Category Archives: Book Review

Book Review – Julie’s Butterfly

09 Friday Jan 2015

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cover54207-mediumWhen beautiful Julietta meets aloof, handsome photographer Bastian, she immediately feels butterflies in her stomach.

But Bastian has a secret: Since birth, he has suffered from a very rare skin disorder that makes him exceptionally prone to injury. His life is riddled with pain and rejection; his thoughts are dominated by self-doubt and mistrust.

Julie wants to help him shake loose his inhibitions and open up to her, but can she reach deep enough to truly understand his suffering?

Inspired by her real-life love for a “Butterfly Child” and moved by the reactions of other people, Greta Milán wanted to find an unconventional way to raise awareness of the rare hereditary skin disorder epidermolysis bullosa. In her debut novel, Julie’s Butterfly, she deals with prejudice, describes the experience of EB sufferers, and gives rich and varied insight into life with EB. Greta Milán is married and lives near Frankfurt, Germany.

Knowing that Julie’s Butterfly is influenced by real people and the struggles that they experience makes a touching story even more heart-breaking.  I’ll admit that I’m not always the most tactful of people.  When you see someone who obviously is dealing with some physical … imperfection seems an awfully harsh word but I don’t know what else to use … sometimes you have no idea how to react.  You don’t want to stare but you don’t want to turn away either and even at my age I haven’t always figured out the appropriate middle ground.  And this book just reinforced for me how people can be cruel, sometimes without even realizing it. 

Bastian is extremely sensitive about his condition and some very bad early experiences have shaped the way he deals with it.  Meeting Julie though shakes up his world.  He’s reserved, difficult, emotional, and very proud.  He’s also very self-conscious about anyone seeing his body and his heart.  Julie sees the man inside and is intrigued by him but she’s going to have a very long battle in front of her to break thru his walls. 

It’s a very sweet and poignant journey for them, one that I took with my heart in my throat and sometimes tears in my eyes.  It definitely wasn’t easy but the ending totally made every difficult step worthwhile. 

Book Review – A Soldier’s Seduction

08 Thursday Jan 2015

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Y’all I have something new for you today.  Remember the Choose Your Own Adventure books from your childhood?  Well, they are all grown up!  Check it out below.

*****

silkwords

SilkWords is the go-to source for interactive romance and erotic fiction.

With gorgeous custom covers and a clean, sophisticated design, the SilkWords site offers a secure, upscale reading environment. In addition to content on their web site, they offer stories for purchase in the standard e-book formats.

SilkWords is owned and operated by a full-time mom with a background in genetics and an RWA RITA-nominated, multi-published sci-fi romance author.

Their technology guy and site designer was the founder of Microsoft Xbox Live.

SilkWords features two formats that allow readers to choose how the stories will proceed.

Pick Your Path:

Will she or won’t she? With which man (or woman) in which location? With Pick Your Path romance, you decide. Romance and branched fiction are made for each other, like picking your favorite flavor of ice cream…positions, partners, and paraphernalia, oh my!

Reader Vote:

Readers vote at choice points and decide how the story will continue. These stories are a great way for readers and authors to connect. It’s exciting to be part of a developing story!

https://www.silkwords.com/

*****

ssA Soldier’s Seduction

by Brandi Evans

Genre: Contemporary Erotica

When Gen learns her best guy friend is going back to Afghanistan, she arranges a sendoff he’ll never forget. Will it be an intimate dinner at her place or an adventure at an exclusive erotic club?

Review:

This is my first time reading one of the books from SilkWords and it was a very interesting experience.  My choice, A Soldier’s Seduction, was a short read with 4 possible story lines (this is the order I read them in but with its choose-your-own style, the order is up to you):

*The sexy girl-next-door and an intimate night in + Take Liam straight to my bedroom

* The sexy girl-next-door and an intimate night in + play with the melted chocolate

* The kinky seductress and a night at the Erogenous Zone + Stay on the platform and see what happens

* The kinky seductress and a night at the Erogenous Zone + Leave the platform and let Liam show me the club his way

(Can you tell I wasn’t feeling very adventurous?)

Thanks to its short length, it doesn’t take very long to go thru all of the options.  But, maybe because I read them all at once, I did notice a little bleed through as I read it – I remembered things that were revealed in one path and applied them to the subsequent paths.  Sometimes that helped me understand the characters and their actions better, sometimes it caused a little confusion on what happened in the path I was reading.  I think maybe it is a personal preference though and I did find this type of story-telling to be a ton of fun.  It’s a fantastic way to take a short reading break (and maybe next time I’ll take a breather between paths to see if that helps).

As I’m sure you can tell by some of the paths, this is a VERY hot read, but doesn’t skip on the heart.  The characters were intriguing, even with the really short number of pages for each path.  Evans does a fantastic job of succinctly and fully providing her readers the connection and background for Gen & Liam’s relationship.  And she smoothly shows the transition between the two from friends to more.  I definitely had my preferred paths, but each one gives its own look at the deepening relationship between the two.

If you are up for something a little different, but wholly entertaining, I recommend checking out A Soldier’s Seduction (or any of the SilkWords stories).  Sweet but spicy, it’s unique format won’t appeal to everyone (and isn’t something I’d look for in every story) but is definitely something I will try again.

*****

Silk Words General Banner 851 x 315

Tour Schedule:

December 5 Review A Heart for Copper and Harem Club
Illuminite Caliginosus
December 8 Review Fetish Fair
Freshly Baked Books
December 9 Review Harem Club
Freshly Baked Books
December 10 review A Heart for Copper
Nicky Peacock Author
December 12 review A Soldier’s Seduction
More Books Than Livros
December 18 review A Heart for Copper
Penny Dreadful Book Reviews
December 26 Review Fetish Fair
Underneath the Covers
January 7 Review Storm at Sea and The Harem Club
Mich Book Shelf
January 8 Review A Soldier’s Seduction
Romantic Reads and Such
January 24 Review A Heart for Copper
Natural Bri – pursuits of Life
January 27  Review The Harem Club
Underneath the Covers

Book Review – Officer Out of Uniform

07 Wednesday Jan 2015

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9781500719562_p0_v1_s260x420The only thing better than a man in uniform is a man out of uniform. Sasha has never been more certain of anything in her life, and she’s never wanted anyone more than she wants Officer Henry Dryden. Tall, tough and battle-scarred, he’s the first man to capture not just her eye, but her heart. With curves and the confidence to use them, it’s not hard to attract his attention, or get him to break out those cuffs and keys. But for the first time, getting exactly what she wants feels dangerously like risking it all.

There’s no question about the one thing Henry wants most when it comes to Sasha: to protect her. After their coastal North Carolina community is sent a message via the brutal murder of the prison warden, no one is safe. Henry can’t afford to be distracted by things like the all-consuming desire Sasha inspires. There’ll be time for that later … if he can keep her from getting caught in the crossfire of a killer’s revenge scheme. Haunted by the ghosts of his past, he’ll do anything to avoid being the only one to walk out of a war zone alive again. The way forward is clear: stop the convict who’s hunting officers in Riley County, and keep Sasha safe … or die trying.

A follow up to Officer Next Door, Officer Out of Uniform picks up where the first book left off and keeps going full-tilt.  For once, I’m actually reading a series start to finish and I think that it is important here.  The jailbreak that played such a central part of the first story continues with this one.  And while Officer Next Door wasn’t open-ended, I think that a lot of the momentum from that book continues on here. 

I love Sasha.  She’s got a big spirit and she’s not afraid to show it to the world.  She’s the complete opposite of the quiet Henry, who has had a lot of bad things happen in his life.  They’ve left him both emotionally and physically scarred, but Sasha brings him out of the shell he’s retreated to.  And to keep things exciting (as if the bedroom scenes aren’t enough to get your heart pumping), there is an escaped convict on the loose threatening everyone around them.  It’ll definitely keep you on your toes until the last page.

Full of danger and passion and a whole lot of heart, Officer Out of Uniform is another can’t miss book from Ranae Rose.    

Book Review – Zombies in Love

02 Friday Jan 2015

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cover55640-mediumJack Kershaw just wants to hold on to his new job at Lisa Alioto’s pizza parlor, and to keep Lisa from finding out that he’s a zombie. But Jack learns that he and Lisa are in serious danger. His second chance at life is the inadvertent result of a lab experiment by two graduate students, and Winthrop University– a school which knows how to keep its secrets– will do anything necessary to conceal that someone on campus raised the dead. With the help of Boston’s zombie horde, can Jack and Lisa escape Winthrop’s sinister clutches? 

Nora Fleischer has a PhD from Winthrop University, and promises every word of this story is true. She lives in Minneapolis with her lovable husband Sven and children Wolfgang and Anastasia.

I will say it isn’t a very tight story – by that I mean I had questions that didn’t get answered – but it was a fun and entertaining story … and most of the time, isn’t that what you want anyway?  Something that makes you smile or giggle or sigh or fall in love with the characters?  Well, this one definitely made me giggle and keep turning pages to get to the end to find out what happens to everyone.  You have to have to be OK with zombies because a decent number of people in it, including the hero, eat human flesh but that’s what you’d expect with a story titled Zombies in Love. 

Poking a little fun at the politics behind academia, plus a little bit of humor at today’s zombie loving culture and realizing you need to grow up, even in the face of your undeath, Zombies in Love makes for a totally amusing diversion.

Book Review – The Billion Dollar Player

01 Thursday Jan 2015

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cover54338-mediumIn The Billion Dollar Player by Mandy Baxter, Jase Blackwell, starting tight end for the Dallas Cowboys, is a pro when it comes to football—and to women. Never one to shy away from a challenge, “Billion Dollar Blackwell” is finally able to get the cute waitress he’s had his eye on out for a little fun. But when their steamy encounters inspire Jase to play better than he ever has before, he has to wonder if this exciting woman is more than just a good luck charm…

Avery Lockhart doesn’t understand why a pro football player would want to go out with her. Incredibly wealthy and undeniably sexy, Jase Blackwell is everything she thinks she’s not. Getting a little closer to this enigmatic billionaire, however, proves too much for Avery to resist. But as their passion heats up, so does Jase’s game play, and soon, the rumors start to fly. Is Avery only being kept around to ease Jace’s pre-game superstitions? Or, like she believes, does their connection run deeper…?

(As you all know, I have this fantastic habit of joining a series in the middle but luckily this time it wasn’t a problem.)

The Billion Dollar Player is a short and fast read, perfect for those looking for a sports romance but who don’t have a lot of time.  This is definitely one of those stories where you want to smack the characters up the side of the head a couple of times and tell them that they need to talk to one another.  Jase worries a couple of times that Avery isn’t as good as she seems – that she’s into him for his money or fame instead of him as a person.  And Avery is afraid that Jase is ashamed of being seen with a poor, clumsy waitress instead of the Barbie lookalikes that he usually associates with. 

While Jase starts to value Avery for who she really is, she still has her doubts on why he would want to be with someone like her.  I can see where some would find it annoying but I thought it worked well.  You can see the drama coming a mile away but I think that Baxter does a good job in setting it up and giving her readers the HEA that Jase & Avery deserve. 

With her entertaining and fluid writing style, I’ll be keeping my eye out for more from Mandy Baxter.  And I’m definitely reading the rest of the Billionaire’s Club books – stories about Jase’s two brothers – fame and fortune, mixed with their troubled backgrounds, could lend to enjoyable difficulties on their path to happiness. 

Book Review – Flaming Hot

31 Wednesday Dec 2014

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cover53497-mediumBig and bold, strong and sexy, the firefighters of the Lanville, Texas, Volunteer Fire Department know how to turn up the heat. . .

Fiery

Sparks fly the moment Eve and Quade meet. Fear of heartbreak makes them wary but neither can deny the scorching waves of desire that leave them wanting so much more. . .

Flare

Paige wonders about Cort’s past but she can’t ignore the heat she feels inside every time he touches her. And things only get hotter when this sexy firefighter takes her to the heights of extreme carnal pleasure. . .

Flash

For years Kirk has kept a secret that not even his twin knows. But the arrival in town of a sexy newcomer turns up the heat and keeps the flames of passion burning all night long. . .

(This is the second book in The Firefighters of Lanville TX series – Please note: This book is an anthology and features three novellas, one of which is an M/M romance.)

A follow-up to LaFleur’s Smokin’ Hot anthology, Flaming Hot is just as sexy  …  and I do mean SEXY.  This is a very, very sizzling read but it also has a good amount of heart to go along with it.  And once again, Lafleur does a good job of keeping her stories short but complete.  The characters are detailed and engaging, their issues are fleshed out and believable, and the sex hot, hot, hot.

Now I will restate the previous note – there is a M/M romance and it is just as steamy as the others, so remember that if it isn’t your thing.  Since the stories do stand alone you can enjoy the others and be fine, but I found that romance just as sweet as the others so I would highly recommend reading the whole book.

Flaming Hot is the perfect steamy break for a busy day.  The stories stand alone but carry over between each other because they are part of the same volunteer fire department.  It’s nice to see characters and catch up but they don’t directly impact each other so the stories can be read in any order you want.

Book Review – Undefeated

26 Friday Dec 2014

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cover53777-mediumWelcome to Destiny Falls, New York, home of Bomb Squad—an ice hockey team full of rugged military heroes. The team’s battling a losing streak, but the season’s biggest game changer is one player’s second chance with the one who got away…

Yoga instructor Marlena Brodie is always up for a challenge, and her new job of snapping Bomb Squad out of their rut is definitely that, even though it means being in close contact with Liam McAllister, her high school crush gone bad. She can feel the damage pouring off of him—but also a wild and sexy strength that calls to her.

The Army turned Liam McAllister into a man, but as a combat medic, he saw far too much to ever be whole again. He’s not interested in the civilian world beyond his job as a carpenter, but he never stopped wondering what might have been with Marlena—and it isn’t long before she’s crashed through his carefully constructed walls. He longs for a new beginning with her, but to be the man she deserves, he’ll have to step out of his defensive zone and score the most important play of his life…

I am one of those people who love a good soldier romance.  There is something sweet about someone who has gone thru so much and sacrificed for others finding their special someone.  And something even more so when it is a damaged soldier and Cutler’s series is just full of them.

Some may be put out by Marlena’s new age beliefs, and they are pretty prevalent, but I actually like her as a person.  She isn’t overly preachy and her attitude of acceptance definitely helps her deal with Liam and his issues.  But the best part is that she has some problems of her own and Liam helps her deal with those as well.  I love the give and take here – it isn’t one sided with one person doing all the helping – it is nice to see that they can support each other.

But Liam definitely has the lion’s share of troubles.  Coming home with PTSD and learning to live as a civilian again has definitely taken its toll.  He’s strong but I do like the fact that he recognizes he needs help and is willing to do what is needed.  He is a bit of a jerk though so you have to be ready for some moments when you don’t like him very much, but seeing his situation from his perspective and getting Marlena’s take on it makes him a very sympathetic character. 

While this is the second book in the series, I once again joined in the middle and didn’t have any issues – Undefeated can definitely stand on its own.  But saying that, Cutler does a fantastic job of giving her readers a great set of secondary characters between Marlena’s friends and the rest of the Bomb Squad.  And although we don’t get a ton of time with them, the appearances they do make definitely has me ready for more stories.  There are a lot of paths that Cutler can go down with these guys and I’m looking forward to seeing what she chooses.

If you are looking for a hard-hitting and emotional read, Undefeated is the perfect choice.  There are times when it got difficult to keep going but the characters grabbed me so I couldn’t stop – I had to know how they got to their HEA. 

Book Review – Christmas in July

25 Thursday Dec 2014

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cover41034-mediumGrace Flaherty had given up hope of ever seeing her husband again. After all, it’d been over a year since he went missing in combat. So when he strides through the door of her bakery in downtown Christmas one sunny afternoon, she can hardly believe her eyes. But her happily-ever-after is going to take some effort – because Jack has no memory of his family.

All Jack Flaherty remembers about Christmas is that he couldn’t wait to leave town. Now he’s a local hero with a wife and son he doesn’t know. Even as he struggles to rekindle the romance with his wife, he knows in his heart what he wants: a second chance at love.

If you’ve been reading my reviews for a while I’m sure you are going to know what I’m going to say next – once again I’ve joined a series in the middle, but luckily once again it doesn’t matter.  Which is a good thing and a bad thing.  This story was so great and I didn’t feel like I missed anything by not having read the first one.  BUT the story was so great I’ve now got another story to add to my TBR pile because I’m dying to get my hands on the first book 🙂

The characters grabbed me right away – the first two chapters just knocked me off my feet and kept me going until the very end.  I was quite impressed with Mason because she could have easily made their issues overpowering or repetitive but she manages to keep it fresh and engaging page after page.  Together Jack and Grace are funny, sweet and sexy.  I love seeing their relationship and how they complement each other so well. 

The secondary characters are just as real and entertaining as the main couple.  Mason captures that small town feel so well – loving and supporting each other, occasionally fighting, but most importantly being there when needed.  And my favorite part … a town full of eccentric characters means that a ton of material to keep the good reads coming. 

With a fantastic group of people and an emotionally charged story, Christmas in July is an extremely addictive and enjoyable read.  Mason is going to be one of my go-to authors for a long time to come. 

Book Review – The Trouble with Harry

24 Wednesday Dec 2014

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cover43841-mediumYou think you’ve got troubles?

As a spy for the Crown, Lord Harry Rosse faced clever and dangerous adversaries—but it’s his five offspring who seem likely to send him to Bedlam. At his wits’ end, he’s advertised for a wife and found one, but perhaps he should have been a bit more forthcoming on certain points…

Wait till you meet Harry and Plum…

Frederica Pelham, affectionately known as Plum, spent years avoiding the scandals of her past, and is desperate for quiet security and a chance to make a family. What she finds is a titled husband and five little devils who seem bent on their own destruction, not to mention hers. And while all kinds of secrets are catching up with them, Plum knows the real trouble with Harry… is that he’s stolen her heart.

Like Noble Intentions, I actually have read The Trouble With Harry before and liked it enough to read it again.  Harry and Plum’s life is full of just as much zaniness and humor … but mostly importantly as much heart.

The first part of the book is spent getting to know Harry and Plum and then having them settle into life together.  There are a quite a few moments where a little more open communications would help a lot, but it isn’t one of those times where I just want to hit my head on the table because they are being so clueless.  Here, MacAlister does a great job of giving them reasons for the assumptions they make but as someone looking in you can see where they are going so wrong.  It fits well into the story though.  Then about half-way through a bit of a mystery starts to play a more important role, which adds that perfect balance of intrigue to an already delightful romance.

You definitely have to be in the mood for silliness because MacAlister tells a delightfully wacky tale but if that’s your thing, you are in for a treat.  Full of witty and fun dialogue, absurd and humorous situations, and a lot of heartwarming moments, mixed in with some suspense to keep you on your toes, The Trouble With Harry is a can’t miss.

Book Review – Breaking His Rules

22 Monday Dec 2014

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cover50480-mediumLosing fifty pounds is an incredible achievement. But for Melissa Atherton, progress doesn’t come with praise—a scathing comment from an evil cousin at a bridal shower threatens to crush her new self-esteem. Who will she bring to the upcoming wedding? Showing up without a date would be humiliating. It just isn’t an option.

Personal trainer Jake Sawyer was attracted to Melissa before she lost weight, but her progress has him floored. When she admits she plans to hire a male escort—and why—his heart all but breaks. Melissa’s come too far to be knocked down, especially by her own family. He’ll go as her date…and figure out a way to keep his hands to himself.

But when a steamy hotel room encounter takes them both by surprise, Jake balks. He’s sworn never to date one of his clients, not again. And Melissa can’t bear to be just friends with the man who treated her so tenderly, even if it was only for a weekend. Jake’s helped her see she’s strong enough to stand up for herself, but will she find the strength to pursue the only man who’s ever seen the real her?

I somehow missed the first book in Packard’s “Feel The Heat” series (and I just realized I missed a novella from last December as well) but the three that I’ve read have all been fantastic.  I started with The Winning Season which was fantastic and next came Catching Heat, another winner.  Now we get JT’s bother, Jake, and the awesomely sweet Melissa, both of whom made appearances in Catching Heat so if you read that story you knew their romance was coming … and I couldn’t wait!

I loved Jake and Melissa together.  They’ve developed a wonderful friendship over the last few months and it makes a naturally transition to something more.  Because of their shared history of being overweight, and having to deal with the public perception of it, they get each other (and have that special empathy for others) in a way that is very special.

I will say I had a little trouble with the ending – I kinda understood Jake’s reasoning but I’m not sure I quite got his change in attitude.  With everything else that happened in the book, you totally get where he’s coming from but he’s typically male if he thinks that it can work out the way he’s thinking it will.  Overall, though, it was a minor gripe and the rest of the story and the fantastic characters make up for it.

A warm and emotional look at two people moving cautiously from friends to more, and all of the problems that come with it, Breaking His Rules is a wonderful, feel-good read.  And just because it is part of a series doesn’t mean that you can’t start here.  Packard does a fantastic job of giving her returning readers that feeling of connection that they want, without alienating new readers.  She also gives us that tantalizing peak into the next story that will cause you to wait impatiently for the next book to release 🙂