Tag: book 2

Alpha’s Mates (Bear Shifter Billionaire: Book 2) by A.J. Tipton

Alpha's Mates: A MFM Menage Paranormal Romance (Bear Shifter Billionaire Book 2) by [Tipton, AJ]

4 Stars

Publisher: Savvy Storytelling LLC

Date of publication: March 18th, 2015

Genre: Paranormal, Romance, Erotica

Series: Bear Shifter Millionaire

Alpha’s Heir — Book 1 (Review Here)

Alpha’s Mates — Book 2

Alpha’s Domain — Book 3

Alpha’s Christmas Flame—Book 4

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis: 

A CEO under attack by a vengeful coven. Two farmhands with a ranch in trouble. Can these three save each other?

Cleo has everything under control: she’s a wildly successful CEO, Alpha of a powerful bear shifter clan, and a total knockout. When a business deal puts her on the wrong side of powerful witches, she’s exiled to the middle of nowhere. Cursed to be unable to interact with electronics, Cleo has to trust the kindness of two handsome ranch hands to get back to her old life.

Titus, a cursed dragon shifter, and Connor, gifted with supernatural intuition, are not used to company. When their ranch–a sanctuary for magical creatures–is threatened, the men must rely on their strength and Cleo’s resourcefulness to save the day. Will Cleo be too distracted by her own plan for revenge to realize she may have found her true loves?

Alpha’s Mates is an MFM paranormal romance novella in the “Bear Shifter Billionaire” series, a set of stand-alone stories that sizzle and satisfy. If you like steamy romance, wet and wild firefighting, and a literal roll in the hay, then you’ll love this breathtaking book.

My review:

Cleo had pissed off a coven of witches by suggesting that they use magic to keep an ice hotel frozen during the summer months and, when the coven refused, offering it to another coven instead. They had been pelting her office windows with hate mail (paper mail to be exact). Cleo wasn’t backing down, no matter how sacred that the Moon Glow coven says that magic is.

She was rummaging through her purse, talking to her assistant and looking for her car keys. When she touches the door to her car, she is transported to the middle of nowhere. When she tries to use her phone, she finds out that it is hexed. She decides to shift to her bear form. While she is deciding where she should go, she finds a captivating scent and decides to follow it.

Titus and Connor are ranch hands on a ranch that is a sanctuary for magical creatures. Titus is a dragon shifter who was cursed when he was 6. When his family discovered that he couldn’t shift, they exiled him. Luckily, Connor, who can see a magical being’s true form, found him. He was able to see Titus’s true form and was able to convince his family to take him in. They have been best friends ever since.

They were alerted that something or someone was coming because the animals in the sanctuary were spooked. What they saw was Cleo running towards the ranch.

Cleo asks if she could use their phone and asks about the sanctuary. She goes into the house, shifted as a bear, and had a close encounter with Daisy, a hell-hound. After changing back to human form, Cleo uses the phone and discovers that if she touches their cell phones, she shorts them out. But if she hands them back to Titus and Connor, they become charged again. Also, if they dial the phone for her, static overtook her voice. If she went near their truck, it would stall and die but worked fine for the boys.

To ease her anger, Connor decides to give her a tour of the ranch. She is in awe seeing animals that she had thought a myth. She went over to pat the unicorns and were met by the centaurs. These centaurs were the wise centaurs that Cleo had heard about. These were, well, not smart.

That night, over dinner, Connor and Titus fill Cleo in on their backgrounds. They tell her that they barely date because they like to share their women, and they can’t find many women that are willing to be in a menage. They also tell Cleo that it is hard to keep the ranch afloat with all the expenses and debt that they have.

Later that night, the centaur and unicorn’s stable catches on fire because of a phoenix flying over. Both men had been lax in keeping track of the molting cycle, one was flying around, and it dropped one of its feathers onto the stable. Connor was able to contain the fire enough to get the unicorns out, but the centaurs were still trapped. They were calling for help (which made me so sad to read). As Titus and Cleo attempt to rescue the centaurs out, 4 of them escape, leaving one in the barn. Titus runs into the stable to save the last one, and Cleo is stunned. She forgets that he is a dragon, and he can’t get burned.

Cleo is so relieved that she decides, on the spot, to have sex with both. On the ground, while covered with soot and in front of the centaurs. That sex scene was beyond hot.

I thought Cleo to be a complete bitch at the beginning of the book. I felt that she deserved what she got when she was transported to the middle of nowhere at the beginning of the book. But then, I changed my mind. She needed a break from her hectic lifestyle, and she needed to rethink how she treated people (I know a few people who need to do that).

I liked Connor and Titus. They both had soft hearts (running a sanctuary for supernatural animals), and they both are good looking. Plus, Titus can walk through fire and not get burned.

The sex scenes, as always, were hot, hot, hot. With there being two guys and one woman, every scene was a scorcher.

The end of the book was what I expected but sweet at the same time.

I would give Alpha’s Mates an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is mild violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Alphas Mates. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Russian Holiday (Paladine Political Thriller Series: Book 2) by Kenneth Eade

Russian Holiday, an American Assassin's story (Paladine Political Thriller Series Book 2) by [Eade, Kenneth]

4 Stars

Publisher: Times Square Publishing

Date of publication: December 17th, 2016

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense

Series: Paladine Political Thriller

Paladine — Book 1 (Review here)

Russian Holiday — Book 2

Traffick Stop—Book 3

Unwanted—Book 4

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

Paladine, terrorism’s worst enemy, is back in this sequel to the hit political thriller.

From the best-selling & award winning author critics hail as “one of the strongest thriller writers on our scene” comes the continuation of the unforgettable story of an unlikely “anti-hero,” Robert Garcia, a dangerous and unfeeling assassin of jihadist terrorists, has been exalted by social media as “Paladine”, a living paladin whose mission is to rid the earth of evil for the betterment of mankind. In this installment of the series, Paladine crosses paths with a Russian assassin, which puts him in the middle of the controversial new cold war between the United States and Russia.

My review:

Russian Holiday starts with Robert Garcia, aka Paladine, doing a covert op mission. It is a sanctioned hit on General Abu Muslim al-Basara, a former member of Saddam Hussein’s Royal Guard and now an Isis terrorist in the city of Aleppo. The hit itself goes off without a hitch, but Robert ran into problems with getting out of there.

The pickup vehicle wasn’t where it was supposed to be. Luckily, Robert had a Plan B. A motorcycle that is stashed nearby. As Robert leaves, he is followed by a truck with terrorists hell-bent on getting to him. Desperate to escape, he shoots down a Black Hawk helicopter that was coming to get him to buy him a little time. Not that it worked, he ends up with a group of Isis militants.

After suffering a bad beating, which broke his nose, Robert is taken to their headquarters, where he is prepped for live execution. Right before his execution, the base is attacked. Robert is saved by a jeep full of Russian soldiers who were involved in the raid of the base.

After contacting his boss (who did screw up on the pick up) and informing him that he was on vacation, Robert decides to go with one of the soldiers to Moscow as part of his vacation. But, before he heads there, he goes to a bank in Iskenderun, where he maintains a safe deposit box. That box has several identities, money, phones, and a gun. Robert only takes the money, a passport, and one of the phones before going to Moscow with the soldier.

Back in the CIA headquarters, an alarm goes off, alerting Robert’s handler that Robert has gone off the grid. At the same time, the head of the CIA is getting briefed about the same situation. He is upset and worried because even though Robert was an illegal operative, he could still be tortured and could still give the Russians secret information.

While that drama is happening, Robert is having a grand old-time in Russia. He and Lyosha (the solider) are becoming good friends, well as good as a friend as he can be with a Russian. Lyosha has generously provided him with an apartment, clothes, and money. They go dancing every night, and it was at one of those dance clubs, Robert meets Svetlana (or Lana), a beautiful Russian girl. He forms an immediate connection with her.

After discovering a tail on him during a date with Lana, Robert decides that Moscow has become too hot for him and heads to Paris, where he has an apartment. His boss, the man with no name, is sitting in his apartment and has an assignment for him in Paris. Robert argues that he never does jobs where he lives. The man with no name tells him “too bad, we own you” and leaves after giving Robert the specifics on the job.

I enjoyed reading this book. It kept to its thriller roots. I liked seeing Robert being portrayed as a human being and enjoying himself while he was on vacation. He was able to relax and enjoy being with a friend. It made him more human to me. Is it wrong that when Lyosha spoke, I got the Russian accent right in my head? Not sure how it would sound if I did it in real life, though. Probably horrible.

The action in this book was great. I was kept on edge with what Robert was going to do next with his assignments, and when he executed them, it was perfect.

The ending was somewhat anticlimactic, but it wasn’t bad. Having grown up in a large Greek community and hearing malaka used all the time, I giggled when I read it. The way the book ended, I am wondering if there will be a book 3.

I would give Russian Holiday an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Russian Holiday. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Deadlight Jack (The Faceless One: Book 2) by Mark Onspaugh

Deadlight Jack (The Raven and the Canary Book 2) by [Onspaugh, Mark]

4 Stars

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Hydra, Hydra

Date of Publication: January 3rd, 2017

Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Paranormal

Series: The Faceless One

The Faceless One – Book 1

Deadlight Jack – Book 2

Where you can find this book – Amazon

Book synopsis:

Worse things than gators lurk in the Louisiana swamp. . . . The author of The Faceless One fuses the twisted imagination of Fritz Leiber with the razor-sharp plotting of Joe Hill in this rollicking horror thriller.
 
Appearances can be deceiving. Take Jimmy Kalmaku. Anyone passing him on the streets of Lake Nisqually, Washington, would merely see an elderly man. But Jimmy is actually a powerful Tlingit shaman, with a link to the god Raven and a résumé that includes saving the world.
 
Or take his friend and roommate, George Watters. Another ordinary retiree, right? Wrong. Like Jimmy, George is more than he seems to be. He too has a link to the supernatural. He too has saved the world.
 
Then there’s Professor Foxfire—also known as Deadlight Jack. Dressed in the garb of a stage magician, he seems a figure of magic and fun. But he isn’t fun at all. He isn’t even human. And his magic is of the darkest and bloodiest kind.
 
When George’s grandson vanishes on a family vacation to the Louisiana bayou, George and Jimmy fly across the country to aid in the search. Once they arrive, family feuds and buried secrets bring George face-to-face with the ghosts of a forgotten past; Jimmy finds his powers wilting under the humid Southern sun; and deep in the swamp, Deadlight Jack prepares his long-awaited revenge.

My review:

Deadlight Jack is not a book to read at night.

Repeat.

Deadlight Jack is not a book to read at night.

I generally don’t scared of books but this one, well it scared me, big time. Take the cover, for instance. The one orange eye and the salamander are creepy. Then add the swamp, and the creepiness factor goes up.

Deadlight Jack starts after the events of The Faceless One. Jimmy and George are living together, but not together if you know what I mean. After saving the world in the first book, they are expecting to be left alone and live out the rest of their lives together.

Life (and the Gods) have other plans.

Jimmy is visited by Dabo Muu, a giant albino alligator that tells Jimmy that he needs to get down to Louisiana. It was more of an order, and Jimmy feels that there is more going on than what Dabo Muu is letting on.

George gets a phone call from one of his sons. His grandson, Donny, has gone missing while on a camping trip with his moms and older brother in Louisiana. He and Jimmy decide to head on down to help and offer Mel and her wife moral support while they search for Donny.

When George tells Jimmy that Donny is missing, Jimmy immediately cancels plans that were taking him to Boston to visit his son, daughter in law and granddaughter to go with George. During the flight down to LA, George tells Jimmy about his tragic past. All about his kids, his wife, and the tragedies that happened. He warned Jimmy that his daughter, Delphine, will be there, and it will not be pleasant when she finds out George is there. Delphine is holding on to the hurt and resentment from the past, and she will make things very difficult for George.

And she does. She had to have been the most self-centered secondary character that I have ever read, and I wanted someone to put her in her place sooner than they did. I understand that she had issues with George, but there is a time and a place for everything and to be a rude asshole to him, and making an already tense situation even tenser wasn’t cool.

I loved how George had to come into his own during the book. He had to accept his past to save his grandson and the other children.

I wish that I had read the first book. That would have helped me connect with Jimmy a little more and would have helped me understand his character a bit better. I would have loved to read more about shamanism and the indigenous people of Alaska.

The paranormal/horror aspect was fantastic. Like I said above, this is a book that you really shouldn’t read at night. Not only did it feature a swamp (which is creepy in its own right), but Professor Foxfire was genuinely scary. I mean, anyone who has tattoos that come alive and off their face has a special place in the creepy hall of fame. But add that he can make children into ghosts and he kidnaps even more kids to turn them into either food/more ghost children, he is vile.

The end of the book was excellent, and I loved the showdown. I was expecting something to happen, just not on that scale. I also liked that the author set up for book 3.

I would give Deadlight Jack an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is mild violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Deadlight Jack. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

For the Children (Cameron, Utah: Book 2) by Margaret Watson

For the Children (Cameron Cowboys Book 2) by [Watson, Margaret]

4 Stars

Publisher: Dragonfly Press

Date of publication: October 7th, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Cameron, Utah

Rodeo Man – Book 1 (review here)

For The Children – Book 2

Cowboy with a Badge – Book 3

The Fugitive Bride – Book 4

The Marriage Protection Program – Book 5

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

His assignment is FBI agent Damien Kane’s worst nightmare – guarding two young children who witnessed a murder. Since he lost his family, Damien goes out of his way to avoid children. Now he’ll spend every day and every night with two of them. Their aunt won’t let the girls out of her sight – which means Damien is also spending every minute with Abby Markham. That wouldn’t be a problem, except the emotions, Abby stirs in Damien are feelings he thought he’d buried long ago.

Abby’s only goal is keeping her nieces safe until their mother comes home. She’s determined not to be distracted by the sexy FBI agent assigned to guard them. But in spite of Damien’s cold façade, she longs to ease the pain in his eyes and lose herself in the warmth he tries to hide.

Damien won’t let himself love again. Abby can’t give in to her desire for Damien. When love and danger collide, will either of them survive the explosion?

My review:

Abby is not a stranger to watching her sister’s twin daughters when she went on business trips. But something was different this time. Her nieces were suffering from nightmares, were clingy, and had personality changes. What is concerning Abby even more, she cannot get a hold of her sister.

Everything changes when Abby hears some strange noises in her basement. Terrified, she leaves with them to eat ice cream and calls the police to her house. Abby is scared because she noticed a person sitting in a car outside her home, watching her, the day before. She doesn’t know what is going on, but she has a feeling that her sister and nieces are somehow involved in it.

Her questions are answered when an FBI agent shows up at the ice cream parlor to escort her house. The agent, Damien Kane, believes that her nieces saw a murder at her sister’s job (she worked at a construction site), her sister found out and was able to get her daughters’ to Abby before being whisked off for a “business” trip out of the country.

Damien is there to protect the girls until they are ready to tell him what they saw that day. So, after a disastrous trip to the FBI psychologist, Damien decides to take Abby and the girls to Cameron, Utah. He figures that there is no safer place than there. Well, it doesn’t end up that way. The killers somehow follow them there, and from that point on, it is a game of cat and mouse.

Damien was such a tortured person for most of the book. The author did a great job of not telling everything about what made him so tortured. All I knew, until almost the end, was that he tragically lost a child three years before. But, when the full story was revealed, I cried. No wonder he shut himself off, and no wonder that Maggie and Casey affected him so much.

Abby irked me. While she came across as one of those people who took in strays, people, and animals, she didn’t act like it at times. I understand she was scared for her nieces, but she hindered the investigation when she put off letting the psychologist talk to them. And when he did and made the girls cry, she swooped in and put an end to it. But, I can understand where she was coming from. She just found out that they might have seen a murder and she can’t get in touch with her sister. She was scared to death.

The romance between Damien and Abby was bittersweet. Damien was caught up in his grief that he couldn’t give Abby anything but sex. Abby, however, started off the same way but quickly fell in love with him.

The sex scenes between them were great. The only thing that I got weirded out about was when he was feeling her up when they took the girls swimming. That made me go kinda “Eh” when I read it. But the other sex scenes were fantastic, and they were boiling.

The ending was standard but pretty good. I did like that Damien had to go looking for Abby and the surprise that she had waiting for him and his reaction got me teary-eyed as did the reason she didn’t contact him. The other storylines were wrapped up in a pretty satisfactory way.

While this is a book 2 in the Cameron, Utah series, you can read it as a standalone. There are mentions to book one, but, and I liked this, this book was taking place at the same time as the events in Rodeo Man. You know something is going on, but the focus is on the events going on in this book if that makes sense.

I would give For the Children an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is mild violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread For the Children. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Progeny of Vale (The Circuit: Book 2) by Rhett C. Bruno

Progeny of Vale: The Circuit by [Bruno, Rhett C.]

4 Stars

Publisher: Diversion Books

Date of publication: March 15th, 2016

Genre: Science Fiction

Series: The Circuit

Executor Rising – Book 1 (review here)

Progeny of Vale – Book 2

Earthfall – Book 3

Where you can buy this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

In the thrilling sequel to THE CIRCUIT: EXECUTOR RISING, Cassius Vale has drawn the Circuit into open war.

After arriving on Ceres Prime, ADIM, ever the loyal companion created by Cassius Vale, is hesitant to help the Ceresians. Their hatred for his Creator will never wane and he starts to understand the danger all of Cassius’ many rivals pose. ADIM must realize the true magnitude of his abilities in order to keep him safe.

When Sage Volus finds herself a captive of Cassius, she begins to struggle with her role in the coming war, and what exactly it means to be an Executor. The removal of her cybernetic implant reveals emotions she thought she’d buried too deep to be found. She must make a decision on who she truly wants to serve: Cassius Vale, The Tribune, or herself.

After breaking free of the Solar-Ark Amerigo and certain death, Talon Rayne finds himself in unusual company. His quests to hold his daughter again brings him to places he never thought he’d go–into the very arms of his people’s most hated foe.

As the battle grows ever closer, threatening the all-out war that could annihilate millions, these four must determine what part they intend to play, who they will align themselves with, and what it means to be human in a universe where that means less and less.

My review:

This book starts right where book 1 (Executor Rising) leaves off.

Sage awakens on Cassius Vale’s ship, The White Hand, after reliving the worst memory she has, the death Caleb Vale, Cassius’s only son. She has no clue where she is and leaves sickbay to explore. Sage finds out where she is, who she is with and what was done to her. She is sedated and brought back to the medical bay.

Cassius reveals that he was an Executor (which explained things from book 1). He had his implant removed, for the same reasons he removed Sage’s, to free himself from the Tribunal. The implant helped suppress any bad memories but it also allowed the Tribunals to look through the eyes of the person.

ADIM is getting to know the little girl he saved from Kalliope and intends to give the girl to Cassius as a gift to ease his sadness over losing Caleb (big awww moment there). Her name is Elisha and she’s Talon’s daughter. ADIM and Elisha form a friendship while traveling to meet up with Cassius.

Talon escaped the Amerigo with a Keeper, Tarsis, and is floating in space. Tarsis has an advanced case of the Blue Death and sleeps most of the time. They are not expecting to be rescued when a miracle happens, they are picked up by a shipful of Vergent merchants. Their relief is short-lived because right after they are picked up, a Tribunal ship hails the Vergent ship and demands that they allow them aboard for a routine check of the ship. Which they say no to and they make a beeline towards Kalliope on Talon’s suggestion.

Sage is reeling from Cassius’s revelations. She decides to attack him when he comes to visit her one day in the medical bay and make a run for it. But, she doesn’t get far at all. She is subdued by ADIM and taken to the hangar to be put on a ship home. Sage is given a sedative so she won’t be able to tell the Tribunal where she was. But, before she is gone, Cassius makes a series of confessions to her. When Sage awakens, she realizes that Elisha is aboard the ship with her. When she gets in contact with the Tribunal, they have her go right to Cassius’s old compound. There, Elisha is taken from her and she is immediately stripped of her weapons and taken for questioning.

Cassius and ADIM have their own agenda. After seeing off Sage, ADIM detects life aboard the Solar-Ark Amerigo, goes in and discovers carbon copies of itself. Cassius reassures it that those are only copies and that ADIM is the only one with something called “Dynamic Intelligence“. Basically, he is the only one that is self-aware and can make decisions on his own. Which might or might not be a bad thing.

I won’t go into the book after this. I will say that there is a death, a fake death, a couple more revelations and the beginnings of a war.

Sage is becoming my favorite character in this series. In the first book, she seemed like an emotionless robot (not knowing that the implant suppressed her emotions). Once Cassius removed the implant, she started to flush out and by the end of Progeny of Vale, her character was awesome.

Talon is tied for my 2nd favorite character. Even though he is dying, he is willing to not go down without a fight. When he realizes that Kalliope is destroyed and thinks Elisha is dead, he goes into berserker mode.

Cassius is my other favorite character. He has his own agenda and isn’t afraid to pit opposing factions against each other in order to wipe out the Tribunal. I can’t wait to see what he’ll do in the next book.

The book ends on a cliffhanger. If you have been following my blog for any length of time, you know how I feel about cliffhangers. But with this series of books, they actually work. I think that it is because I am actually reading them back to back.

I would give Progeny of Vale an Adult rating. There are sexual situations. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Progeny of Vale. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Hatching the Phoenix Egg (Mare Tranquillitatis: Book 2) by Joel Horn

Hatching the Phoenix Egg (Mare Tranquillitatis Series Book 2) by [Horn, Joel]

4 Stars

Publisher:

Date of publication: September 24th, 2016

Genre: Thriller, Suspense, Science Fiction

Series: Mare Tranquillitatis

Lost Coast Rocket – Book 1 (review here)

Hatching The Phoenix Egg – Book 2

Where to find: Amazon

Book synopsis:

Would You Travel a Half-Billion Miles to Escape Your Past?

That’s exactly what Ken O’Brien does in this sequel to Lost Coast Rocket.

Driven by a broken heart and a mysterious compulsion he can’t understand, Ken launches himself into space. During this one-way trip, he has just ten years to answer as many cosmic questions as he can before his body succumbs to the hostile space environment.

But he’s given an unexpected gift and his life is extended. How he spends this gift, however, makes him the most hated man in history. Will the world absolve Ken of his extreme sin? More importantly, will the green-eyed girl who broke his heart forgive him for what he was driven to do?

˃˃˃ Hatching the Phoenix Egg is Book 2 in the epic Mare Tranquillitatis Series

The adventure began in Lost Coast Rocket, the first book of the series.

My review:

This book starts after the launching of the Tranquility and Ken narrowly avoiding being arrested by the FBI. He goes off into orbit around the earth and the moon and starts his journey to Jupiter.

While he is on his way to Jupiter, his friends are left behind to pick up the pieces. Akira breaks the news to Carol and Mary that he will not be coming back and that he was the boy who Dawn was looking for. The FBI investigates them and finds nothing but does take all of Ken’s rockets that were at the clubhouse. Which was no big deal because they didn’t get anything important.

I found Ken’s travel to Jupiter fascinating and very intriguing. It definitely made me wonder when we’ll finally send manned expeditions to Jupiter and its moons. I also thought that him choosing a school to share his journey with was fantastic.

The comet, Ken wanting to save the world from it and how people reacted is totally what I would think people today would act if something like that ever happened. The riots, the food shortages, everything was written about how I expected people to act in an apocalyptic situation.

I did find Ken a bit self-absorbed in this book. But, he was dealing with his own issues and facing his own death. So I understand why he acted that way.

The end of the book was great. So many things were wrapped up and so many storylines, carried over from the first book, were resolved in a satisfactory way. I am wondering if there will be a 3rd book. From the way this one ended, I can see a 3rd one being written.

I will warn everyone, this is not a YA book. The first one, yes. This one, not so much. It is so much darker than the first one. I will also mention that I didn’t get the title until the end of the book.

I would give Hatching the Phoenix Egg an Adult rating. There are sexual situations. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Hatching the Phoenix Egg. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Can’t Forget (Solum: Book 2) by Colleen S. Myers

Can't Forget: If she can't forget her past, she won't have a future. (Solum Series Book 2) by [Myers, Colleen S.]

3 Stars

Publisher: Champagne Books

Date of publication: June 6th, 2016

Genre: Romance, Fantasy

Series: Solum

Must Remember – Book 1

Can’t Forget – Book 2

Distant Memory—Book 3

Before the Fall—Book 4

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

Like Roswell meets Lost in Space.

Four months have passed since the E’mani—those pale alien freaks—destroyed the Earth and scooped up the remains. Elizabeth “Beta” Camden was one of those taken. But she escapes and confronts her prior captors successfully with the help of their enemies. Yet she knows the E’mani won’t forget about her. She should stay vigilant and ready. Her heart refuses to listen. Beta falls in love with Marin—he of the hot hands and slit eyes.

Too bad she was right.

This time the E’mani don’t come in force. This time the E’mani slip in silently. And any hope she had of a peaceful life is lost. Beta knows what she has to do and it isn’t playing house. She leaves in the dead of night to find the E’mani stronghold and end them once and for all. But love is a tricky bitch. And Marin refuses to let her throw her life away. It takes a threat to his safety to make her realize, if she can’t forget her past, she won’t have a future.

My review:

I have been spoiled lately. Up until this book, all of the books that I have gotten that have been second books in a series have been standalone. I could read those books and not have to worry about the back story. Then I read this book and broke my streak.

From what I can gather, Elizabeth Camden (aka Beata) was involved in an attack against the E’mani (creepy pale aliens). Her allies are the Fost, long-time enemies of the E’mani. I am going to go out on a limb and say that this book starts a few weeks after that attack.

I could not connect with Beata and actually disliked her during a good part of the book. She came across as abrasive and insecure. My feelings did change towards her but I had to struggle not to let them slide back into the dislike category.

I did feel bad for her during her flashbacks. Back to when she was with the E’mani. I actually shuddered when reading those scenes, they were bad. I wouldn’t wish what she went through on my worse enemy.

The middle of the book is when I started changing my feelings towards Beata. To suffer such a tragedy was unthinkable and I cried with her. But to go off and not tell her husband, not the best decision she made. Then all of the assumptions that she was making about Marin and the other Fost woman were immature. I could see that nothing was happening with Marin. I wanted to reach through the book, slap her and say “Stop being silly before you lose him for good.”

The end of the book was fantastic, with a ton of action and one heck of an ending.

I would give Can’t Forget an Adult rating. There are sexual situations. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I am on the fence if I would reread Can’t Forget. I am on the fence if I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Duplicity (Julia Gooden Mystery: Book 2) by Jane Haseldine

Duplicity (A Julia Gooden Mystery Book 2) by [Haseldine, Jane]

5 Stars

Publisher: Pinnacle Books

Date of publication: January 1st, 2018

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense

Series: Julia Gooden Mystery

The Last Time She Saw Him – Book 1 (review here)

Duplicity – Book 2

Worth Killing For—Book 3

You Fit the Pattern—Book 4

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

In Jane Haseldine’s new novel of riveting suspense, Detroit newspaper reporter Julia Gooden is up against the city’s most devious criminal—and her own painful past.

Julia Gooden knows how to juggle different lives. A successful crime reporter, she covers the grittiest stories in the city while raising her two young boys in the suburbs. But beneath that accomplished façade is another Julia, still consumed by a tragedy that unfolded thirty years ago when her nine-year-old brother disappeared without a trace.

Julia’s marriage, too, is a balancing act, as she tries to rekindle her relationship with her husband, Assistant District Attorney David Tanner, while maintaining professional boundaries. David is about to bring Nick Rossi to trial for crimes that include drug trafficking, illegal gambling, and bribery. But the story becomes much more urgent when a courthouse bomb claims several victims—including the prosecution’s key witness—and leaves David critically injured.

Though Julia is certain that Rossi orchestrated the attack, the case against him is collapsing, and his power and connections run high and wide. With the help of Detective Raymond Navarro of the Detroit PD, she starts following a trail of blackmail, payback, and political ambition, little imagining where it will lead. Julia has risked her career before, but this time innocent lives—including her children’s—hang in the balance, and justice may come too late to save what truly matters…

My review:

I was excited when Jane Haseldine contacted me to review her 2nd book in the Julia Gooden series. I had absolutely loved The Last Time She Saw Him and hoped that Duplicity would be just as good. I wasn’t disappointed.

The book starts a few months after The Last Time She Saw Him ended. Julia and David are working on repairing their marriage. David flaked out during the last book and moved out when things got tough. He also had an affair with a fellow lawyer. Julia is working on trusting David and she is going to therapy to help get over the guilt she carried over her brother’s disappearance when she was seven.

Julia is working on a story about Nick Rossi, who is on trial for a number of charges. Which seems like a conflict of interest but she claims it isn’t. The same day that she is going to be in court, following the trail, her son, Logan is going on a field trip to the courthouse. She promises Logan that she will be there for the field trip.

While reading a newspaper, she finds out that the identity of the key witness was leaked to the press. This means that Rossi knows who he is and there is concern that he will try to take him out. She tries to call David to warn him, but he isn’t answering his phone. So she heads towards the courthouse, when the bomb goes off. The bomb kills 13 people and injures many more, including David and the judge presiding over the case. Luckily Logan’s bus got caught up in traffic and never made it to the courthouse.

I loved the whodunit about the bomb because the author kept it under wraps and threw out red herrings left and right. Just when I thought I knew who set it, bam, it goes in a different direction. So when it was revealed who was the bomber at the end of the book, I was very surprised. Probably as surprised as Julia.

David did have my sympathy after he got hurt. But what came to light afterward, well let’s just say that I wouldn’t have been as nice as Julia. I probably would have beaten him in the hospital bed.

The end of the book was awesome. Full of action and surprises, I was kept in suspense until the very end.

I would give Duplicity an Adult rating. There are sexual situations. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Duplicity. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

Hers to Heal (Black Eagles Ops: Book 2) by Vonnie Davis

Hers to Heal: A Black Eagle Ops Novel by [Davis, Vonnie]

4 Stars

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Loveswept, Loveswept

Date of Publication: November 22, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Black Eagle Ops

Her Survivor – Book 1 (Review Here)

Hers to Heal – Book 2

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

In this powerful, sensual romance from the author of Her Survivor, a broken woman meets a shattered warrior—and discovers a passion strong enough to heal each other’s deepest wounds.
 
Navy SEAL Reece Browning sacrificed body and soul in the line of duty. He survived torture at the hands of America’s enemies, but lost his career and his voice in the process. Traumatized and desperate to get his PTSD under control, Reece escapes to Eagle Ridge Ranch. Under the big Texas sky, he finds peace, a renewed sense of purpose—and a woman who makes him feel like a man again. Her smile lights up his dark days, and her caress helps him forget the night terrors.
 
Ex-Marine Gina Wilson also bears painful scars: emotional wounds inflicted by men she once trusted with her life. She has fought hard to overcome her demons and build a good life for her daughter, and Reece is too intense, too damaged, too raw to let into her heart. Yet she’s drawn irresistibly to his steely gaze and heated embrace. No one else understands what it’s like to suffer in silence. And when Gina’s daughter is threatened, it’s Reece who risks everything to save the day.

My review:

I am a big fan of Vonnie Davis. This series that I have been reviewing (Black Eagle Ops) has struck a chord with me. Call me a sap, but I do not like seeing people (even fictional people) in pain and Reese, Ashley and JJ were in a ton of it. My heart broke reading why Reece suffered from PTSD. It broke, even more, when it was revealed what happened to Ashley.

I liked Gina. She took no crap from Reese, at all. Which is fine because a man like Reese needs a strong female who he can’t push around. And he couldn’t definitely push her around.

Piper is my favorite character in the whole book, along with Junebug. She was a 6-year-old wise guy. Her immediate latch on to Reece to be her Daddy was hilarious as was his reaction when she told him. She flat-out told him that he was going to be her Daddy. I did find that she would morph from sounding 6 to sounding 18 and then back in the same sentence. The first time it happened, it threw me off. Didn’t take away from Piper’s cuteness, though.

Once the secondary plot got going, it didn’t lack for anything. The action was great and I did end up in tears when Reese did what he did.

The end was pretty typical and I loved it. I do hope that there is going to be a story on Ashley and JJ or any of the other members of the group.

I would give Hers to Heal an Adult rating. There are sexual situations. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Hers to Heal. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

My Addiction (Club Desire: Book 2) by Cassie Ryan

My Addiction (Club Desire Book 2) by [Ryan, Cassie]

4 Stars

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Loveswept, Loveswept

Date of publication: October 25th, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Club Desire

My Obsession – Book 1

My Addiction – Book 2

Where I can find this book: Amazon |Barnes & Noble

Book synopsis:

In a novel of sensual passion and deep commitment from the author of My Obsession, an undercover cop finds a soulmate who surrenders to his healing touch.

Fiercely independent and determined to free herself from her father’s manipulation, tech expert Kate Fretwell finds a refuge in L.A.’s elite BDSM dungeon scene as the hot new thing to political and Hollywood A-listers. Still, all that glitters gets old, and Kate soon tires of the stream of well-heeled masters who expect her to be at their beck and call. Then she meets a very different kind of Dom—one whose quiet confidence, strength, and command bring her most willingly to her knees.

Undercover FBI agent Dex Alexander fits right into his assignment to expose terrorist links to one of L.A.’s most popular clubs. The case has reawakened a desire to find the perfect companion, and he knows that beautiful, vulnerable Kate is a woman he could love. But when her father’s corruption unwittingly makes Kate the target of a bigger enemy, Dex brings her to his Phoenix home—and his dungeon, Club Desire. Here she shows him just how eager she is to give him everything . . . and more.

My review:

I am going to come right out and warn everyone that this book defiantly isn’t for anyone who is A) easily offended by BDSM lifestyle and B) people who are easily offended by graphic details about the BDSM lifestyle. If you are offended, hit the back button and head to my next review. If you are easily offended and keep on reading this review well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

I loved how this book balanced BDSM and regular life. Unlike other books that I have read in this genre, the sex takes 2nd place to the storyline, and I loved that. I have read books in this genre that once the sex was introduced, the storyline went out the window. So it was very refreshing to see that the storyline was kept up once the BDSM scenes started (which was fairly early in the book).

I liked Kate. She was one of those heroines who didn’t take jack from anyone. I think the scenes where she stood up to Stanton (ie, punched him in the junk) and when she finally told her father off was excellent, and I thought it showed off how spunky she was.

The attraction that she had to Dex was instantaneous, and I loved the flogging scene. Now, usually, I am not into that stuff, but the way it was written and the way Dex and Kate discussed her soft and hard limits piqued my interest. And how he took care of her afterward was tremendous and did show what kind of guy he was.

Dex is my new book boyfriend. He is hot and cares about his woman/Sub (and his past Sub’s). The only thing that I didn’t like was that he couldn’t tell her that he was investigating her and that he was FBI. It killed him, and when she found out, it hurt her.

The subplot with the money laundering, the terrorists, the Dungeon, and its clients was OK, and it was resolved satisfactorily. Well, except that poor Kate got hurt.

The sex scenes between Kate and Dex were hot, hot, hot. They lit the pages on fire!!

The ending was excellent, and the epilogue was great. I can’t wait to see if Dex and Kate are going to be mentioned in book 3 (if there is a book 3).

I would give My Addiction an Adult rating. There is explicit sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread My Addiction. I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**