Tag Archives: Contemporary Romance

A Taste of Trouble by Gina Gordon-a review

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A TASTE OF TROUBLE by Gina Gordon- a review

A Taste of Trouble

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / KOBO

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 18, 2013

When Liv Crawford decided to pursue her dream of owning her own bakery, it was no surprise that she forgot to add “maintaining a serious relationship” to her business plan. Not when she believes a cupcake can fix anything, even loneliness.

Jake Miller isn’t concerned about being lonely. He’s cast aside his playboy lifestyle to pursue something more meaningful, his passion for photography. So, when his boss asks him to pursue a beautiful woman and coerce her to his office for a disguised meeting—no matter what it takes—in exchange for the opportunity to turn his hobby into a career, he jumps at the chance. At first sight, Liv awakens his long-buried desire for commitment, but his secret mission could ruin his hopes of keeping her.

Despite Liv’s commitment to swear off relationships to run her bakery, Jake quickly becomes her number one distraction. Yet, even her misgivings can’t tame the heat as they straddle the line between love and ambition.

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REVIEW: A TASTE OF TROUBLE is the latest contemporary romance release from author Gina Gordon. The focus of the storyline centers on Liv Crawford as she endeavors to start up her own cupcake bakery after achieving success with her mentor’s competing business. In the meantime Liv meets Jake Miller and their attraction to one another is immediate and something about Liv tugs at Jake. But things begin to spiral out of control when everything starts to fall apart the closer to opening day and Liv begins to suspect someone close is undermining the entire process.

A Taste of Trouble takes the reader on a roller coaster ride for two people who know what they want but have to make a decision about life choices and, in the bargain each will lose something and someone close to their heart. We watch as Liv is betrayed not once but twice by two people she considers more than friends; and Jake learns the truth about his latest assignment when it compromises both his ethics and his heart.

A Taste for Trouble is an interesting storyline. I was frustrated along with Liv knowing that someone so close would stoop so low. There was a twist in the storyline when Liv discovered the secrets from the past were not quite what she was led to believe and the ball was now in her court if she wanted to pursue a relationship with someone she had grown to hate as a child. If you like a romantic storyline, without too many complications, A Taste of Trouble is a nice read. There is also the potential for future storylines as we meet a few of Jake’s buddies who are his current go-to men when his relationship begins to fall apart.

Copy supplied by the author.

Reviewed by Sandy

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Off Her Game by Suzan Butler-a review

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OFF HER GAME (Texas Highlanders Ice Hockey #1) by Suzan Butler-a review

Off Her Game

Amazon / Barnes and Noble /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date March 25, 2013

Penalty Number One: Men

Making time for men and relationships doesn’t fit into former social worker Valerie Chase’s game plan. This crisis counselor turned cocktail waitress knows the score, though. Part of her would love to indulge in a little side action, especially when a certain hunky hockey player demands attention, but she’s far too responsible to let herself get wild and crazy.

Penalty Number Two: Desire

Darren Moran’s good lucks and deadly determination make him a fan favorite. He‘s always wanted to play hockey and does it well. After the last season’s disaster, the last thing he needs is to let some woman crawl under his skin and distract him. But… Valerie is different. She’s his good luck charm. She makes him play the best he’s ever played and he’s not about to lose her, even if it means incurring penalties by encroaching on Valerie’s personal life.

Penalty Number Three: Passion

When the two take the game to the next level, Val’s got to call a timeout. An unplanned romance is a game-thrower, a sinful temptation that neither of them can afford. After all, there’s no way to have order in matters of the heart when the penalties tally up to an ejection from the game

•••••••••••••••

REVIEW: OFF HER GAME is the first storyline in Suzan Butler’s new Texas Highlanders Ice Hockey series focusing on the men who play professional hockey and the women they love. Suzan also includes a variety of secondary characters including team owners, bar managers, ex-wives and lovers as well as a multitude of family members, patrons and fans.

Off Her Game focuses on Valerie Chase, a part time waitress and full time counselor at a shelter for at-risk teens. But when she is suddenly laid off from her counseling job due to cut-backs, Val is at risk to lose everything when money becomes tight. And to complicate matters, she is attracted to professional hockey player Darren Moran, whose divorce just became final. Val isn’t in the mood to become Darren’s rebound relationship but she continues to send mixed signals even once their relationship passes friendship to lovers.

I did have one complaint in this particular storyline and that was the mixed signals Valerie continued to give-off. One moment she was hot and the next she was cold-all within a matter of minutes. She would refuse Darren’s advances then she would be upset when he refused to play the game. The reader is taken on a roller coaster ride of one character’s inability to acknowledge her true feelings and in doing so amped up my anxiety level. At one point I hoped Darren dumped her a** for good but Darren was a man in love and believed Val was his personal good luck charm both on and off the ice.

If you are a fan of hard-hitting sports heroes and beautiful heroines, Off Her Game is the perfect match. There is a potential for several more storylines especially for one bar owner in particular. Let’s hope everyone gets the HEA they deserve.

Copy supplied by author.

Reviewed by Sandy

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Agent of Desire by Charlie Evans-a Review and Giveaway

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AGENT OF DESIRE (Jessica Booker #1) by Charlie Evans-a review and giveaway

Agent of Desire

ABOUT THE BOOK: Released February 16, 2013

Amazon/ Barnes and Noble / KOBO/ Create a Space

*An Erotic Spy Thriller*

Adrenaline junkie Jessica Booker joined the CIA to take on bad guys and flirt with danger. And with perks like sleeping with hot foreign men added into the mix, well…it’s a pretty sweet deal.

Now in Paris, she’s about to take on her second assignment as an official agent but is caught off guard when her new handler turns out to be Sims, a sexy CIA instructor. Sims was hard enough to resist in the classroom—in the field, he’s a dangerous distraction. To make matters worse, Jessica’s target is a gorgeous Frenchman who manages to put her in the most compromising positions—positions she doesn’t altogether mind.

With rogue agents, classified secrets, and tempting men at every turn, this mission will prove to be the first real test of her skills, both in and out of the bedroom.

*********************

REVIEW: AGENT OF DESIRE is the first storyline in Charlie Evan’s new Jessica Booker series focusing on a young female CIA agent working undercover in the world of espionage, secret missions and world domination.

Agent Jessica Booker’s (aka Lori) latest assignment takes her to Paris France where she must seduce a handsome computer genius in order to ferret out information regarding a high tech computer program that would ensure whomever was in possession controlled most of the world’s power. But what Jessica did not bargain for was falling for her latest assignment. And things turn from bad to worse when she is informed that her handler in the CIA may have set her up to take a fall.

Agent of Desire takes the reader into a world of double agents, betrayal and heart ache when Jessica discovers that she can no longer trust the man who trained her to be what she is today. When she is reassigned, Jessica will learn that perhaps no man is worth losing your heart when lies and betrayal are the path to getting what they want.

Told from the heroine’s POV, Agent of Desire is an erotic, romance, suspense novel that is a fast paced, quick read with a little bit of action, a little bit of romance and a little bit of erotic sex. Jessica Booker is a take no prisoners, kickass heroine who knows her business, but sometimes she has to cross the line to get the work done. And in doing so, she may lose her heart as well as her life.

If you like a storyline with action, suspense, mystery, espionage and sex, Agent of Desire is the perfect read. But beware, our heroine ‘uses’ sex to get what she wants and in the end it could be her downfall.

Copy supplied by the author.

Reviewed by Sandy

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Charlie Evans

Charlie Evans is the author of Agent of Desire. A sexy thriller about a female CIA agent who has a healthy appetite for hot men.

Charlie lives in the Midwest with two insanely cute cats. When she is not reading or writing, she loves to travel.

Follow Charlie Evans: Facebook/ Twitter / Goodreads

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Giveaway-redandblack_zps8ff4dc4b

Charlie Evans has graciously donated a SIGNED  paper copy (US/Canada only) and an ecopy (International) of AGENT OF DESIRE to 2 lucky readers at The Reading Cafe.

1. Please register by using the log-in at the top of the page, or by using one of the social log-ins.

2. If you are using a social log-in, please post your email address along with your comment.

3. Giveaway-  ecopy (International) :  paper copy (USA/Canada only)

4. Giveaway runs from March 15-March 18, 2013

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Kathryn Quick-Interview and Blog Tour with the Author

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KATHRYN QUICK-Interview and Blog Tour with the Author

IB Tour Button

Thanks so much for allowing me to share a little of myself and Ineligible Bachelor with you all.  This was a fun book to write since I am a Reality TV junkie and also have had a boy-friend who never saw me in any other light.  Oh the agony of it all.  I hope you will enjoy being a part of Kinley’s struggle to show Logan that the woman of his dreams has been under his nose the whole time.  Feel free to contact me and let me know if you did.

Peace!

••••••••••••••••••

Interview seafoam:black

INTERVIEW with Kathryn Quick

Kathryn Quick

 

Connect with Kathryn:
Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Amazon Page

•••••••••••••••••••

TRC:  Hi Kathryn and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of INELIGIBLE BACHELOR.


Kathryn: Thanks so much. I am very excited to share the story with your readers.

TRC:  We would like to start with the question everyone dislikes– Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Kathryn: Born long ago in a place not so far away, Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, I have been writing since the Sisters in St. Casmir’s Grammar School gave me the ruled yellow paper and a number two pencil. I write contemporary and career romances, romantic comedies, historical romances as well as urban fantasy. I’ve been a member of New Jersey Romance Writers and Romance Writers of America since 1990 and consider it an honor to have been NJRW President in 1992 and 2001. I am also one of the founding members of Liberty States Fiction Writers, multi-genre writers’ organizations dedicated to furthering the craft of writing and helping aspiring writers move onto publication.

FirebrandI also write as P. K. Eden with colleague, Patt Mihailoff, FIREBRAND and our debut urban fantasy, has been heralded for having lush worlds and colorful characters full of secrets and magic. Based on the fall of the Garden of Eden, FIREBRAND, has won two Reviewer’s Choice Awards.

Originally I wanted to be President of the United States or an Organic Chemist, but somehow life got in the way and I got married right out of high school and had a set of twins two years later. The Presidency seemed out of reach and night school to get her Ph.D. to create new molecule that would ultimately result in the betterment of humankind seemed a little time consuming while trying to raise twins, so she decided to write instead.

In my “other” life, I am happily married to my real-life hero Donald and have three grown sons all having adventures of their own and three “bonus” grandchildren. I am a die-hard New Jersey Devils fan and work for Somerset County government (as close as she could get to the White House) and am plotting a novel about a new molecule that will ultimately result in the betterment of humankind.

TRC: You also have written under the pen-name P.K. Eden with fellow author Patt Mihailoff. What was the experience like to co-author a storyline?

Kathryn: It actually was pretty seamless. My weaknesses are Patt’s strengths and visa versa. She is more the right brain and I am the left. I like to plot and she likes to write description. We mesh really well.

TRC:  What difficulties (if any) did you face co-authoring the novel?

Kathryn: Patt wrote wonderful prose but sometimes went off-story line with the adventures of some secondary characters. She loves characters and writes really interesting ones, but some of them didn’t make it into the book. Of course one she did write, a Valkyrie Queen HAD to get a subplot. She was just too interesting and powerful to omit.

Ineligible-BachelorTRC:  Would you please tell us something about INELIGIBLE BACHELOR?

ORDER LINKS:  Amazon / Barnes and Noble / The Book Depository

Kathryn: I LOVE reality TV (and yes, I watch Dance Moms), and I have had a boy’friend’ who considered me a sister rather than a love interest. So I thought I would combined them and Ineligible Bachelor was born.

Briefly:
After years of pining, Frederika “Freddy” McAllister has hatched a scheme to win Logan Gabriel’s heart: she’ll secretly enter him in Elan Magazine’s Eligible Bachelor Contest, then swoop in to soothe his bruised ego when he loses. Unfortunately, Freddy’s “fool-proof” plans have a tendency to backfire, with disastrous—albeit hilarious—results. And this one looks to be no exception…

Because Logan doesn’t lose—he wins, earning a spot on a new reality TV show with six beautiful women vying for his affections. And if Freddy had read the fine print on the entry form, she would know that, as Logan’s oldest friend, she will be tagging along to choose the lucky girl. Suddenly Freddy’s perfect plan has become a perfect nightmare, complete with scheming TV executives, conniving contestants…and a bachelor in danger of falling for the wrong woman. Freddy caused this mess. Now it’s up to her to prove to Logan—and millions of television viewers—that the girl next door is really the woman of his dreams.

TRC:  Ineligible Bachelor revolves around a storyline involving a reality show premise similar to the ‘Bachelor’. Are any of the characters or bachelorettes based on reality or any of what we have seen on the television? Or an amalgamation?

Kathryn: The characters aren’t based on anyone in particular. Well, maybe Logan is somewhat like my boy’friend’ from high school (yes, that’s you, Michael). I just used some of the traits of contestants on seasons past and rolled them into my characters; scheming, conniving, catty etc. Maybe I did like the Iraq war vet a little though.

TRC:  How many books do you have planned for the series?

Kathryn: The BACHELORS Three Series has three books Ineligible Bachelor, Bachelor-Dot-Com and the Bachelor’s Agenda. Reality TV, a frog to prince story and a politician with grand plans.

TRC:  What do you believe is the biggest misconception about you?

Kathryn: That I know what I’m doing. I really don’t. I have an idea, develop some characters and let them loose on the pages. I never believed a writer when he or she would say “the characters just take over.” But they do. My characters will not do anything their personality will not let them do. More often than not my characters take the plot in a whole other direction than what I had originally thought. Like Freddy for instance, or rather the contestants. Who knew they would keep Freddy prisoner in the pool until she had such a bad sunburn that they thought she wouldn’t show up for the rose ceremony. Ha – not my girl. She was there with bells on; or rather sunburn ointment.

TRC:  If you could change something about yourself personal or professional, what would it be and why?

Kathryn: I wish I didn’t have to wear glasses. I spend a fortune on contacts because I keep losing them.

TRC:  Who or what has been the biggest influence in your life and why?

Kathryn: My dad. He passed away last year and left a big hole in my heart. But he was an amazing man who showed me that I could do anything I wanted by accomplishing so much in his own life. He quit High School at 16 and lied about his age to join the Army Air Corps during WWII but always regretted not getting his high school diploma. Well he finally did; at age 75. He drove the ambulance for the local rescue squad until he was 70, helped out at Ground Zero after September 11 by serving meals to the rescue workers and always supported anything I tried to do. When things didn’t quite go my way he would always say, “Well, honey, you have two choices; you can sit around and feel sorry for yourself, or you can do something about it.”
I really miss him.

TRC:  Who is the first person you think about when you need someone to talk with and why?

Kathryn: Again, my dad. And I talk to him every day.

TRC:  Is there a question that you would like to be asked in an interview, but nobody has asked? If so, ask away!

Kathryn: I can’t think of one right now, but probably will as soon as I hit the send button.

TRC:  On what are you currently working?

Kathryn: I am finishing up Bachelor-Dot-Com and thinking about the third book. I think I’ll have my Bachelor politician begin his campaign at his high school reunion and run into his old sweetheart with a son he never knew he had. Now that would cause a real re-election problems.

TRC:  Would you like to add anything else?

Kathryn: Just that I appreciate the opportunity to talk to your bloggers and hope they will check out Freddy and Logan’s story. It was a lot of fun to write and, I’m told a lot of fun to read.

Hope you all will pop over to my website www.kathrynquick.com and learn a little more about my books. Follow me at:

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Amazon Page

Peace!!

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
Cream of Mushroom Soup

Favorite Dessert
Crème Brule

Favorite TV Show
What else – the Bachelor (or QVC – that Susan Graver has nice stuff)

Last Movie you Saw
Parental Guidance with Billy Crystal – a real hoot.

Dark or Milk Chocolate
The darker the better

Favorite Flower
Peony – reminds me of my grandmother

Last Vacation Destination
Iceland. I wanted to see the Northern Lights but it was too cloudy.

TRC: Thank you Kathryn for taking the time to answer our questions. We wish you all the best.

Kathryn: My Pleasure

Blog-Tour-Schedule-seafoam
2/1 – I Heart Books – Facebook Promo
2/2 – Alexx Mom Cat’s Gateway Book Blog
2/4 – Love Romance Passion
2/5 – Musings From An Addicted Reader
2/6 – Books-n-Kisses
2/10 – Romance Junkies
2/13 – United by Books
2/15 – Life of a Total Book Nerd
2/18 –  Coffee & A Book Anytime
2/21 – Cocktails and Books
2/22 – Over the Edge
2/23 –  Book Monster Reviews
2/24 – Must Read Faster
2/25 – Babbling About Books & More
3/6 – Redheaded Bookworm
3/7 – Book Lovin’ Mamas
3/8 – Anna Reads Romance
3/9 – Riverina Romantics
3/10 – Ramblings From This Chick
3/12 – Toots Book Reviews
3/13 – Urban Girl Reader
3/15 – The Reading Cafe

Giveaway-Black and Seafoam

Kathryn will be giving away a $10.00 gift card (winners choice of Amazon or B&N) and an eBook of INELIGIBLE BACHELOR to one winner at every tour stop including The Reading Cafe

1. Please register using the log-in at the top of the page or by using one of the social log-ins.

2. If you are using a social log-in, please post your email address with your comment.

3. Giveaway runs from March 15-March 18, 2013

4. Giveaway open to USA/Canada only.

Grand Prize Giveaway seafoam

Kathryn is giving away a Kobo mini ereader and an eBook of INELIGIBLE BACHELOR to ONE winner that follows the tour. (If you already have an ereader then Kathryn will gift you a $60.00 gift card to either Amazon or B&N.)

Fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter. The more tasks you complete, the greater the chance you have at winning.

Good Luck

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Ineligible Bachelor by Kathryn Quick-a review

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INELIGIBLE BACHELOR by Kathryn Quick-a review

Ineligible-Bachelor

ORDER LINKS:  Amazon / Barnes and Noble / The Book Depository

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release January 8, 2013

Frederika “Freddy” McAllister has loved Logan Gabriel since…well, forever. Unfortunately, she’s spent most of forever in the dreaded “friend zone,” harboring what has to be the longest-running crush of all time. But now Freddy has a plan to make Logan see her as more than just the girl next door: She’ll enter him in Elan Magazine’s Eligible Bachelor Contest, then swoop in to soothe his bruised ego when he loses.

There’s just one tiny problem: Logan wins! And that means he’s headed to a mansion in New Jersey where six beautiful women will vie for his affections on reality TV. Making matters worse, the producers want Freddy to tag along and help choose his ideal match. Suddenly her perfect plan becomes a perfect nightmare, as Freddy scrambles to outwit conniving contestants and convince the man of her dreams that the woman of his has been by his side all along

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REVIEW: INELIGIBLE BACHELOR is a contemporary romance short story that plays right into the hands of fans of some of television’s reality programming. When Freddy McAllister enters a photograph of her childhood sweetheart into a contest she failed to read the fine print-she had inadvertently entered him a contest to be the next Bachelor for a reality program.

Heartsick and heartbroken, Freddy is cast by the show’s producers to choose who stays and who goes. And along the way, Freddy’s heart choses Logan knowing she will be sending him into another woman’s arms.

Ineligible Bachelor is a cute, quirky read that delves into the ‘unreality’ of reality TV programming. The writing is simple and the storyline is a quick read before bed. Following a script was never more difficult when two hearts meant to be together are forced to choose someone else. But like all romance storylines, all is not lost when the producers see something that neither one was willing to admit.

If you like fun, romantic, uncomplicated storylines INELIGIBLE BACHELOR is the perfect read.

Copy supplied by author.

Reviewed by Sandy

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All The Way by Jennifer Probst-a review

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ALL THE WAY by Jennifer Probst-a review

All The Way

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / KOBO /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date March 4, 2013

The food critic…

Miranda Storme never expected to see Gavin Luciano again. Three years ago, they had an intense affair—and then he bolted. Now he’s back, and Miranda has the pleasure of a little payback: a scathing review of his restaurant. Revenge is a dish best served the first chance you get…

And the restaurateur…

With three months to make his family’s struggling Italian restaurant successful, a bad review is Gavin’s worst nightmare. But this isn’t just about the meal. He’s finally realized what he left behind and is determined to spend the next eight weeks proving himself to her in the kitchen…and in the bedroom! This is one dish she won’t be able to refuse…

••••••••••••••••

REVIEW: ALL THE WAY is a contemporary romance storyline that will tug at the heart of anyone who has loved and lost. But this storyline is also about what happens when a lack of communication between two people, who are desperately in love with each other, threatens to destroy their relationship.

Miranda and Gavin had a past together and rekindling their romance after three years of heartache and sorrow was something Miranda was not willing to accept. On leave of absence, Gavin returns home to help his family’s struggling restaurant only to find that the woman he once loved was the latest food critic who sabotaged everything his family had hoped for. And to make matters worse, Gavin’s feelings for Miranda had never changed. He hoped that he could persuade Miranda that he had changed since the last time he saw her.

Miranda had always felt betrayed by what she perceived as Gavin’s attempts to run. But three years after losing the man she loved because he was afraid to commit forced Miranda to take a hard look at what she really wanted-and Miranda did not want to be hurt again. But the pull between Miranda and Gavin was still strong until the day she discovers that perhaps he had planned on running again.

The relationship between Miranda and Gavin is filled with secrets and sorrow; competing rivalry and two people’s inability to talk about their feelings both past and present. A lack of communication threatens to destroy everything they had re-built and both had a habit of running whenever things became too tough. But to clear one misconception, I did not feel Gavin ran during one particular scene, but left so that Miranda had time to consider everything that had happened between them

If you are a fan of contemporary romance storylines with a HEA, Jennifer Probst and All the Way is your ticket to a lazy afternoon of romance and love. At times the couple were infuriating and stubborn, but in the end, love conquers all-even family members who should now better than to stick their nose in where it doesn’t belong.

Copy supplied by the publisher.

Reviewed by Sandy

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The Baby Bargain by Jennifer Apodaca-a review

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The Baby Bargain (Once a Marine #1) by Jennifer Apodaca-a review

The Baby Bargain

Amazon/ Barnes and Noble/

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release date March 11, 2013

THE BABY BARGAIN is the latest contemporary romance release novel from author Jennifer Apodaca (Jennifer Lyon). The storyline focuses on veterinarian Megan Young and retired marine Adam Waters. Adam has reluctantly returned to the small town of Raven’s Cove when his company is asked to handle the security details at the local golf course and the last person he wanted to see was Megan Young-the woman he walked out on almost three years earlier. But saving an injured dog forced Adam into Megan’s office and years of heart break and pain would re-surface for both.

Megan and Adam had a past-one that was mired in secrets. And Megan’s reluctance to allow Adam back into her life came with the knowledge that Adam knew nothing about their son. The last time Adam returned to duty, he left a heartbroken and pregnant Megan to deal with the pressures of starting her own practice while dealing with a pregnancy as a single mom. Adam never knew about Megan’s pregnancy and she was hoping to keep their son’s identity close to her heart. But life has a funny and sometimes mean way of pulling everyone together.

Megan and Adam’s lives will cross once again when Megan finds herself under arrest for bribery and theft in a high profile case of divorce. But the identity of the person responsible will have Megan shaking her head when someone close decides he wants Megan for himself. Megan is set up for a fall and Adam is the one person to whom she will give her trust-completely.

The relationship between Adam and Megan is both hot and loving, heartbreaking and sad. Adam wants Megan and when he tries to distance himself from the woman that he loves his life begins to unravel. The secrets from his past haunt him every night and it is with that knowledge that Adam knows he can never be part of Megan or his son’s life on a permanent basis.

The storyline centres on betrayal of trust, and the need to set things straight. Adam had a habit of running but his upbringing was filled with accusations of murder and when it was finally time to grow up, Adam ran to the Marines. Only now, he needed to sell his parents home and make a clean break from Raven’s Cove. But there was one thing holding him to town-and she came with a small boy that melted his heart.

THE BABY BARGAIN is a romantic storyline about two people with issues of trust and major lack of communication. Their failure to talk about the past will continue to build a wall that only the truth is able to topple over. Jennifer writes a heartwarming story of lost love, broken promises and the ability to let go of the past.

Copy supplied by the publisher.

Reviewed by Sandy

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When The Heart Lies by Christina North-a review

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WHEN THE HEART LIES by Christina North-a review

When The Heart Lies

AVAILABLE AT : Amazon

ABOUT THE BOOK from Goodreads: Released January 15, 2013

The biggest secrets have a habit of catching up with you…

Romance novelist Kinsley Wentworth has a knack for approaching life as if she was a character in one of her novels. Kinsley is desperately in need of love, the one thing missing from her marriage.

Bad decisions can have terrifying consequences…

After a failed attempt at reconciliation with her estranged husband Nick, Kinsley meets Wayde online, while he’s allegedly searching for her missing brother, and they develop a friendship. Wayde convinces Kinsley that he will help her find her estranged brother if she moves to Florida with her young son, but Kinsley soon finds herself trapped in an abusive and potentially life-threatening situation.

A knight in shining armor…

Unknown to Kinsley, she is not totally alone; she has a protector. Jackson, a private investigator hired to watch over her and her son, is always close at hand. A little too close, Jackson is falling for a woman in a hopeless situation.

A fairy-tale happily ever after?

Kinsley is convinced she can forgo her own need for love to provide her son with a traditional family. But Jackson is determined to give Kinsley the space and time she needs, confident she will figure out that he is the reality she has been looking for all along.

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REVIEW: WHEN THE HEART LIES is not your typical romance novel. If anything, it is a contemporary suspense novel with a little bit of romance and a little bit of sex and a whole lot of betrayal, revenge and heartbreaking pain.

When The Heart Lies is a study in bad family dynamics-the Wentworth family take the title of dysfunctional family to a whole other dimension. Stuck in a loveless marriage to a man who continues to drink and womanize, Kinsley Wentworth searches for a way out-but she soon finds herself a virtual prisoner to an abusive man she met on the internet. And to complicate matters, she has taken her young son with her hoping for a fresh start and a new beginning.

As the storyline develops we uncover the many sides of Kinsley Wentworth-a woman who wants desperately to be loved but finds a different kind of love in all of the wrong places. Kinsley is a woman familiar to many people but at the same time, we would probably throw our hands in the air and give up trying to help. Placing herself into a situation that risks both her life and her son’s forces a close family member to hire a private investigator to keep an eye out for her safety. But all too soon, Kinsley will begin to fall in love with the man sent to guard and protect her from her own life choices. And the reality of her situation worsens when she becomes a prisoner in a war of blackmail and revenge.

WHEN THE HEART LIES is a well-written, heartbreaking, introspective and suspense filled storyline that will have many readers angry at some of the choices our heroine makes. It was difficult at times to watch as she placed her young son in jeopardy by refusing to get help when every means available to her were at her disposal. She could almost be diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder with her feelings of emptiness, impulsiveness and attempts at self-injury. We watch as Kinsley struggles to accept that her relationship with her husband is not built on love or trust, yet she continues to flail in her current emotionally abusive and highly dangerous situation without so much as attempting to ask for help from the people she meets in the small Florida town.

My only complaint-the first half of the story was slow. So slow that at times I considered not finishing the novel. But this is where the build up of Kinsley’s current situation began to take hold. At times I wondered why and how but in the end, everything will be explained and the agonizing revelations and truths –although I guessed earlier on in the story about each and everyone- are surprising and not without some head shaking and heart breaking pain. WHEN THE HEART LIES is an amazing debut novel by Christina North.It was well worth the struggle in the first half of the book.

Copy supplied by the author.

Reviewed by Sandy

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