Tag Archives: Viking

Devil of the High Seas by Lauren Smith – a Review

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Devil of the High Seas by Lauren Smith – a Review

 

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Description:
She becomes a wicked pirate lord’s stolen treasure…
On the eve of her wedding, Josephine Greyville is kidnapped by a true devil of the high seas – a pirate! Gavin Castleton isn’t just any pirate. He’s the twin brother of the man she’s supposed to marry. Tempted by Gavin’s kisses and the first taste of freedom she’s ever had in her life, Josephine discovers she could lose all that she’s come to hold dear. She must choose between her family and a storm of passion filling her heart.
He’s a pirate out for revenge and can’t resist the lure of fiery hearted woman…
Gavin Castleton nearly dies after losing his ship to a mutiny and is forced to return to his beloved family estate in Cornwall to heal and make a plan for revenge. Stumbling through a secret entrance, of his home where he hopes to find his twin brother, he collapses at the beside of the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen. After she tends to his wounds, he learns she’s to marry his brother. Unable to repay her kindness with anything other than desire, he kidnaps her to keep her from marrying his brother. Wicked through and through, Gavin can’t resist taking the treasure of Josephine’s heart, even if it means losing all he holds dear.

 

Review:

Devil of the High Seas by Lauren Smith, is the third book in her Pirates of King’s Landing Series. It’s not necessary to read the other books as they all stand alone on their own, there are characters from previous books (but you’ll only know that if you’ve read them.)Twists and turns will keep you on the edge, the battles and fight scenes are great, the sad parts will make you reach for tissues, and the chemistry between Gavin and Josie will have you wishing it was longer…..

Gavin left his home seven years ago when the love of his life chose his twin Griffin!! But now he’s back, for revenge!! Returning home after losing his ship (to a mutiny) he’s home to lick his wounds and salvage his pride….

Josephine is due to marry the upstanding Earl of Castleton, it’s not the life she’s dreamed of, but she’s not about to disappoint her family…..Being abducted by a pirate sweeps Josie into a world that’s beyond her wildest imagination. That’s the thanks she gets for helping a stranger who’s wounded!

Her family chase the pair across the seas, there is danger lurking in every corner! But that doesn’t stop this couple from falling in love ?

But how can they possibly be together when Gavin is a pirate and she’s already betrothed?

It was great to see previous characters from the other books (I personally love to catch up with couples from previous books.) I loved Jodie’s father (there is a scene in the book which I loved ?)

Yes, it’s a little cheesy in places. Yes it’s also predictable in its ending. But I love this authors style of writing, and I love this series, so I’m going to continue to read and recommend these books.

Reviewed by Julie

Copy supplied for Review

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FALL OF THE STARS (In Love and War 2) by Monica James-Review Tour

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FALL OF THE STARS (In Love and War 2) by Monica James-REVIEW TOUR

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Goodreads: https://tinyurl.com/4k52f25v

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 11, 2022

England is bleeding.

And there isn’t a thing I can do about it.

I am once again a prisoner to Wessex, captured by King Egbert because holding me hostage will bring them to him—my two Vikings who will risk heaven and earth to save me.

But I don’t need saving.

I am Princess Emeline, and I was taught by the best, and his name…Skarth the Godless.

The man whom I love more than anything in this world.

But things begin to blur when Ulf the Bloody reminds me of the promise I made, and that promise is that I belong to him.

We must work together to overthrow King Egbert, but the war I fight within my heart is far more dangerous than anything I will ever face on the battlefield.

The choice is not simple because we all must make sacrifices. But I soon realize that all is not fair in love and war.

Lives will be lost.

Hearts will be broken.

And come dawn, life as we know it will be changed forevermore.

••••••

REVIEW:  FALL OF THE STARS is the second instalment in Monica James’ adult, IN LOVE AND WAR dark, historical, Viking romance series. This is the continuing story of Northman Skarth the Godless, and Princess Emeline. FALL OF THE STARS should not be read as a stand alone as it picks up immediately after the events of book one NORTH OF THE STARS.

WARNING: Due to the nature of the story line premise there WILL be triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Skarth and Emeline) FALL OF THE STARS picks up immediately after events and cliff hanger of book one NORTH OF THE STARS in which Princess Emeline, once again, finds herself the prisoner of another man, a king who sees the benefit of aligning his land with those of our story line heroine but secrets are revealed, alliances and allegiances are made, betrayal is but a daily occurrence and Emeline is caught between mother and son, brother and sister, son and father, a man and his past. As Emeline struggles to barter for her freedom she is yet another pawn, a bargaining chip between kings, to be used and abused by at every turn and rescue. Once again, God and Christianity are a force between the Vikings and other men, a force used to separate Emeline from the man that she loves.

FALL OF THE STARS is another viscerally dark, gritty, raw, tragic, twisted and often difficult read. Monica James pulls the reader into an intense, impassioned, and dramatic tale of power and control, betrayal and vengeance, torture and abuse, acceptance and love. Like book one, there are no lighthearted moments, and the happily ever after, for now is questionable. Heed my warning, there will be triggers,

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one NORTH OF THE STARS

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Monica James spent her youth devouring the works of Anne Rice, William Shakespeare, and Emily Dickinson.

When she is not writing, Monica is busy running her own business, but she always finds a balance between the two. She enjoys writing honest, heartfelt, and turbulent stories, hoping to leave an imprint on her readers. She draws her inspiration from life.

She is a bestselling author in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Israel, and the U.K.

Monica James resides in Melbourne, Australia, with her wonderful family, and menagerie of animals. She is slightly obsessed with cats, chucks, and lip gloss, and secretly wishes she was a ninja on the weekends.

TWITTER /  FACEBOOK /  PINTEREST / AUTHORGRAPH /  WEBSITE

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North of the Stars (In Love And War 1)by Monica James-Review Tour

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NORTH OF THE STARS (In Love and War 1) by Monica James-Review tour

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

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date December 1, 2021

England is burning.

And the cause…men are too afraid to utter in nothing but a whisper.

The Northmen.

My father is King Eanred.

And me?

I am Princess Emeline.

My father wants to protect our kingdom against the ruthless Vikings who continue to raid England, so he has betrothed me to Aethelwulf, the son of King Egbert of Wessex—the most powerful realm in all of England. Without this union, Northumbria will fall, which is why I must submit. I must do this for my people.

However, it is not in my nature to surrender. So when my father captures the most savage Viking known in our land, I do what no good, God-fearing Christian would do—I help him.

His name…Skarth the Godless.

People fear what they don’t understand, but I will not allow that to control me. Fear makes us blind to the truth, and I refuse to cower because Skarth soon becomes my teacher—in all things. And when his rival, Ulf the Bloody, shatters my world, it becomes clear the lessons have only just begun.

My soul is tarnished.

I am a sinner.

Lord, hear my prayer

••••••••

REVIEW: NORTH OF THE STARS is the first instalment in Monica James’ adult IN LOVE AND WAR dark, Viking, historical, fiction story line focusing on Northman Skarth the Godless, and Princess Emeline.

WARNING: Due to the nature of the story line premise there WILL be triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Skarth and Emeline) NORTH OF THE STARS covers approximately five years in the life in ninth century AD. Princess Emeline was only twelve years old when her father captured a clan of Northmen including Viking Skarth the Godless, and our heroine took an immediately liking to the man who would break her heart but life was never easy in Northumbria, and our heroine had been promised to the son of a man who reigned another kingdom. To prevent the execution of Skarth the Godless, our heroine made a deal, that would find her on a dark and dangerous journey wherein Emeline became nothing more than property sold to the highest bidder, a pawn to be used and abused by every man with whom she would come in contact but throughout the years Emeline always remembered the Viking that had stolen her heart, a heart that was now broken along with her body and mind. While our heroine suffered five years of abuse at the hands of so called ‘God fearing men’, Skarth never forgot about the young woman that had claimed his soul.

NORTH OF THE STARS is a dark, gritty, raw and often times difficult read. There are no hearts and flowers, no solace for a woman who never felt loved, no lighthearted moments to take a breath of fresh air. NORTH OF THE STARS is an intense, dramatic, heart breaking and powerful tale of survival for one woman who is unable to escape the destiny her God and men have wrought.

NORTH OF THE STARS ends on a cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Monica James spent her youth devouring the works of Anne Rice, William Shakespeare, and Emily Dickinson.

When she is not writing, Monica is busy running her own business, but she always finds a balance between the two. She enjoys writing honest, heartfelt, and turbulent stories, hoping to leave an imprint on her readers. She draws her inspiration from life.

She is a bestselling author in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Israel, and the U.K.

Monica James resides in Melbourne, Australia, with her wonderful family, and menagerie of animals. She is slightly obsessed with cats, chucks, and lip gloss, and secretly wishes she was a ninja on the weekends.

TWITTER /  FACEBOOK /  PINTEREST / AUTHORGRAPH /  WEBSITE

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The Highlander’s Unexpected Proposal by Heather McCollum-Review

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The Highlander’s Unexpected Proposal by Heather McCollum- Review

 

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Description:
A lass begging to marry him might top the list of “oddest things to happen,” but Chief Adam Macquarie is desperate. And no matter how much he hates to do it, he’s not above lying to get what he wants. Starting with the fact that he just omitted the truth about the situation back at his home—where there are no women and only a handful of other people. Because he has a secret need for a wife himself, one she won’t be too happy about when she finds out.

Lark Montgomerie is thrilled the brawny chief agrees to save her from her drunken father’s machinations of wedding her off to the first fool that agrees. He’s easy on the eyes and no one can be worse than her current options. Now a new life awaits her, on an exciting Scottish isle no less, and nothing will dampen her spirits. That is, until she arrives in her new homeland and realizes more than a few things are amiss…

 

 

Review:

The Highlander’s Unexpected Proposal by Heather McCollum is the first book in her new Brothers of Wolf Isle series.

“A curse upon thee, Chief Wilyam Macquarie, and your land. 

For ripping my daughter, Elspeth’s, heart in two after getting her with child and not wedding her, killing her as if ye wrapped the noose around her neck yourself… 

Until your clan ceases creating bastards, turning them out into the cruel world alone…until the day when your clan learns what love is, your land and all those upon it will be barren. Your crops and livestock will wither, illness will spread, and sorrow will prevail.” 

The witch clutched the dagger, stained with blood, and stabbed it into the tree. From that moment on, the tree bled, weeping for the Macquarie clan of Ulva. 

Witnessed by Chief Wilyam Macquarie Randall Maclean, Dawy  Macquarie, Flora Macquarie

With a description like that I had to chuckle. Reading the book had me laughing out loud/ shaking my head / not really what I’d thought, it was so much more. 

Lark is an old spinster in bygone days, but she won’t settle for a drunk and a liar, so her shrewish nature keeps the idiots at bay, until her father has had enough and says at the next Beltane festival she’s to be wed, the only thing Lark has a say in is who. And that’s why Adam found her in a tree! 

Adam is a desperate man, his clan needs new blood and women are the best way to attain it, his brother Beckett is the best bet to marry, but when he hears of a father with five daughters, fate must surely be smiling down on him, his brother can have his pick, and who knows, maybe he can persuade her sisters to come for a visit (plenty of suitors) 

That is until he meets the fiery eldest daughter Lark! His brother is going to have his work cut out trying to tame that one!! 

Set in 1548 the story actually goes further back to 1422, it seems the lusty chief wanted the fun but not the responsibility. Making a young girl pregnant and then abandoning her brought down a curse that still haunts the Macquarie clan. Slowly the land died and people left the island, only a few remain, and now it’s Adam’s duty to bring the clansmen home, to return it to its former glory. 

Adam gets a shock when it’s in fact he who comes home with a bride and not his brother!! He’s a Chief now, his responsibility is to his clan, he doesn’t have time for a bride!! But she is a bonnie lass, maybe she can help the clan to grow. 

It did remind me a little of a film “seven brides for seven brothers” where the poor unsuspecting bride is taken home as is expected to cook, clean and care for her husband and his brothers! 

Now poor Lark isn’t expecting six brothers, but she certainly wasn’t expecting a barren isle, people may have lived on it once, but it’s going to take more than sweeping out cottages and hanging lucky Heather! There is a vibe that causes Lark to worry, what if she isn’t the good luck charm Adam thinks she is? Maybe she should have told him about her own plight before wedding him! 

The romance is slow burning , but when we get there it’s hot and steamy. The bond growing between Adam and Lark is all about trust, and the trust may turn into love, but with both of them hiding secrets, you have to hope trust will see them through it! 

We have a few mystery’s to solve, the characters also have a few skeletons to reveal and exorcise!! There is also the fact that other clans don’t think the Macquarie clan will be able to live on Wolf Isle (it’s curse will see the extinction of the Macquarie clan) and the usual clan squabbles. So can the Chief break the curse? Or will his clan be cursed forever? 

I loved the banter between the Macquarie brothers, you get the sense of love and loyalty. Their prowess at the games did have me rolling my eyes, a typical male chest pounding scenario. It was great seeing old MC’s from previous books, that was a nice surprise. 

And as it’s book one of a new series I’m hoping all the sisters get stories, it would be handy if they all found love on the island with the Macquarie brothers ?

I’ve read a few books from this author and I’ve loved the scene she sets for you. The descriptions have you whisked back to Scotland, the laughter and smells of the campfires, the musty smell of unused homes, it’s all given great detail. 

The mystery only adds to this story, the heartbreak a mother feels when a child is tossed to one side, a curse uttered in a moment of anger, and over a hundred years of misery. Can the curse be broken? Or is it simply not giving the muttering of a grief stricken mother the power? But you have to remember that in the period of time, curses, witches and god were believed in greatly, so if you give that curse the power, then it works….. 

Reviewed by Julie

Copy provided by Publisher

 

 

 

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