabloids loved every second of exploiting my privacy, chronicling my mistakes in ink for the whole world to see. Accepting the lead role in a romantic dance film was guaranteed to make me a box office hit and help me rewrite my image, until the choreographer hired to train me turned out to be the only woman I’d ever loved and lost.

As beautiful and enticing as ever, Teagan walks in and reminds me of the worst mistake I’ve ever made. She should hate me, and now she has the power to destroy everything I am.

Teagan Reynolds is picking up the pieces…
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice…never going to happen. I fell in love with Reed Scott once and it nearly killed me—literally. The last thing I want to do now is teach him how to dance, but I need this job and there’s no way I’m letting him take yet another thing away from me.

Reed is in my world now, and this time we’re dancing by my rules.

••••••••••

REVIEW: BARE is the second instalment in Sarah Robinson’s contemporary adult NUDES erotic, romance series focusing on three sisters-Aria, Teagan and Simone. This is dancer and choreographer Teagan Reynolds, and actor Reed Scott’s story line. BARE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Teagan and Reed) BARE is a second chance story line between college sweethearts- dancer and choreographer Teagan Reynolds, and actor Reed Scott. Eight years earlier, on the day of their wedding, Reed Scott left a humiliated Teagan at the altar. Fast forward to present day wherein Teagan, a former dancer whose life was all but destroyed the day Reed walked out of her life, is currently the hired choreographer for Reed’s latest movie role. What ensues is the rebuilding relationship, friendship and romance between Teagan and Reed, and the potential fall-out as their dual careers begin to pull them apart.

The relationship between Teagan and Reed is one of second chances. Teagan’s love for Reed is masked by her hatred and the humiliation on the wedding day that never was, a day that all but ruined her career and destroyed her life. Reed had no idea the damaged caused on that fateful day but eight years later our hero is desperate to renew his relationship in the hopes of a happily ever after. Reed’s manwh*re reputation precedes his reintroduction to our story line heroine, a reputation Reed and his manager are working to overcome. The $ex scenes are erotic, intimate and intense without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

Both of Teagan’s sisters play secondary and supporting roles as well as Aria’s husband Ben Lawson (Nudes #1) and their daughter Tillie, Teagan, Aria and Simone’s parents; Reed’s agent Jason Allen; and Reed’s co-star Elena Stravinsky who pushes a little too hard at trying to seduce our story line hero.

BARE is a story of second chances; of betrayal and forgiveness; of romance, love and happily ever after. The premise is entertaining and edgy; the romance is a back and forth, push and pull between two people whose love for one another has never died but struggles in the face of past sins; the characters are spirited and energetic. BARE is a passionate tale love, betrayal and loss.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one NUDES

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

Am I cursed? Teagan stared at herself in the mirror of her small apartment bathroom. She felt cursed. Reed-Scott-freaking-cursed.
Life certainly hadn’t handed her the easiest go, and now, just when she’d thought things were finally turning around because she’d landed a fantastic job as a film choreographer, fate was still proving it had other plans for her. This job was supposed to be her big break—well, break-ish. Sure, it wasn’t what she’d wanted out of her life, but her dreams were no longer an option.
And this job? Most people would kill for it. So, she was choosing to be grateful.
She had to choose to be grateful a lot, actually. If she didn’t, then life would have gotten the better of her years ago. Teagan glanced down at her legs, tracing a finger across the long scar that stretched from her knee to her hip. She tried to hide it under leggings and skirts, but it wasn’t always possible.
When she’d almost died in a car accident at the age of twenty-one, she’d thought she’d never walk again. Hell, the doctors had told her exactly that. And dancing? That was an impossibility.
The years and years she’d spent training to become a professional dancer had all been wiped away in less time than it took for that car to slam hers into a ditch. Despite the doctor’s predictions that her wheelchair would become a permanent fixture, though, she’d proved them all wrong. She’d spent years learning to walk, and then dance, again. Sure, she’d probably never have the agility to become the famous dancer she’d always dreamed of being, but she could at least teach. And with that, she’d found a way to keep doing what she loved…even if it was not exactly what she loved.
So, she chose to be grateful.
But seeing Reed Scott again? The man who made her believe in everlasting, soul-deep, earth shattering love and then left her standing alone at the altar on their wedding day? The man who had left her just to star in a movie that would make him famous?
She was not grateful for that—or for him—one bit.
Teagan finished putting on the last touches of her makeup then changed into a new pair of leggings and a leotard. Glancing one last time in the mirror, she fluffed out her wavy brown hair nervously. As much as she might hate him, she found herself wanting to look her best for him anyway. Make him eat his heart out. Make him regret ever leaving her like that in the first place.
She swallowed, trying to push away her frustration. That didn’t seem possible right now, though. Sighing, Teagan grabbed her car keys off the small table by her front door and gave one last glance around the small Los Angeles apartment she called home. Benson, her incredibly fat tabby cat, was lounging on the windowsill, lazily yawning and watching her. “Bye, Benson. Be good.”
He didn’t even blink at her. He’d probably still be lying in that exact same spot when she came home later.
Teagan blew him a kiss then headed out, locking her front door carefully behind her. Within a few minutes, she was behind the wheel of her car and heading toward the studio. It was still dark outside, but she didn’t mind one bit. She enjoyed early mornings when the world was quiet and the roads were clearer. Driving was still something that made her a little tense after her car accident, and traffic in Los Angeles was always horrendous. But, at five o’clock in the morning, it was a lot more manageable and didn’t make her feel so…terrified.
Luckily, her commute was short and she arrived on set twenty minutes later. She headed straight to the studio where she’d told Reed to meet her, but he wasn’t there yet, which she’d expected since she was a bit early. Placing her dance bag on the shelf to one side of the studio, she pulled out her heel dancer shoes with a cute buckle T-strap over the top of her foot and put them on. She pulled on a loose fitting, light sweater over her leotard for some coverage, since it reached almost to the bottom of her ass.
Next, she began to shimmy out of her leggings, since she was able to work a lot better in her leotard without restriction to her legs. She got down to her knees before she realized that being bare legged would reveal the scar on her leg. Quickly, she slid them back up her legs.
“Shit.”
Teagan whirled around, looking for the person who’d just broken the silence around her.
Reed Scott. Of course.
“You scared the crap out of me,” she told him, grateful that he hadn’t been able to see her scar from where he was standing for the brief moment her leggings had been down.
“Sorry,” he replied, clearly making an effort to look anywhere but at her. “I didn’t know you’d be…uh, I mean, I wasn’t expecting…”
She rolled her eyes. Actors were so dramatic. “I’m not getting naked, Reed. I was just, uh, putting on my leggings to dance.”
“Sure. Right. Yeah.” He was rambling, clutching the gym bag over his shoulder. “So, time to get started?”
“Yep. Put your stuff on the shelf and we’ll get started,” she instructed, doing her best to ignore the butterflies fluttering in her stomach at the very sight of him. Fuck, he looked even better than he’d looked the last time she’d seen him. Tall, broad shoulders, olive skin under thick black hair with a scruffy beard she remembered was very soft. And those eyes…God, the way those light green eyes pierced through her.
He stood you up at the altar, she reminded herself. For a damn movie.
“Sure.” He headed toward her and placed his bag on the shelf. “What are we practicing today?”
“It’s a pretty short routine today, actually. It shouldn’t take us too long.” Though she doubted he’d be the quickest learner after his warning yesterday. “Ready?”
He turned around to look at her, his eyes trailing down her body in a way that made her heart pound faster and faster. Suddenly his gaze stopped, pausing on her legs.
Her heart pounded, terrified he could see through her thin leggings to the bump of her scar. But he said nothing, and his gaze kept traveling. She was safe.
Honestly, she was a little surprised he didn’t already know about her accident. It hadn’t been a secret. Everyone in her life knew, and she’d certainly expected someone to pass along the message. Or for him to check in, even once.
She’d waited for him in the hospital, expecting him to come. Expecting him to apologize. Expecting him to beg her forgiveness, realize what an idiot he had been and take her back, care for her, return her to health with his love and affection.
That hadn’t really worked out.
Finally, his eyes returned to his face, and his tongue slid across his bottom lip. “You look…damn, Teag. You look amazing.”
“Listen, Reed,” she began, setting her jaw and sticking out her chin. “We work together. That’s it. You don’t get to look at me like that anymore.”
Reed looked startled, taken aback at her abruptness. Then the saddest look she’d ever seen passed over his face. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“Let’s get started.” She moved to the center of the studio. “I’ll show you today’s sequence, and then we’ll go through it step by step. Okay?”
He nodded, but said nothing.
Carefully, she posed herself in the center of the room with her toes pointed and her arms around her waist. In one slick move, she sidestepped and kicked one leg out to her left, flipping her hair with the motion. She then tucked her foot, her knee pointed out horizontally from her body and spun in a circle.
On her second spin around, she kicked up high, like an incredibly tall karate kick. When her foot touched back down on the ground, she lunged to the right and threw her arms out, tossing back her head with the motion. She curved her spine outwards, pulling her stomach in as she moved her arms in a circular motion toward herself.
She twirled then, spinning on the tips of her toes while keeping her eyes on one stationary spot so she didn’t get dizzy. After her fourth spin, she shoved her arms down by her sides and lifted her chin. With that, she spun back in the direction she’d just come from and leaped multiple times across the room with her arms out and her fingers pointed.
Finally, she came down on one foot and spun in several circles before coming to a stop in front of Reed. “Annnnnd, that’s it.”
“Shit, that looked complicated as hell,” he admitted. “Though you looked incredible doing it.”
She ignored his compliment. Or, rather, she tried. Admittedly, her heart pounded a little harder. But, that was being ignored for now. “Let’s go over the first step.” She repeated the side steps and kicking her leg to the left. “Just like that. Let’s see what you can do.”
Reed followed in her footsteps, and honestly, it wasn’t terrible. It wasn’t great either. “Like that?”
“Close,” she admitted. “Let’s go through it again.” 


 

Sarah Robinson is the bestselling author of The Photographer Trilogy and the Sand & Clay rock star series. A native of Washington, D.C., Robinson has both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in criminal psychology. She is married to a local police officer who is just as much of an animal rescue enthusiast as she is. Together, they own a zoo of rescue and foster animals.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads

Pinterest | Instagram | Tumblr

NOTE: The Reading Cafe is NOT responsible for the rafflecopter giveaway. If you have any questions, please contact the tour provider.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Share

The Other Lady Vanishes by Amanda Quick – a Review

Posted on by
10

The Other Lady Vanishes by Amanda Quick – a Review

 

Amazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM / Book Depository

 

Description:
After escaping from a private sanitarium, Adelaide Blake arrives in Burning Cove, California, desperate to start over.

Working at an herbal tea shop puts her on the radar of those who frequent the seaside resort town: Hollywood movers and shakers always in need of hangover cures and tonics. One such customer is Jake Truett, a recently widowed businessman in town for a therapeutic rest. But unbeknownst to Adelaide, his exhaustion is just a cover.

In Burning Cove, no one is who they seem. Behind facades of glamour and power hide drug dealers, gangsters, and grifters. Into this make-believe world comes psychic to the stars Madame Zolanda. Adelaide and Jake know better than to fall for her kind of con. But when the medium becomes a victim of her own dire prediction and is killed, they’ll be drawn into a murky world of duplicity and misdirection.

Neither Adelaide or Jake can predict that in the shadowy underground they’ll find connections to the woman Adelaide used to be–and uncover the specter of a killer who’s been real all along…

 

 

Review:

The Other Lady Vanishes by Amanda Quick is the 2nd book in her Burning Cove series.  This story takes place during the 1930’s in the small town of Burning Cove, California.  Some of the characters we met in the first book have secondary roles, as we return to Burning Cove.

We meet Adelaide Blake, our heroine, from the start where she is in the process of trying to escape from an insane asylum.  Adelaide knows she must run for her life, and someone is trying to kill her.  Adelaide was locked up by her “husband” and the evil people in charge at the asylum, who were doing experiments with her and others using a hallucinating drug.   Months later, Adelaide (now Brockton) is working as a waitress in a tea room in Burning Cove, where she help creates various types of herbal tea that has become popular, since it helps people with health issues, hangovers, tonics, etc.  Burning Cove has many well known visitors, who spend time in the seaside coast, and the tea room has become a place to meet famous people. 

Jake Truett, our hero, finds himself visiting the tea room, and becoming attracted to Adelaide.  Jake keeps to himself, but he knows some of the people we met in the first book, but Jake also has ulterior motive, trying to follow someone he suspects of stealing something from someone close to him. 

Madame Zoolander is a former actress who is now a famous physic, and she also visits the tea room for one of Adelaide’s famous brews.  When Adelaide is invited to Madame’s show, she ends up taking Jake with her; during the show Madame makes a bold prediction that will come true the following morning.

What follows is an exciting story that never lets up, with Jake and Adelaide in the middle of all the action.  When a number of deaths happen, the danger and risks escalate, as they will begin to discover that much of this will coincide with her false imprisonment at the asylum.  This intriguing story is filled with blackmail, drugs, quack doctors, & physics, not to mention the ‘husband’ whom Adelaide never married (he wanted her inheritance), who was determined to find her and bring her back to the asylum.  Almost at every turn, Jake and Adelaide found themselves in grave danger by those trying to kill them. I will not give spoilers, as so many things happen along the way, that saying anything more would ruin the book for you.

I loved Adelaide and Jake together, as they were a sweet couple, and they blended so well together.  The slow built romance was so well done by Quick, not taking anything away from the tense exciting storyline.  I really enjoyed seeing many of those we met in the first book, such as Luther, Raina, Irene & Oliver.

The Other Lady Vanishes was a wonderful intense suspenseful story, filled with secrets, betrayals, pulse pounding action, and a sweet romance. Amanda Quick once again gives us a complex mystery that had a bit of everything and the fun of being in the glamorous world of 1930’s.  I suggest you read the first book to enjoy the setting of this series, but The Other Vanishes reads very well as a standalone.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher

Share

Hooked on You (Chicago Rebels #3) by Kate Meader-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour

Posted on by
12

HOOKED ON YOU ( The Chicago Rebels #3) by Kate Meader-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour

HOOKED ON YOU
Chicago Rebels #3
by Kate Meader
Release Date: May 7, 2018
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, hockey, romance

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca /Amazon. uk / Amazon.au / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /iBooks / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 7, 2018

The steamy Chicago Rebels series returns with this racy and sassy tale of embittered hearts, second chances, and going for the goal—on and off the ice.

Violet Vasquez never met her biological father, so learning he left his beloved hockey franchise—the Chicago Rebels—to her is, well, unexpected. Flat broke and close to homeless, Violet is determined to make the most of this sudden opportunity. Except dear old dad set conditions that require she takes part in actually running the team with the half-sisters she barely knows. Working with these two strangers and overseeing a band of hockey-playing lugs is not on her agenda…until she lays eyes on the Rebels captain and knows she has to have him.

Bren St. James has been labeled a lot of things: the Puck Prince, Lord of the Ice, Hell’s Highlander…but it’s the latest tag that’s making headlines: washed-up alcoholic has-been. This season, getting his life back on track and winning the Cup are his only goals. With no time for relationships—except the fractured ones he needs to rebuild with his beautiful daughters—he’s finding it increasingly hard to ignore sexy, all-up-in-his-beard Violet Vasquez. And when he finds himself in need of a nanny just as the playoffs are starting, he’s faced with a temptation he could so easily get hooked on.

For two lost souls, there’s more on the line than just making the best of a bad situation… there might also be a shot at the biggest prize of all: love.

•••••

REVIEW: HOOKED ON YOU is the third and final full-length instalment in Kate Meader’s contemporary, adult THE CHICAGO REBELS erotic, romance, hockey series focusing on the men and women of the professional hockey team the Chicago Rebels. This is team co-owner Violet Vasquez, and team captain Bren St. James’s story line. HOOKED ON YOU can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary but I recommend reading the series in order for back story and cohesion. For fans of Kate Meader there is a slight cross-over with the author’s Hot in Chicago series with the cameo appearance of Alexandra and Eli Cooper (Playing with Fire #2).

SOME BACKGROUND: Upon their father’s death, estranged sisters Harper Chase, Isobel Chase and Violet Vasquez inherited the ownership of the struggling NHL hockey franchise-the Chicago Rebels. With only months remaining in the current season, the sisters are tasked with turning the team into a play-off bound franchise or risk loosing everything, including their father’s legacy, one piece at a time.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Violet and Bren) HOOKED ON YOU follows the building relationship between The Chicago Rebels co-owner Violet Vasquez, and team captain Bren St. James. Months earlier Violet hit on the stranger in a bar not realizing the stranger was the Chicago Rebels troubled captain, and essentially her new employee. With the death of her absentee father, Violet inherited one-third of the mantle of ownership of professional hockey’s struggling Chicago Rebels, and subsequently, along with two half-sisters she knew little about. But when troubled team captain Bren St. James found himself in desperate need of childcare for his two young daughters, Violet reluctantly stepped in knowing Bren didn’t feel the same way about her as she did about the handsome Scot. What ensues is the building relationship between Bren and Violet, and the potential fall-out as Bren’s past comes looking for a second chance forcing Violet to step aside to protect her heart and Bren’s future with his beloved daughters.

Bren St. James’ personal life had spiralled out of control but close to a year of sobriety finds our hero looking towards the future with the children he loves, and the woman that calls to his heart. Violet Vasquez had no plans to stick around past the current hockey season; falling in love was never on the agenda, but having her heart broken meant moving on was more of necessity than previously planned.

All of the previous story line couples and characters play secondary and supporting roles. We are introduced to Bren’s daughters, nine year old Franky, and eleven year old Cat, as well as Violet’s mother, whose own history with Violet’s father was nothing more than a one-night stand.

HOOKED ON YOU is a story of family and friendship; struggling against the demons from the past; romance and love. The premise is entertaining, encouraging and captivating; the romance is hot, erotic and intense; the characters are broken, colorful and real. HOOKED ON YOU is a sassy, sexy and heart-warming story; an energetic conclusion to an addicting series.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
In Skates Trouble
Irresistible You
So Over You
Undone By You (2.5)

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

She blew out a breath that was half growl, picked up a can of Italian wedding soup, and examined the ingredient list like she was studying for a test. Why wasn’t she taking this opportunity to get under his skin using those taunts that tripped off her tongue like sensual ninja knives?
“Have I offended you in some way, Violet?”
Keeping her chin dipped, she shook her head, but it was a shake of disbelief, not of disagreement with his question.
“Violet, look at me.”
Glittering eyes snapped to his, in them a flash of something—a visceral response to his demand—but it was gone so quickly that even the rewind called him a liar.
“Has something happened?”
“Look, St. James, you and I have never meshed, so we don’t need to pretend to get along. We just ran into each other at the store and you ‘saved’ me from the unseemly interest of a fellow shopper. ¡Maravilloso! ¡Gracias! Now you can take your steel buns and your sexy scowl off in the opposite direction.”
Color flagged her cheeks, making her olive skin glow. She was furious, and he still didn’t know why. He was also furious, and he had a better idea of the reason.
She’d changed the social contract. They’d been moseying along with her teasing and taunting and flirting, and him acting like it was the worst thing ever to happen to him. Like Violet’s attention was a fresh slice of hell, because in a way it was. She reminded him of everything he couldn’t have. She reminded him of the man he used to be. His body came alive around her, and alive was dangerous. Alive was the opposite of numb, and numb was his best defense against the demons whispering in his ear.
One drink won’t hurt. Thirst like yours can’t be quenched with anything but whiskey.
If he allowed himself to want her, it was a slippery slope to succumbing to the demons at the door. Of course he couldn’t tell her this, so instead he latched on to her words.
“Steel buns?” There was also “sexy scowl,” but he figured he’d start with the ass stuff.
She rolled her eyes, then coasted those same eyes down his body, half hidden by the grocery cart. “As if you don’t know.”
“That I have an ass you could bounce a puck off of?” He twisted to check himself out. “S’pose I do, lass.”
She burst out laughing and muttered something in Spanish.
“What’s that?”
“Not for your ears, Scot.”
One day she’d tell him. One day, he’d get it out of her, preferably while her body arched into his and his body drove into hers.

FOLLOW:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Reader’s Group | Bookbub | Goodreads | Newsletter | Amazon Author Profile

Kate Meader

Originally from Ireland, USA Today bestselling author Kate Meader cut her romance reader teeth on Maeve Binchy and Jilly Cooper novels, with some Harlequins thrown in for variety. Give her tales about brooding mill owners, oversexed equestrians, and men who can rock an apron or a fire hose, and she’s there. Now based in Chicago, she writes sexy contemprary romance with alpha heroes and strong heroines who can match their men quip for quip.

NOTE: The Reading Cafe is NOT responsible for the rafflecopter giveaway. If you have any questions, please contact the tour provider.

?#GIVEAWAY️?

Enter for a chance to win a $25 #Amazon #GiftCard!

Enter: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/5440a3541472

Share

Naughty Desires (Naughty Shorts #1) by Sarah Castille -a review

Posted on by
10

NAUGHTY DESIRES (Naughty Shorts #1) by Sarah Castille – a review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 24, 2018

I’ll do anything to get her back.

Fifteen years ago she crashed into me at a bus stop. It was love at first stumble.

We fell in love quickly and wildly. It was everything that neither of us had experienced before and we got married as soon as possible.

But what happens when life changes everything? When you start feeling unworthy of your brilliant wife?

I’ve shared almost everything about myself with Lily – except my dark desires.

I can feel her slipping away from me, but I won’t let her go.

I’ve got one chance to show her who I really am, what I really want, and all the games I like to play.


Warning: This NAUGHTY SHORTS book contains a little naughty, a lot of heart, and a happily ever after.

Naughty Shorts from New York Times bestselling author, Sarah Castille, are quick delicious bites of dirty and sweet romance that will give you all the feels. Set in a small town, and inspired by stories about everyday couples, these sexy novellas are about hope, passion and second chances.

•••••••••

REVIEW: NAUGHTY DESIRES is the first instalment in Sarah Castille’s contemporary, adult Naughty Shorts erotic romance series of novellas and short stories.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Chris and Lily) NAUGHTY DESIRES focuses on married couple Lily and Chris Taylor,and the gradual breakdown of their marriage. One year earlier Chris Taylor lost his job, and in the ensuing time the emotional fall-out has affected his relationship with the woman he loves. When the sexy Dr. Aiden Steadman, DDS offers Lily a surprise gift, our heroine hopes to revive her marriage with the contents within. What ensues is the rekindling romance and relationship between Lily and Chris, and the potential fall-out as past demons continue to haunt our story line hero.

NAUGHTY DESIRES is a quick, erotic read; a short story of one man’s failure to see beyond the past, and one woman’s struggle to save the marriage and the man she continues to love. The premise is steamy, naughty and hot; the romance is a rekindling relationship; the characters struggle in the face of past demons and the fragile male ego.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Sarah Castille is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Redemption Series, Ruin & Revenge Series, Sinner’s Tribe Motorcycle Club series, Legal Heat series and the Club Excelsior series. A recovering lawyer with a fondness for dirty-talking alpha males, she now is a full-time writer, who lives on Vancouver Island. Sarah’s books have been listed as Publisher’s Weekly’s Top Ten Picks and Best Summer Reads, and Amazon’s Best Romance Books of the Year, and have won numerous reader’s choice awards including the Holt Medallion.

Connect with Sarah:

BOOKBUB | FACEBOOK | AMAZON AUTHOR | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS | PINTEREST | YOUTUBE | NEWSLETTER | WEBSITE

Share