BOOK REVIEW : REASONABLE DOUBT VOLUME 2 by WHITNEY G. - REASONABLE DOUBT # 2 - EROTIC ROMANCE - NOVELLA

By: Whitney G.

Published By: Whitney G.

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle purchase, 77 Pages

RATING: 5 STARS

Blurb: Goodreads

She lied to me...
She betrayed the one rule that I'm most adamant about: Honesty. Complete and utter fucking honesty.
I really wish she was someone else—someone who didn't have the ability to make me feel, someone I could easily discard like the hundreds of women before her.
She isn't.
I'm drawn to her like I've never been drawn to a woman before—completely captivated by the very sight of her. But unfortunately, with my past slowly re-surfacing for all of the world to see, I'll have to find a way to let her go.
She can never be mine.



BOOK REVIEW:

It took me only a couple hours to read volume one and volume two in the Reasonable Doubt series and I have volume three left to read.

Man, such satisfying short reads. Whitney is very clever in her approach. She doesn’t waste words and she gives us Andrew who is a filthy talker, appears a jerk, but she gives us those outer layers initially, so we can watch her peel them back.

Andrew hates liars.

Alyssa has lied to him.

Even though he has his set of rules: One Night… yaddi yaddi ya. He can’t seem to keep his cock away from her.

Sounds like a trope that’s been done before…but…

A 77 page quick second installment in the Reasonable Doubt series, which is as good as the first 88 page installment.

Fast paced, sexy, witty, squirm-worthy and an intelligent read. You can see Whitney did her lawyer homework, if she wasn’t already one herself.

Visually it plays out like a mini tv show in front of your eyes as you read, everything clear on the page with description and great dialogue.

Looking forward to hitting up the last installment that is around 180 pages.

BOOK REVIEW: REASONABLE DOUBT VOLUME 1 by WHITNEY G. - REASONABLE DOUBT # 1 - EROTIC ROMANCE - NOVELLA

By: Whitney G.

Published By: Whitney G.

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle purchase, 88 Pages

RATING: 5 ANDREW STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

My cock has an appetite.

A huge and very particular appetite: Blonde, curvy, and preferably not a fucking liar... (Although, that's a story for another day.)

As a high profile lawyer, I don't have time to waste on relationships, so I fulfill my needs by anonymously chatting and sleeping with women I meet online.

My rules are simple: One dinner. One night. No repeats.

This is only casual sex. Nothing more. Nothing less.

At least it was , until "Alyssa"...

She was supposed to be a 27 year old lawyer, a book hoarder, and completely unattractive. She was supposed to be someone I shared law advice with late at night, someone I could trust with details of my weekly escapades.

But then she came into my firm for an interview—a college-intern interview, and everything fucking changed...



BOOK REVIEW:

I’m gonna admit I bought Reasonable Doubt Volume One waaaaay back in April 2014!

*face plant*

Why did it take me so long to read this über short read? But daaaayum it is good.

I LOVE a quick read that packs a punch and this is so worth reading.

What is even better is you can read these 88 pages for FREEEEEEEEEEEEE! (click on the FREEEEEEEEE)

Now if you are a bit of a prude in the filthy talk and sexy sex department, then this won’t be the book for you, but if you want to step outside your box and give it a whirl, you will probably find yourself squirming in your reading position and realize there is a great story to go with it.

I don’t care how squirm-worthy a story is, if that is all it brings to the table… then I am not that interested. It has to have a good story, great characters and the sexual content is really the icing—if I am reading this style of book.

This book reads like a full sized read. 

And then I checked my Kindle and guess what?

I bought Reasonable Doubt Volume 2 in May 2014 and I just read those 77 pages and I am getting an itchy twitchy finger for volume 3.

Fark, yeah! This was a great read. Writing a good story under 90 pages is not easy, in fact it is very hard to write a satisfying story that readers will gladly also pay more than 99c to read. Whitney G. nailed it.

There is a box set available too with the 3 volumes inside. 

A gazillion readers have already invested in this series and I am coming a little late to the game, but I know that there will still be a pile of you out there who haven't cracked onto it, too.

BOOK REVIEW : MIDNIGHT SECRETS by ELLA GRACE - WILDEFIRE # 1 - SUSPENSE ROMANCE - HEADLINE

By: Ella Grace aka Christy Reece

Published By: Headline

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 418 Pages

RATING: 4.25 ZACH STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

On a hot southern night, with a storm on the horizon, a family is shattered. Three beautiful daughters—Savannah, Samantha, and Sabrina Wilde—go on with their lives, each significantly changed, as they bear the memory of the murder-suicide that killed their parents. For years, they have stayed away from Midnight, Alabama. Until Midnight calls them home.

Savannah is the first one back, when a grueling case in Nashville leads the young prosecutor to seek shelter in the quiet of the once grand Wilde mansion. But when she finds letters casting doubt on her family’s dark, shameful past, she realizes that peace in Midnight is a shallow façade and sinister secrets lurk beneath the surface. Zach Tanner, once the town’s bad boy, is now the new police chief and still has a wild hold over her. Zach can feel it, too, but he hurt Savannah once. As teenagers, they broke every rule together. Now it’s his job to keep her safe, even though he isn’t sure who her enemies are—or which ones might be his own.


BOOK REVIEW:

This first instalment in the series starts off referencing ten-year-old triplets, Savannah, Samantha and Sabrina Wilde and a horrible tragedy that befell them.

Fast forward eight years and we meet Savannah on her prom night—enter Zach Tanner.

Then we fast forward ten more years, equalling Savannah aged twenty-eight and Zach aged thirty.

The cover to this book made me think I was picking up a military type read. Possibly the title made me think this too, but I was wrong in my assumption. Sure the young Zach was bound for the military, but that is such a very small part of this book. Think underdog makes good and becomes the Chief of Police in the town of Midnight and picks up again with the love of his life, (he left behind) which he could so easily have sorted in the first place with verbal communication. But where is the angst in that? I was thinking it must be something extremely huge for Zach to have promised her what he did and then wasted ten years.

Somebody wants Savannah dead and Zach isn’t gonna let that happen and he’s also not going to waste anymore time.

Bravo!

All sisters have gone onto have careers in: law, law enforcement and private investigator. To this I wondered why the author used two of the sisters at such a late date… considering.

I enjoyed Savannah and Zach’s story, but I did feel the basis for Savannah coming back to the town of Midnight was great, but the rather rushed conclusion to the suspense that was woven throughout, was not great. The plot in this area felt a little deflated, for me personally.

I still really enjoyed this book and liked meeting Zach’s hot-security-company friends.

I will continue with this series. I like the sound of Sabrina’s character and would like to read her book.

I have to say as a side note: When triplets all have names like these three do, it can get hard on the reader separating them. Especially Savannah and Samantha. 

Oh look! I found this cover for Kindle and I feel it better represents this story. 

BOOK REVIEW : SIZZLING SIXTEEN by JANET EVANOVICH - CONTEMPORARY CRIME - HEADLINE

By: Janet Evanovich

Published By: Headline

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from OP shop, 309 Pages

RATING: 4 STEPH & THE GANG STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Trenton, New Jersey. Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has inherited a 'lucky' bottle from her Uncle Pip. Problem is, Uncle Pip didn't specify if the bottle brought good luck or bad luck...

Vinnie, of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, owes a gambling debt to mobster Bobby Sunflower. It's up to Stephanie, office manager Connie, and file clerk Lula to raise the money if they want to save their jobs. Saving the business means Stephanie can keep being a bounty hunter. In Trenton, this involves hunting down a man wanted for polygamy, a Turnpike toilet paper bandit, and a drug dealer with a pet alligator named Mr Jingles.

The job comes with perks in the guise of Trenton's hottest cop, Joe Morelli, and the dark and dangerous security expert, Ranger. With any luck at all, Uncle Pip's lucky bottle will have Stephanie getting lucky - the only question is...with whom?



BOOK REVIEW:

Everything we’ve learned to expect from another Steph Plum installment happened within these pages.

Lula and her colorful tight clothing and eating habits.

Joe and his flirtation.



“They thought I was pretty?”

“Everyone thinks you’re pretty,” Morelli said.

“How about you?”

“Especially me,” he said.



Ranger and his flirtation, which got ohhh so close. #teamranger And the dealeo with car lending.



Ranger shut the Porsche down. “If you looked at me with half as much longing as you’re looking at that Mercedes, I’d take you upstairs and make you wish you never had to leave my bed.”

“Is the Mercedes for me?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“And the bed… I’d have to leave eventually, wouldn’t I?”

“Yes,” Ranger said.

“Why do you give me cars?”

“It’s fun,” Ranger said. “And it keeps you safe. Do you want to know why keeping you safe is important to me?”

“You love me?”

“Yes.”

A sigh inadvertently escaped. “We’re really screwed up aren’t we?”

“In a large way,” Ranger said.



Shenanigans with villains.

Shenanigans with inept bounty huntering.

What I got quite a giggle out of was Mooner and his Hobbits.

Bahahahahahaaaaaaaaaa…hahaha…aaahhhh…It really was funny.

However, the mental visual of Vinnie wearing Steph’s panties—was not. Ewwwww.



Another installment crushed, that's light on Ranger and Joe and heavy on silly shenanigans and a very OTT plot this time round.

More so than most times.

The last of my OP shop finds has now been devoured. Back to the library I go. #17 I have you in my sights…plus the library will be hollering it’s overdue shortly.

BOOK REVIEW : VENGEANCE IN DEATH by J.D. ROBB - IN DEATH # 6 - CRIME ROMANCE - BERKLEY BOOKS

By: J.D. Robb

Published By: Berkley Books

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 354 Pages

RATING: 5 ROARKE & EVE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

In a time when technology links the law and the lawless, predators and prey can be one and the same...

He is an expert with the latest technology ... a madman with the mind of a genius and the heart of a killer. He quietly stalks his prey. Then he haunts the police with cryptic riddles about the crimes he is about to commit--always solved moments too late to save his victims' lives.

Police lieutenant Eve Dallas found the first victim butchered in his own home. The second lost his life in a vacant luxury apartment. The two men had little in common. Both suffered unspeakable torture before their deaths. And both had ties to an ugly secret of ten years past--a secret shared by none other than Eve's new husband, Roarke.


BOOK REVIEW:

MY FAVE!

Just putting it out there straight away.

OMG! ROARKE!

I so loved him in this installment.

Eve! Apart from the frustration of watching her  go after the obviously wrong bad guy—like seriously wrong bad guy—she was brilliant in this installment. I know she has to work all angles and I know the author is bringing the angst and a level of tension and all that good stuff. I do get that... But I found myself rolling my eyes and wanting to get past the wild goose chase quickly, even though there is still benefit in it with the reactions from the other cast members.

We go back to Roarke’s roots in this story and I so loved the change of scenery and more background information on his past.

McNab is a fun new addition.



At the sharp rap on her doorjamb, she glanced up, frowned distractedly at the man grinning at her. Midtwenties, she judged, with a pretty-boy face and a love of fashion.

He barely topped five-eight even in the neon yellow air boots. He wore denim above them, pants that bagged and a jacket that showed frayed cuffs. His hair was a bright new minted gold that flowed into a waist-length ponytail. He had half a dozen small, glinting gold hoops in his left earlobe.



He’s a little cheeky, a little flirty with Peabody—not that she is having any of it.



Peabody dropped the plate in front of McNab. "Enjoy."

“I will. See you, She-Body.” He wiggled his eyebrows when she turned and glared at him. And let out a little sigh when she stalked out. “Sure is built,” he murmured, then pushed up his sleeves and got back to work.



VILLAIN…OMG!! FINALLY one I couldn’t work out in advance.

YAY!!

So good this book.

Roarke and Eve are bloody brilliant together in this book.

The emotion.

The sex.

The tense situations.

The connection.



He wondered if she knew how staggering she was, standing there amid the glitter in her scarred jacket and smeared denim, her short, untidy hair haloing a pale face, accenting dark, tired eyes, her long, rangy body held straight through what he knew was an act of sheer will.



This one scene… God Roarke! We saw so much in him from that one scene. I can’t spoil but I can give a little quote.



“Darling,” he said mildly, “you’re not looking your best.”

Summerset and Eve have their moments.



“Roarke residence,” Summerset said in smooth tones, then his face went stony. “Lieutenant.”

“Put him on,” she demanded.

“Roarke is engaged on another call at the moment.”

“Put him on, you skinny, frog-faced son of a bitch. Now.”


A thoroughly amazing installment that has me reaching for Holiday In Death…but I really need to read some other authors before I read more from this series. I shall have to force myself to stay away from this cast of characters until December…which is in two days.

BOOK REVIEW : CEREMONY IN DEATH by J.D. ROBB - IN DEATH # 5 - PIATKUS - CRIME ROMANCE

By: J.D. Robb

Published By: Piatkus

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 393 Pages

RATING: 4.5 ROARKE, JAMIE & EVE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Even in an age of cutting-edge technology, old beliefs die hard...

Conducting a top secret investigation into the death of a fellow police officer has Lieutenant Eve Dallas treading on dangerous ground. She must put professional ethics before personal loyalties. But when a dead body is placed outside her home, Eve takes the warning personally. With her husband, Roarke, watching her every move, Eve is drawn into the most dangerous case of her career. Every step she takes makes her question her own beliefs of right and wrong - and brings her closer to a confrontation with humanity's most seductive form of evil...

BOOK REVIEW:

Totally dug this installment.

Okay, so we have this lovable couple who grow more and more on me every book. I see why a man like Roarke made quick work of marrying Eve.

He's obviously bedded many a woman in the past as they do keep popping up. #Ifeelsorryforeveattheconstantreminder

Although the villain was easy to pick, there was a slight twist, which I enjoyed. There were pages spent trying to convince Eve to believe that it was another. They really were kind of  wasted pages because the reader can quite blatantly see the transparency there... but that is okay. What isn’t okay is a woman like Eve who is so thorough going down that track when we know it ain’t so. But these things happen in plot, but shouldn't in Eve's case as she is too intelligent to do that. She is too methodical with her process and always has Roarke's special devices to run her thoughts through. 

Roarke and Eve are just so delicious together, they truly are. He's just something special with her and their bedroom antics get a little saucier each book.

Peabody is a brilliant sidekick to Eve and I hope she continues to step into the limelight. Roarke was surprisingly surprised by her in this installment. #teampeabody

Mavis is adorable and quirky and in my head I can’t help hearing a young Melanie Griffith’s voice.

Enter Jamie, a new addition for me to enjoy. He outsmarts Roarke and that is intriguing. I hope he stays for a long time in this series. It will open up so much more storyline I think. 

The formula appears set in stone for this series…hopefully not for 46 books, but time will tell. I ain’t peeking. 

Another wonderful ride alongside Eve and Peabody, and of course Roarke. The man who is so super busy professionally—but always has time for his Eve and assisting in solving the case—while he takes on dominating the world with his business ventures and property purchases and also bedroom lurving.

#teamroarke

I do really enjoy this series. I only have another 41 books to go. I need to step my game up because the math is showing many years to get to book 46 releasing in 2018, but more will still no doubt be releasing after it. One a month isn’t gonna cut it. I need to aim for two minimum.

#challengeaccepted

BOOK REVIEW - SHATTERED by CYNTHIA EDEN - LOST # 3 - AVON BOOKS - SUSPENSE ROMANCE

By: Cynthia Eden

Published By: Avon Books

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 361 Pages 

RATING: 5 JAX STARS!! 

Blurb: Goodreads

In New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Eden's latest novel featuring the Last Option Search Team (LOST), one agent is forced to face her past as she uncovers secrets about the man who may be the key to her future.

Criminal psychologist Dr. Sarah Jacobs is all too familiar with the kind of bad boys who belong behind bars. But the dark, dangerous man she meets in the New Orleans underworld is a new kind of ruthless, and all too irresistible.

Jax Fontaine doesn't claim to be a good guy, but he's loyal to his own code and brutally honest about what he wants. He and Sarah may be worlds apart, but when they're skin to skin, nothing matters but the heat between them.

And when a deranged killer targets Sarah, Jax will do whatever it takes to keep her safe.



BOOK REVIEW:

Giddy up! I totally dug this instalment.

Jax Fontaine.

Man, he gives me a lady boner. He is such a great character. He has depth and intrigue. He’s a little wild and scary. He is ultimately good, but he does cross the line when he needs to.

Jax is the best male lead in this series for me to date and Sarah is the best female lead. We see below the layers of both these characters. Sarah is no damsel-in-distress, she is a leading lady who is intelligent and has a past.

We are told Jax is the leader of a motorcycle gang, but I see no references to that within this series so far, other than being told. If we weren’t told that, I would simply think he is a guy who lives on the dark side, owns many properties in New Orleans and has scraped himself off the bottom of the bucket. He has clawed his way through life and become somebody who fights the system his way. In Twisted you see a seedier side to Jax. He has attitude. He still does in Shattered, but he plays a part, because the police only seem to want to know that side of him—to only believe in that side of him.

Now let’s talk villains. Cynthia got it right, for me anyway, in this book. She hides it well, doesn’t over enthusiastically try to push us towards other characters. This is the way I like it. Let me theorize without trying to force me to think who the killer or mastermind is.

Love the twist at the end.

Da…da...da…daaaaaa!

I’m hoping Wade’s book up next will have some Jax in it and will be just as good. Wade is always popping up in this series, but I don’t really know him other than he does jump on assumptions a little, but he's always ready to dig in and help the team.

Worth reading this series in order, or else you will miss out on Jax’s entrance in Twisted and not get the Emma connection with Jax.

I have Torn in my hands ready to go.

BOOK REVIEW - TWISTED by CYNTHIA EDEN - LOST # 2 - AVON BOOKS - SUSPENSE ROMANCE

By: Cynthia Eden
Published By: Avon Books
Released: Available Now
Details: Paperback from library, 361 Pages

RATING: 4.25 DEAN STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

In the second seductive LOST novel from New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Eden, an obsessed Last Option Search Team agent goes looking for trouble—and finds her in the Big Easy.
Dean Bannon comes to New Orleans for one reason only: to track down a missing sixteen-year-old girl. That's before he meets the drop-dead gorgeous con artist who makes him want to lose his legendary control.

With her past, Emma Castille doesn't claim to be psychic. She just notices things other people don't. Like the fear in a runaway's eyes—or the pain in an ex-FBI agent's heart. Her chemistry with Dean is blistering, but Emma follows her passion . . . not someone else's orders.

Then a madman breaks into Emma's home and leaves a twisted message: You're next. Now Dean refuses to let her out of his sight until he pries every last secret from her full, sexy lips. And suddenly Emma's aching to give him everything he wants.



BOOK REVIEW:

Another instalment in the LOST series ( Last Option Search Team ) and I really enjoyed it. Even though the books are well over 300 pages long, they are the small books that are almost pocket books. This makes them a lot quicker reads than you would think looking at the page numbers.

Again with this series, I did find it a little too easy to work out who the villain was, mainly because if you pay attention, the author likes to make you think a certain way, that immediately has me going in the other direction. I am happy to say, book 3, Shattered, was not a predictable villain. It was virtually impossible to pick and I feel the author has learned how to now trick the reader. This is a good thing, because this is suspense romance genre, so we want to find it hard to pick the baddies.

Dean and Emma are great characters—but Jax Fontaine stole the show for me. When he was in the limelight…man, I loved reading him.

Cynthia has a wonderful talent for painting such visual scenes with her words and she doesn’t hold back on the stabby stabby.

Very pleased to see this series gets better and better.

BOOK REVIEW - HAUNTED ON BOURBON STREET by DEANNA CHASE - JADE CALHOUN # 1 - PARANORMAL ROMANCE

By: Deanna Chase
Published By: Bayou Moon Publishing
Released: Available Now CURRENTLY FREE
Details: Kindle purchase, 262 Pages

RATING: 4.25 JADE & KANE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Jade loves her new apartment—until a ghost joins her in the shower!

When empath Jade Calhoun moves into an apartment above a strip bar on Bourbon Street, she expects life to get interesting. What she doesn't count on is making friends with an exotic dancer, attracting a powerful spirit, and developing feelings for Kane, her sexy landlord.

Being an empath has never been easy on Jade's relationships. It's no wonder she keeps her gift a secret. But when the ghost moves from spooking Jade to terrorizing Pyper, the dancer, it's up to Jade to use her unique ability to save her. Except she'll need Kane's help to do it—and he's betrayed her with a secret of his own. Can she find a way to trust him and herself before Pyper is lost?



BOOK REVIEW:

This is my first foray into Deanna Chase’s written work. This book is lighter on plot and may appear at times a little rushed in areas that could have been fleshed out more, but I did still enjoy this first book and the characters, very much.

Jade is a very likable character and so is Kane the sexy strip club owner. There is a great line-up of sub characters to fill the storyline and an interesting ghost situation.

What I really liked was reading about Jade’s other job as a glass bead making teacher. It was nice to see a really different job for a female lead as opposed to the bartender job that a lot of female leads seem to get given.

Throw in a villain and some violence and you have yourself a paranormal mystery/romance.

I am looking forward to continuing this series.

Book 1 is currently free on Amazon HERE.

BOOK REVIEW - WITHOUT MERIT by COLLEEN HOOVER - ATRIA BOOKS

By: Colleen Hoover

Published By: Atria Books

Released: Available Now

Details: Netgalley for honest review

Blurb:Goodreads

Not every mistake deserves a consequence. Sometimes the only thing it deserves is forgiveness.

The Voss family is anything but normal. They live in a repurposed church, newly baptized Dollar Voss. The once cancer-stricken mother lives in the basement, the father is married to the mother’s former nurse, the little half-brother isn’t allowed to do or eat anything fun, and the eldest siblings are irritatingly perfect. Then, there’s Merit.

Merit Voss collects trophies she hasn’t earned and secrets her family forces her to keep. While browsing the local antiques shop for her next trophy, she finds Sagan. His wit and unapologetic idealism disarm and spark renewed life into her—until she discovers that he’s completely unavailable. Merit retreats deeper into herself, watching her family from the sidelines when she learns a secret that no trophy in the world can fix.

Fed up with the lies, Merit decides to shatter the happy family illusion that she’s never been a part of before leaving them behind for good. When her escape plan fails, Merit is forced to deal with the staggering consequences of telling the truth and losing the one boy she loves.

BOOK REVIEW:

Gahhh! I have sat on my thoughts for weeks on this book.

Firstly: I am one hundred percent a Colleen Hoover fan.

Hell. Yeah!

Love her as a writer and as a person. She’s a good woman.

This review will be uber short, because it is probably a case of it’s me and not you when it comes to this book.

Gahhh! I had trouble. I felt depressed reading it. I just felt the things I didn’t want to feel and that was kinda sad for me, but that is okay. Readers are gonna either dig this book…or maybe feel like me. Each to their own. 

I totally understand what Colleen was writing and I get that she was writing something different. I do get all that.

But...

I always write a review that is from my heart and this book was maybe not the book for me. And that is okay. Maybe it was because of what happened in my life in early 2016. That could be more the reason...maybe.

BOOK REVIEW - TRICKERY by JAYMIN EVE & JANE WASHINGTON - CURSE OF THE GODS # 1 - YA FANTASY

By: Jaymin Eve and Jane Washington

Published By: Jaymin Eve and Jane Washington

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle purchase, 298 Pages

RATING: 5 LIGHT ON FANTASY, AWESOME ON WIT AND HOT SOLS STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Willa Knight: Dweller. Slave. Non-magical being.

In Minatsol, being a dweller means that you are literally no better than dirt. In fact, dirt might actually be more useful than Willa. Her life will be one of servitude to the sols, the magic-blessed beings who could one day be chosen to become gods.

At least her outer village is far removed from the cities of the sols, and she won’t ever be forced to present herself to them... Until one small mistake changes everything, and Willa is awarded a position to serve at Blesswood, the top sol academy in the world—a position that she definitely did not earn.

Under the sudden, watchful eye of the gods, she will be tasked to serve the Abcurse brothers, five sols built of arrogance, perfection and power. They are almost gods themselves, and under their service she is either going to end up sentenced to death, or else they are going to ruin her so badly that she will wish for it.

Either way, she is in trouble. 

BOOK REVIEW:

I really enjoyed this first installment in the Curse of the Gods series. Willa is quite the clumsy character and the five sols (brothers) are great characters.

The thing with Willa, don’t confuse being overly clumsy with being dumb, because she is far from dumb. Enormously clumsy—yes. Dumb—no.

Trickery is very entertaining and light fantasy. This I enjoyed.

The more you read, the more you learn about Willa and the more you will learn about the five brothers who are all stars in their own right even when there are twins and triplets making up this group of sols.



The last one. He looked just like Coen, the pain-gifted sol who had tried to kill me. They both appeared slightly older than the other three: Yael, the persuasion-gifted one; Siret, the trickery-gifted one; and Aros, the one who apparently had some kind of seduction gift.



A great chemistry grows between Willa and her sols, which has you giggling as you read.



“What are you doing in the male dorm?”

“Exploring my sexuality.” I leaned against the cart, propping my elbow, wiping my expression into something neutral. “How am I doing?”

“I can see your nipples. Your shirt’s wet.”



Emmy is the best friend/sidekick, even though Willa herself seems a bit of a sidekick to the sols, sometimes.



“I’m sick of them. I never want to see them again. Except Aros; he smells nice. And Rome, because he’s so strong. I’m pretty sure not even Rau can get past him. I don’t need the others. Except Siret. I’m pretty sure he hates me, but he’s really good at catching me like just before I face-plant into something. But the others, I don’t need them. Not at all.” I paused, my brow furrowing, my mouth pursing, and then I quickly blurted, “Except Coen and Yael. Coen is really good at making decisions, and if I leave out Yael he’ll probably hunt me the hell down and haunt me—”

That’s all of them,” Emmy interrupted smoothly. She didn’t sound panicked anymore. Now she sounded like she was trying not to laugh.



A lot of wit is spread throughout this book, making it a very enjoyable read.



“How the hell have you stayed alive this long?” he asked. 

I shrugged, trying to catch my breath. “No idea, it’s been a rough road.”



I am looking forward to Persuasion # 2, which is released. The cover art is so beautiful.

BOOK REVIEW - BROKEN by CYNTHIA EDEN - LOST # 1 - AVON BOOKS - SUSPENSE ROMANCE

By: Cynthia Eden
Published By: Avon Books
Released : Available Now
Details: Paperback from library , 348 Pages

RATING: 4.25 GABE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

The first novel in New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Eden's sizzling LOST series introduces the Last Option Search Team, an elite unit that must protect the only surviving victim of a serial killer.

Ex-SEAL and LOST founder Gabe Spencer is accustomed to the unusual in his job. But when knockout Eve Gray steps into his office, he's rattled. For the mysterious woman is a dead ringer for the heiress thought to be the latest prey of the serial killer who goes by the name Lady Killer.

When Eve awoke in an Atlanta hospital, her past was a blank slate. Then she recognized her own face in the newspaper and vowed to learn the truth. Determined to confront the nightmares hidden in her mind, she never expects to find a partner in Gabe.

As Gabe and Eve work together, their explosive attraction becomes irresistible. Gabe knows that his desire for Eve is growing too strong, bordering on a dangerous obsession, but nothing pulls him away from her. And when another Eve lookalike disappears, Gabe vows to protect Eve at all costs. While Eve may have forgotten the killer in her past, it's clear he hasn't forgotten her.



BOOK REVIEW:
This is my first Cynthia Eden read and I really enjoyed this suspense romance.

The characters are likable and we are introduced to intelligent men and women who work for Gabe under the title Last Option Search Team aka LOST.

I like this whole concept with Gabe putting a team together who work to find the people who have been lost to the system.

Eve walks into Gabe’s office and he takes her case and he also takes a lot more than that. *waggles eyebrows*

Enter Wade, Sarah, Victoria and Dean and you have a great line-up of characters.

The who-dunnit was kinda easy to spot fairly early into the plot. You have a fairly large suspicion, but that is okay. The villain was very creepy. I really liked all the descriptive. Visually I could see the picture painted very clearly in my mind while reading and the plot is very gritty. 

I am über ready for Twisted # 2.

BOOK REVIEW - GOLDEN TRAIL by KRISTEN ASHLEY - THE 'BURG # 3 - CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: Kristen Ashley

Published By: Kristen Ashley

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle purchase, 664 Pages

RATING: 4.25 LAYNE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Tanner Layne and Raquel Merrick fell in love young, hard and fast and both of them knew a beautiful life they thought would be forever.

Until Rocky left Layne, no explanation, no going back.

Layne escapes The ‘Burg only to come back years later because his ex-wife has hooked herself to the town jerk and Layne needs to make sure his sons get raised right. Layne manages to avoid Rocky but when Layne gets three bullets drilled into him while investigating a dirty cop, he can’t do that because Rocky stops avoiding Layne. They make a deal to work together to expose the dirty cop but they have no idea the strength of their enduring attraction or the sheer evil at work in The ‘Burg.

As Tanner Layne and Raquel Merrick play their game and dance around the pull that draws them together, Layne has to discover the dark secrets buried so deep in Rocky’s heart she doesn’t even know they’re there at the same time untangle a sinister web of crime so abhorrent it has to be stopped... at all costs.

And to do it, Layne has to enlist everyone, including his ex-CIA mentor, Rocky’s detective brother, the town’s unpredictable informant and Layne’s two teenage sons all the while stopping Rocky from doing something crazy and keeping their game secret so Layne won't get himself dead.



BOOK REVIEW:

“Wounds to the flesh hurt but they heal fast. Wounds to the soul never go away. It’s how we cope with a pain that never dies that makes us the people we are. Daily, people demonstrate acts of courage just so they can get through the night.”



So without rehashing the story, in true KA style we have the alpha male lead, Tanner Layne—but he hates the name Tanner—and we have Rocky who left him eighteen years earlier, and they reunite.

Let the sexiness, alpha-erm-ness and more sexiness begin.

Layne has two sons: Jasper and Tripp. He has a relationship with them to rebuild and I really liked watching this happen. Jasper was a bit harder to break through to, but he came around.

Jasper and Tripp will truly be something when they get older. I feel a bit cougarish and a bit wrong thinking about them at their age now. Let these lads mature like a fine KA alpha.

Rocky is a great female lead. She is a really cool teacher, but she has some cobwebs in her closet that forced her to leave her true love—Layne.

There is of course the villain and a creepy sidekick. Throw in Ryker who sounds kinda scary, but he loves his woman and her daughter, so he goes all out to insert himself into Layne’s life and assist with the shit that is going down at the local church youth group.

Another great KA installment, although sometimes I feel these books could be many pages shorter due to a little repetitive dialogue.

Ty, Luke and Tack still have my heart, but I am still looking to add to this line-up of my #faveKAmen .

BOOK REVIEW - BREAKING THE STORM by SEDONA VENEZ - CREDENCE CURSE # 1 - PARANORMAL ROMANCE

By: Sedona Venez
Published By: One Wish Publishing
Released: Available Now
Details: Kindle purchase currently FREE , 254 Pages

RATING: 3.75 KNOX & RYKER STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

A fae witch, a rock star, and a passionate paranormal affair…

Stormy is cursed. If the fae witch ever finds true love, the man is sure to die a terrible death. Five years ago, she left her sexy rock star of a boyfriend Knox to save his life.

When her escort service for paranormals puts her face to face with Knox again, her passion grows like never before. Can she possibly keep it together when Knox insists that she be his escort? Will her curse make it all fall apart?

Breaking the Storm is the first book in the Credence Curse Saga, a series of adventure-packed shifter romance tales. If you like dark magic, powerful women, steamy love scenes, heart-pounding romance, and piles of sexy shifter secrets, then you'll love the latest romp from author Sedona Venez.



BOOK REVIEW:

This book caught my eye when I was randomly scrolling about on Amazon a few days ago. I picked it up for #free and it still is free.

I really liked the prologue and I was fascinated to know more, but that is where that ends and the first chapter rolls forward to ‘Centuries Later’. We do get a teeny bit more near end of book.

Now I thought I had this whole Credence Curse worked out in my head…but then maybe not.



In our defense, we’d had no choice. Humans were our last resort for the continuance of the Credence bloodline. The magic in our fae blood bound us to expose ourselves as Others to any human we loved, or we’d be risking our death. It was a double-edged sword that gave us a chance to love and be loved. A chance at happiness, but it would be ruthlessly stripped away by death of any man we’d loved.



Okay so I thought I got that under my belt when I was reading the prologue, but then by the end of the book—I don’t think I got it, because of Knox. Rock star Knox.

You see, Stormy aka Storm leaves him as she believes he is human, for fear of his death, but later…even though she still thinks he’s human… (scratches head a little) I may have totally missed something. I was concentrating hard.

I really liked the whole world building of this book. It was interesting. What let me down was how dumb Storm was over one thing and only one thing. 

This is the most frustrating thing about this story. OMG! Storm is a very intelligent woman, runs a business and comes across very smart…except for this one thing.

She knows Ryker is head of the Other Council and he is a wolf shifter. He knows Storm and Light are fae-witch. Ryker’s bodyguard dudes know what each other is—but…

GAHHHH! The frustration of continuing to read while this dumbness went on, was hard and eye roll worthy. It was selective dumbness. I was banging my head on a table (inside my head) when continually reading this. She could pick out every other Other, but not Knox.

@(#*@)(#*@)(#*)!!!

I know it was easier for the author to write it this way to fit in with her story…but it was not for the reader. So many freakin’ hints are dropped for the reader and Storm, but Storm is totally oblivious.

SMH

Then there is the BDSM part of the story. I read BDSM and this was hot sex. Research needed to be done on what is BDSM. Telling Storm what to wear and being a little bossy is not BDSM.

Being an alpha male character does not make you a dom.

I did enjoy this story, and for those that have no idea about BDSM, then cool, you will be happy reading these sex scenes. 

What I really wanted from this story was to know Knox more. He really is a great character. There is like a five year gap between the last time they saw each other and then all of a sudden it is this BDSM and I am dom and you are sub stuff. I needed a bit of fleshing out. It felt very random to insert this without a build-up of some kind.

There was the curse and another side story going on. There was a death and a nosy reporter. I needed those parts given more time, too.

This was a good start to this series, but I felt there where plot jumps that needed care and also fleshing out of characters.

Lightening aka Light was a great character. I really like her and I do like Storm, Knox and Ryker, but I wanted more than maybe the emphasis being on the so called BDSM parts. Give me the sex, but give me the fleshed out story too.

Some readers will be more than happy the way it is written from cover to cover, but I needed more. I did really like the overall world building and the kinda zany mother and aunt.

Harper is a really great character too, written very well. There were so many things to like about Breaking The Storm. I kinda want to shove it back into an editing process and context proofreading process. I have looked at many of the reviews on Goodreads to see if I was the only one…and I’m not. I feel my review is very fair.

I am looking forward to Ryker and Light's story, because those two were great in this book.

BOOK REVIEW - FINGER LICKIN' FIFTEEN by JANET EVANOVICH - STEPHANIE PLUM # 15 - HEADLINE - CONTEMPORARY CRIME

By: Janet Evanovich

Published By: Headline

Released : Available Now

Details: Paperback find from local OP shop, 312 Pages

RATING: 4 RANGER & JOE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Unbuckle your belt and pull up a chair. It's the spiciest, sauciest, most rib-sticking Plum yet.

Recipe for disaster: Celebrity chef Stanley Chipotle comes to Trenton in a barbecue cookoff and loses his head - literally.

Throw in some spice: Bail bonds office worker Lula is witness to the crime, and the only one she'll talk to is Trenton cop Joe Morelli.

Pump up the heat: Chipotle's sponsor is offering a million-dollar reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the capture of the killers.

Stir the pot: Lula recruits bounty hunter Stephanie Plum to help find he killer and collect the moolah.

Add a secret ingredient: Stephanie Plum's Grandma Mazur. Enough said.

Bring to a boil: Stephanie Plum is working overtime tracking felons for the bonds office at night and snooping for security expert Carlos Manoso, aka Ranger, during the day. Can Stephanie hunt down two killers, a traitor, and five skips, keep her grandmother out of the sauce, and solve Ranger's problems and not jump his bones?

Warning: Habenero hot. So good you'll want seconds.

BOOK REVIEW:

I have made it this far.

15! Steph Plum books under my belt.

I am #addicted.

I can’t seem to stop, even though they can be frustrating to read, I simply gotta keep reading.

Same shit goes on: Lula is up to her antics, this time with some madcap barbecue scheme. Steph is back working with Ranger on something he could do himself. But she is in his bed in a purely platonic way, and that is something. #teamranger

No new growth. Joe is Joe. Ranger is Ranger… Babe. Grandma Mazur…is the same. The villain is pretty much predictable.

BUT I CAN’T STOP READING THIS SERIES.

I do laugh, even though some of them are boiling down to fart jokes. I fart. I admit it, but eh, it felt like scraping the bucket to get a laugh. But I laughed. Lula is simply a character we have grown to know is the butt of Janet’s jokes. (pun intended)

I do want some growly manly stuff to be upping the stakes a little, but we get a lot of ‘Babe’ from Ranger and a lot of racing to the scene from Joe after he hears about another situation Steph is in.

Cars get blown up. I find I am looking forward to the moment. Is that bad?

Very much poolside reads for me, but I do want more growth. I am beginning to crave it.

I don’t mind the love triangle stretching out, but I want there to be more oomph in it rather than this predictable surface writing we are getting.

I have my last OP shop find in #16 and have already lined #17 up at the library. The Kindle prices are a bit rich for me at $9.37US. I got 9 paperbacks from OP shop for $12 buckeroos AUD. Trust me I will pay big bucks for paperbacks and ebooks, but I find that these are very predictable reads, so I will library the rest. I think maybe the publisher got a bit ahead of themselves charging those prices.

Anyhoo…onto the next!

BOOK REVIEW - WHISKEY BEACH by NORA ROBERTS - CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE - PIATKUS

By: Nora Roberts

Published By: Piatkus

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 484 Pages

RATING: 3.75 - 4 STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

For more than three hundred years, Bluff House has sat above Whiskey Beach, guarding its shore - and its secrets.

To summer tourists, it's the crown jewel of the town's stunning scenery. To the residents of Whiskey Beach, it's landmark and legend. To Eli Landon, it's home...

A Boston lawyer, Eli has weathered an intense year of public scrutiny and police investigation after being accused of murdering his soon-to-be ex-wife. And though there was never enough evidence to have him arrested, his reputation is in tatters as well as his soul. He need sanctuary. He needs Bluff House.

While Eli's beloved grandmother is in Boston, recuperating from a nasty fall, Abra Walsh has cared for Bluff House, among her other jobs as yoga instructor, jewelry maker, and massage therapist. She is a woman with an open heart and a wide embrace, and no one is safe from her special, some would say over-bearing, brand of nurturing - including Eli.

He begins to count on Abra for far more than her cooking, cleaning, and massage skills, and starts to feel less like a victim - and more like the kind of man who can finally solve the murder of his wife and clear his name. But Bluff House's many mysteries are a siren song to someone intent on destroying Eli and reaping the rewards. He and Abra will become entangled in a centuries-old net of rumors and half-truths that could pull them under the thunderous waters of Whiskey Beach...

Passion and obsession, humor and heart flow together in a novel about two people opening themselves up to the truth - and to each other.

BOOK REVIEW:

I have just finished this whopping huge book. My very FIRST read by Nora Roberts, although I do read her as J.D. Robb. ( In Death series)

I have read 4 books to-date in the In Death series and adore J.D. Robb’s writing aka Nora Roberts. So I decided to pick me up a random read of Nora’s, which happened to be Whiskey Beach.

I gotta say—and I know Nora is like the queen of writing—but this book didn’t do her queen status justice…for me. This is just my personal reading experience.

I found the book far toooooooo long. I love a long read, but in this case I became a little bit bored and that is not good. It took me a lot longer to read this book than a JR Ward whopping thick read. I devour the In Death books in a day, but this book took me a week.

I originally liked Abra Walsh’s character, but the more I read her, the more she made me feel like the woman was a total superstar at everything she put her hand to. She was the perfect woman—even though her past wasn’t. She kinda grated on my reader nerves. She’s the first character I have read like this and it was a bit hard to read her, sometimes. I understand what Nora was doing, and she wanted to show us a self assured, strong woman who took the reins…but it came off differently for me. I loved she was a yoga instructor and I actually want to take yoga back up because of Abra, but then she was good at every darn thing and then more and other things.

Eli Landon…I couldn’t connect as well as I hoped with him as a character. I wanted to. He felt quite flat to me. 

The pacing was quite slow and I think that could have been remedied by tightening up the story by culling at least a hundred pages. Other readers might be perfectly happy the way it is, but for me, I found this a difficult book to finish.

This experience won’t stop me reading more Nora Roberts, I have The Obsession in my hands to read next. Another random pick from the library.

But I might just take a weee break first before cracking it open.

BOOK REVIEW - PLAYING DIRTY by TIFFANY SNOW - RISKY BUSINESS # 2 - PIATKUS - CONTEMPORARY CRIME ROMANCE

By: Tiffany Snow

Published By: Piatkus

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 313 Pages

RATING: 3.75 STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

DOWN AND DIRTY
Faced with a choice between bad-boy detective Dean Ryker and sexy power player Parker Anderson, Sage Reece fought the law--and the law won. But while Ryker's sizzling touch may rule her nights, Sage's days belong to Parker's cool, calculating intensity. . . .

Both Ryker and Parker are determined to protect Sage from a brutal enemy who'd use her to pay for their mistakes. Yet when the usually on-point Ryker is distracted by ghosts from his past, Parker seizes his opportunity to get Sage's attention--and keep it in ways beyond her wildest dreams.

Now, caught between a mobster out for revenge and two men who were once best friends, Sage must play to win—even if it means getting dirty. . . .

BOOK REVIEW:

I am a huge Tiffany Snow fan and I did LOVE the first book in this series, but…

Let me explain my own personal thoughts.

I don’t have a great love for love triangles, but I do think Tiffany Snow does them really well.

But in saying that, I found this installment made me roll my eyes quite a lot. I mean I had eye roll overload.

Sage just got on my nerves the way she was written. It is probably a case of: it’s not you but me. In my eyes she became quite dumbed down and silly.

The first book I LOVED…this one… 

I am definitely reading Play To Win, next, and have it in my hands to read from my local library.

I haven’t yet finished the Kathleen Turner series as I am buying them as I read and dang it—did I get a beauty of a spoiler in this installment. I am giving myself memory loss on that one. Teach me to not finish off the KT series first.

Although this installment made me groan and eye roll too much, I am still glad I read it. Parker and Ryker are both great guys and I think Sage simply let me down.

BOOK REVIEW - RAPTURE IN DEATH by J.D. ROBB - IN DEATH # 4 - PIATKUS - CONTEMPORARY CRIME

By: J.D. Robb
Published By: Piatkus
Released: Available Now
Details: Paperback from library, 380 Pages

RATING: 5 EVE & ROARKE HOT-LAWN-SEX STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

The complex world of virtual reality takes on a whole new meaning as Lieutenant Eve Dallas weaves through the underbelly of New York's crime world of the future.

He killed himself, Lieutenant. He was hanging there, just hanging there from the ceiling light in the living room. And his face . . . Oh God.

Death follows New York City cop Eve Dallas everywhere—even on her honeymoon with Irish lover Roarke. When one of Roarke's employees is found dead, the post-mortem confirms suicide. An isolated case, or so Eve thinks.

But more suicides follow—strangers with nothing in common. The pathologist's report states each victim has an unexplained mark on their brain. Is this a genetic abnormality or a high-tech method of murder? With the body count rising, Eve must delve into the world of virtual reality to hunt down a twisted killer. A killer who preys on the minds of the innocent.


BOOK REVIEW:

Another awesome installment in the In Death series which is definitely formula driven and so far a little too easy to solve the case before Eve does—but I’m addicted.

People are self-terminating themselves and that’s not what you want to be called into when you are on your honeymoon…but that is exactly what happens.

And let the mystery begin.

Peabody and Eve are brilliant together. Peabody is the perfect sidekick who is enjoying some of the spoils of being partnered up with Eve.


Peabody sipped her coffee. “God. Oh God. It’s real.” Blinking in shock, she cupped both hands reverently around the mug. “This coffee is real.”


Roarke… if you know the series…then you know.


Roarke was a dark angel in what he would have seen as casual attire. The black silk shirt open at the collar, the perfectly draped black trousers cinched with a belt gleaming silver at the buckle suited him perfectly, made him look exactly as he was: rich, gorgeous, dangerous.


Then there was that humdinger hot-lawn-sex scene where Eve was very out of her Lieutenant character, because she simply had to get home!

His body simply peaked like an engine on maximum power, battered into hers, then erupted.


We delve deeper into Eve’s past and get more of a looksee into Roarke’s.


“We are what we’re born?” Eve thought of a filthy room , a blinking red light, and a young girl curled into a corner with a bloody knife.


Many more books for me to binge on in this series and to learn more about those two. But the more I read, and the more Roarke’s exes pop up in each book—appearing everything Eve isn’t—you know how lucky he was to find her.

Nothing about Eve is fake or enhanced. She’s the real deal.

I am looking forward to Ceremony In Death, next.

BOOK REVIEW - WHISKEY SOUR by J.A. KONRATH - JACK DANIELS MYSTERY - CONTEMPORARY CRIME

By: J.A. Konrath

Published By: J.A. Konrath

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle Purchase, 217 Pages

RATING: 5 JACK STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Lieutenant Jacqueline 'Jack' Daniels is having a bad week. Her live-in boyfriend has left her for his personal trainer, chronic insomnia has caused her to max out her credit cards with late-night home shopping purchases, and a frightening killer who calls himself 'The Gingerbread Man' is dumping mutilated bodies in her district. Between avoiding the FBI and its moronic profiling computer, joining a dating service, mixing it up with street thugs, and parrying the advances of an uncouth PI, Jack and her binge-eating partner, Herb, must catch the maniac before he kills again....and Jack is next on his murder list. Whiskey Sour is full of laugh-out-loud humor and edge-of-your-seat suspense, and it introduces a fun, fully drawn heroine in the grand tradition of Kinsey Millhone, Stephanie Plum, and Kay Scarpetta.

BOOK REVIEW:

OOOooOOh I did love this book.

“You’re the total of all the choices you’ve made in your life, Jack. 

This is what you have because this is what you chose.” 

It took me a little bit in my head to remember Jack Daniels is a female, but once I squared that off, I was buzzing along and so enjoying this book.

I love Stephanie Plum series and have cracked off 14 books, but she is a kinda silly character, which I do enjoy, but Jacqueline aka Jack Daniels (very clever) is a smart Lieutenant. This is very refreshing.

She is forty-six. Her partner, Herb, loves to eat and he is fun.

I loved the whole set up of this first book and the introductions.

J.A. Konrath writes dark and very detailed and it can be gross, but at the same time…I likey! I do love dark reads—but there is also humor and wit.

A great blend. 

Now the villain—The Gingerbread Man—is an extremely dark and violent soul. He is chilling in his plotting and execution. He is what nightmares are made of. I really felt like I was in his very psychotic head. A murderer you wouldn't want targeting you.

Some of the violence is pretty...erm...violent and ewwww, but it does serve the purpose of the reality of this farked up individual.

Now let me get to Harry.

I am not sure what to make of this lad at the moment, but I looked forward to his scenes. It is early days. He is self-centered, a total piggy in his home…OMG!! GAHHH! GROSS!!! EEEPPP!! He really does think of himself…yet… I find myself strangely attracted to him in an unusual way.

Bahahaha.

I don’t think I want to.

If you are a lover of contemporary crime, the likes of Stephanie Plum, Eve Dallas and so many more, the list is long, and you haven’t cracked onto this series…then crack away.

I’m a little intrigued about Harry.

But I don’t know if I want to be.

He needs to clean his home up!

But then there is also Phineas Troutt and I feel he will make me cry one day, so I don’t want to get too attached to him, yet he has the alpha in him—or at least the ability to step up to the plate.




At the other table was a bald guy in jeans and a white T-shirt. He was a few years my junior and looked vaguely familiar.

I picked up a cue from a nearby rack and walked over.

He was hunched over the table, his stick gliding on the solid bridge of his thumb and forefinger, eyeing the cue ball with intense concentration.

“This may sound like a come-on, but haven’t I seen you somewhere before?”



I do highly recommend.

I’ll be reading more in the series as soon as I can.

Go forth and read Whiskey Sour… I feel confident you will like.