Tag: romance

Rodeo Man (Cameron Cowboys: Book 1) by Margaret Watson

Rodeo Man (Cameron Cowboys Book 1) by [Watson, Margaret]

4 Stars

Publisher: Dragonfly Press

Date of publication: October 7th, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Cameron Cowboys

Rodeo Man – Book 1

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

Rodeo star Grady Farrell is devastated when a gruesome leg injury ends his career. The rodeo was his life, and retirement gives him too much time to think about Becca Johnson, the woman who betrayed him. But when Grady buys a ranch in Cameron, Utah, he comes face to face with Becca again.

Becca is no longer the insecure teenager Grady remembered – she’s now a strong, confident woman. She’s never stopped loving Grady, but she knows she can’t get too close to him. Becca is hiding a huge secret – she can’t let him find out that her daughter is his daughter, too.

When Grady finds out the truth, will this new betrayal destroy their second chance at love?

My review:

Becca Johnson was once involved with rodeo star Grady Farrell. In an attempt to get him to come home from the rodeo, she told him that she was seeing someone else. It backfired on her big time when Grady basically told her to have a nice life. The prologue ends with her feeling sick to her stomach and thinking that it was due to the stress of her and Grady ending things. I was once a stupid teenager and did stuff like that to try to get a guy to come to me. Like Becca, it blew up in my face big time. So when I read that, I read it while smirking.

The book flashes forward 9 years later. Becca has grown up. She is now a veterinarian, owns a partnership in the practice that she works for and is the single mother to an 8-year-old girl named Cassie. She is doing well for herself but has never forgotten Grady. Well, wasn’t she surprised when she arrives at the Flying W Ranch to float horses teeth and finds out that Grady is the new owner. The old owner, Sy Ames, lost the ranch to Grady while playing cards. I did pause while reading and think to myself “They still do that (put the property up when there is no money)?”

Becky is carrying a lot of baggage due to her relationship with Grady. A lot and it shows in her interactions with him. She half-lies about things and withholds other important things. Very important things, which drove me kinda nuts. So I didn’t blame Grady for not being very happy when he found out her big secret. I would have been just as shocked and upset as he was.

There are sparks flying between the two of them which Becky tries to ignore. About half the book was her ignoring the sparks between them but when they gave in, the sex was out of this world good. And, guess what!!! They used protection. I swear I did a double fist pump when I read that (if you have been reading my blog, you know my views on fictional unprotected sex….lol).

Becca is also being stalked by someone. Who, she doesn’t know. She does have 2 suspects that she tells the police: Sy Ames, the ex-owner of the Flying W Ranch and Grady’s new ranch manager, Ron Perkins. The author did a great of keeping you guessing as to who the stalker was up to when he was revealed. I was surprised at who it was. Also, I loved Becca’s creative use of plastic wrap to keep the stalker in place while waiting for the police….lol.

I will say that Cassie was the cutest thing, ever. She actually reminded me of my daughter when she was that age. They both love horses and my daughter actually really loved watching the rodeo on TV.

The ending was pretty typical of a romance novel, not that it took away from the book at all. Everything was wrapped up nice and I am expecting Grady and Becca to have a HEA. I can’t wait to see where this series goes and who the book will be about next. The author introduced some pretty interesting characters.

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

I would reread Rodeo Man. I would recommend it to family and friends.

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

A Night of Forever (The Disgraced Lords: Book 6) by Bronwen Evans

A Night of Forever: A Disgraced Lords Novel (The Disgraced Lords Book 6) by [Evans, Bronwen]

4 Stars

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Loveswept, Loveswept

Date of publication: October 25th, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: The Disgraced Lords

A Kiss of Lies – Book 1

A Promise of More – Book 2

A Touch of Passion – Book 3

A Whisper of Desire – Book 4

A Taste of Seduction – Book 5

A Night of Forever – Book 6

A Love to Remember – Book 7 (expected date of publication: June 6th, 2017)

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book Synopsis:

Distrust is no match for desire as a proper young miss and a self-professed rogue hunt down a murderer in this thrilling Disgraced Lords novel from the USA Today bestselling author of A Kiss of Lies and A Taste of Seduction.

Arend Aubury trusts no one besides his fellow Libertine Scholars. After his family escaped from France, penniless and persecuted, only the Scholars took him in. So when the stepdaughter of the villainess who has been plotting against them approaches Arend with allegations against their enemy, he suspects a double cross. Yet Isobel is a tantalizing prize, with lips as sweet as champagne and skin as creamy as Camembert. Is she a feast for the senses—or a bitter trap?

Lady Isobel Thompson dreams of marrying an honorable gentleman with a spotless reputation, a trait that Arend seems to lack completely. But Isobel believes that her stepmother is responsible for her father’s death, and only Arend has the skills to uncover the truth. As a cover, Arend suggests a fake betrothal—and soon Isobel finds herself forgetting that their courtship is a ploy. He’s so different from the man of her fantasies, and yet he’s so terribly handsome, so dangerously intoxicating—and all Isobel wants is more.

My review:

I went into this book thinking that it was going to be one of those historical romances that the heroine was a dimwit, and the hero had significant trust issues and couldn’t get over them. I was right about the hero, but oh boy, was I wrong about the heroine.

Isobel surprised me. I thought she would be one of those heroines who got into trouble and then is like, “Why is this happening to me.” The only time that happened was in the prologue when the Libertine Scholar’s enemy kidnaped her and sent on a wild carriage ride with Marisa that resulted in Marisa being seriously injured. All of the situations that she found herself in after that, she took responsibility for it.

Arend Aubury, Baron Labourd, has some pretty dark secrets and was scarred by events that had happened to him while he was in Paris and Brazil. He refused to let anyone but the Libertine Scholars close to him and forget it if it was a beautiful woman. Then he froze her out. I honestly felt awful for him when he was reliving the past, and it was refreshing to see a historical novel that dared to touch on some darker subjects in detail.

Isobel has fallen under Arend’s radar because her stepmother, Victoria, is believed to be the madwoman stalking his friends and their wives. They think that Isobel is helping her, which is the farthest thing from the truth. Isobel believes Victoria killed her father and is trying to secure a marriage that will take her away from Victoria.

It doesn’t help that every time Victoria does something, Isobel is there or has knowledge of it. Still, even with all that hanging over her head, Arend manages to become very attracted to her. He also goes as far as to propose a “fake” engagement after Isobel tells him what I outlined above. His reasoning, it would be a great way to fool Victoria and for Arend to keep a close eye on Isobel.

Yeah, that didn’t go over too well. Soon, Isobel and Arend have consummated their relationship in a stable. That leads to Arend getting struck on the head with a piece of wood and Isobel being kidnapped with her friend Evangeline’s young son Sealy. It didn’t look well for her because her information (stolen from Victoria) led his friends in the opposite direction as to where Arend was. So yeah, it’s understandable why Arend and his friends didn’t trust her. If I were in their shoes, I wouldn’t either.

The sex scenes between Arend and Isobel were unbelievably hot. Like off the page scorching hot, which is another reason why I liked this book. Isobel actively went after Arend and told him what she wanted. Something other historical romances don’t do. Either they wait until marriage or the heroine’s first time is rushed. Isobel’s wasn’t nor were all the times afterward. They were like rabbits.

I cried when Arend finally opened up about what happened to him. Isobel’s reaction was perfect and was what Arend needed.

In a way, I did feel bad for Victoria too. For something that awful to happen to a young girl, it is bound to affect her and not in a good way. She let vengeance rule her life, and she was willing to sacrifice everything to get to the son of the person she held responsible for what happened to her.

The end of the book and the prologue made me bawl. There’s a twist that took me by surprise. There is a HEA for Arend and Isobel. The author did pave the way for book seven, and I can’t wait to read it. I also am going to eventually buy the other books too because I want to read the other couple’s stories.

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

I would reread A Night of Forever. I would recommend it to family and friends.

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

SkyWhisperers by Natasja Hellenthal

SkyWhisperers: A Lesbian Dystopian Fantasy novel by [Hellenthal, Natasja]

4 Stars

Publisher: Beyond Books Press

Date of publication: January 29th, 2016

Genre: Fantasy, LGBTIA, Romance, Young Adult

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

With the disappearing of the winds, the magic held by the once-mighty, immortal Sky Whisperers was shattered. Their influence over the natural world lost. Now only the small powers are left to Xenthia and her people, helping to sustain life–what little remains. For the world of Lorian is hot, dry and dying.                

Unaware of her involvement in this, crippled and one-eyed Nemsa, leads a small, miserable life in a mountain village, close to where she was found as a baby, twenty-five years before. When one day she meets the alluring Xenthia it becomes clear that her path lies far above and beyond all she is familiar with.      

But what is expected of her? How can she trust what she has been told? And how can Nemsa even hope to stand up against the supremacy of a powerful, vengeful, and ambitious Sun Whisperer? Will the love and courage in her heart be enough?

Magic is at work, a fatal sickness is spreading among mortals and immortals alike, the sun is brutally beating down, and the fate of all hangs in the balance. And if Nemsa is to fulfill her destiny and save the world, she must find her way through it all . . .

Follow Nemsa and Xenthia in this Epic, Dystopian, YA Interracial Lesbian Fantasy tale of courage, true love, redemption, and hope.

My review:

SkyWhisperers starts 25 years past a catastrophic event that shakes the land of Lorian. The wind is gone, and when the wind disappeared, the land just stopped producing. There were barely any crops because of the relentless sun beating down. Animals started dying off, and the ones that did survive came out at night. Same with the birds. The rain was uncommon, and fires were rampant. In more recent years, a terrible sickness started cutting through the remaining human population. It was hell on earth.

Nemsa is a crippled outcast in her village. She is shunned because the villagers hold her accountable for the winds stopping. The day after they stopped, she was found lying on a path by her adoptive mother. She was treated horribly by those villagers when she was younger, but she got over it, and it made her into the woman I met in this book.

Nemsa is wandering some old ruins by her town when she meets Xenthia, a Sky Whisperer. There was almost an instant attraction between Nemsa and Xenthia (who Nemsa calls Blue), but neither is willing to act on it. If a Sky Whisperer becomes emotionally attached to a mortal, they lose their immortality and powers, and that is something that Xenthia does NOT want to do. So their attraction is held too long, stares at each other and longing.

Nemsa goes with Xenthia to the Upper Sky Dome (where the Sky Whisperers live) after finding out who her parents are. Her father was a Sky Whisperer and her mother a mortal. He lost his powers because he fell in love with her mother. Unfortunately, she didn’t return his love, and that enraged him. So he visited her and raped her….which caused her to get pregnant with Nemsa. Then, which was the kicker here, he found out when she was in labor, got very angry when she refused to be with him, lashed out with the powers he had left, killed her and severely injured Nemsa in the process (hence her blind eye and bad leg). Xenthia wanted her to go to Upper Sky to see if A) she could be a Sky Whisperer and B) to go and vanquish her father….who had imprisoned the 4 Guardians of the World and in turn, stopped the winds.

I loved the transformation that Nesma went through in this book. She went from a scared, disabled girl to a woman who had to be strong enough to defeat a madman and save the world. It was terrific, and I loved it!!

I didn’t care for Xenthia for the first half of the book. She was leading Nesma, but at the same time, she wasn’t. It is hard to explain, and you need to read the book to understand what I am trying to explain. The sex scenes, when it finally did happen, were tastefully written. Nothing explicit. More of just the feelings between these two women as they finally realize they are in love with each other.

On that note, I also liked that the author made same-sex relationships the norm in Upper Sky Dome. Nesma was amazed when she found that out. The reason why the Guardians are the only ones who can procreate, and they fostered same-sex in their children. Not saying that there were heterosexual relationships, there were, but same-sex relationships were preferred.

This story is in 1st person perspective from both Xenthia and Nesma’s perspective. This is the one time that I will say that I liked it. Usually, jumping from character to character in a book drives me nuts, but it worked here.

The rest of the story was fantastic, but I am not going to go into it. There is a twist almost at the end of the book that I did see coming, but when it was revealed, it still took my breath away.

I would give SkyWhisperers an Older Teen rating. There is sex. There is mild language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 16 read this book.

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

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

Another Chance (Austin Heroes: Book 3) by Kathy Clark

Another Chance: An Austin Heroes Novel by [Clark, Kathy]

3 Stars

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Loveswept, Loveswept

Date of publication: November 1st, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Austin Heroes

After Love – Book 1

Almost Forever – Book 2 (review here)

Another Chance – Book 3

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis:

Homeland Security agent Luke Archer returns home to Texas on a dangerous mission—a hands-on fight against a terrorist organization that has infiltrated the United States—yet it’s a chance encounter with his high-school sweetheart that really gets his blood pumping. Luke considers himself a lone wolf who doesn’t need a woman in his life. But as memories of their sweet, innocent affair stir him body and soul, Luke starts to wonder whether he should give love another chance.

A high-powered attorney, Bella Shaw has never forgotton how Luke left her behind in Austin to chase his dreams. But when she’s being totally honest with herself, Bella can’t deny that Luke is the one man she ever truly wanted. Though he tells her that the terrorists are using her land, she’s more worried about defending her heart from the advances of the sinfully sexy lawman. Still, Bella is willing to trust him again—if Agent Archer proves he’s worthy.

My review:

I was taken aback by this book. I thought that this would be a clichéd 3rd book in a series. You know the one that is used to wrap up all the other storylines, which this one did, and kind of sucks because there is no plot, other than the hero and the heroine declaring Instalove after the first couple of chapters and then the rest of the book is them banging everywhere they can with misunderstandings all around until the end. This book isn’t like that.

See, Luke and Bella were friends since 3rd grade and boyfriend/girlfriend all four years of high school. They were each other’s firsts (first kiss and first time having sex) and were madly in love. They planned on becoming marine biologists and sailing around the world together after high school. From Bella and Luke’s flashbacks, it was a sweet (but hot and heavy) first love that ended when each of them got Dear John letters from the other person. They never got over each other.

So fast forward 14 years. Luke works for Homeland Security and is tracking terrorists that are coming over the border from Mexico. He happens to run into Bella after he was involved in a sting that failed to capture five terrorists and had one commit suicide by a grenade. She lived in the condo’s that happened to be on the same street as the building that was damaged when the grenade went off.

What happens next is what sets the book apart from other romances. Luke and Bella never fell out of love with each other. So no InstaLove or even InstaLust. It was just two people who had a history and who were madly in love with each other discovering each other again. There was no drama in that department. Once Bella and Luke hooked up, there was no one else, and no one tried to break them up. It was very refreshing to read. I love how Bella classified their relationship towards the end of the book.

Silly, silly man. All I’ve ever wanted was for you to love me. I don’t care if you’re a cop or a fireman or a janitor. I loved you when you beat up that little boy on the playground. I loved you before your voice changed. I loved you before you scored you first touchdown. I loved you when you just wanted to live on a boat and count starfish. I loved you when you risked your life to save me from that terrorist. You’re the strongest, bravest, most wonderful man in the whole world, and I promise I’ll love you forever, so might as well propose

I had tears in my eyes reading that and his reply was just as good (not going to put it in here because, well you should read the book to find that out)

The sex was hot, and there was the mandatory “I am on BC, so it’s OK not to use a condom” (I am going to start a safe sex for fictional characters fund…lmao) talk. I liked that the feelings that they had for each other showed while they were having sex, even before the “L” word was mentioned.

Now the two other storylines that were featured in the book were pretty good, but I thought the one where the terrorists just happened to be operating out of Bella’s barn was a little far-fetched. Not saying that it could happen but still.

The storyline with Grammy was excellent. She has to be my favorite secondary character ever, and I loved that she was given her happily ever after.

The ending was great, but everything was wrapped up all at once. I would have rathered read an epilogue 5-6 years in the future to find out what happened, then it happening all at once.

I would give Another Chance 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 Another Chance. I would recommend it to family and friends.

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

Whatever You Call Me (Best Friends: Book 2) by Leigh Fleming

Whatever You Call Me

4 stars

Publisher: Envisage Press, LLC

Date of Publication: September 20th, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Best Friends

Precious Words – Book 1

Whatever You Call Me – Book 2

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Book synopsis: 

Annie Cooper is fed up with Washington. More importantly, she’s done with being Senator George Cooper’s daughter and all the expectations that come with it. She changes her name and tries to start fresh after quitting her job, but the only position she can find is in the political world she despises.

Kip Porter is a two-term congressman from a blue collar district along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay whose ambition leads him astray from the core values he—and his constituents—hold dear. He needs Senator Cooper’s backing to get his bill through the Senate and plans to use Annie to do it.

What starts out as a simple game of hidden identity soon becomes complicated. Annie wants to prove her worth on her own terms, but the closer she grows to Kip, the more she needs to come clean. With unexpected romance blossoming between them, will Kip keep his own secrets, or reveal the truth in the name of love?

My review:

I am going to start this review by saying that I love the cover of this book. It is so simple and no half-naked men on the front of it. Not that I don’t like it (because I do), but after a while, all the men start to look the same, and I stop appreciating the covers. So this cover is refreshing.

I am going to be honest here, Annie got on my nerves after she got the job working on Kip’s campaign. I understand that her father was awful (not abusive…he liked the ladies, he was a powerful senator and well, those don’t really mix), I really do but I kinda wanted to read through my Kindle, shake her and say “Stop judging all men by what your father did, you idiot”. She also kept catching Kip at the wrong time and either storm off, slamming doors (like a flipping teenager), or she begrudgingly would allow him to explain.

She also chose to lie to Kip and Tom about who she was and use another name. Which kinda made me think, “What did she put on her I9’s and W2 form?” (I overthink when I read books sometimes). I did end up liking her in the end, but man, it was a struggle.

Oh, but Kip was just bad. He had Tom hire her only because she was Senator Cooper’s daughter, and he needed Senator Cooper to back a pipeline bill. The only issue, Kip falls for her, and it becomes this big mess. He wants to tell her the truth and but can’t because A) she said to him that men only went after her to get in good with her father and B) Tom kept telling him not to.

Speaking of Tom, I didn’t like him from the beginning. Anyone who says “Bro” at the beginning/end of every sentence has an immediate jerk status in my eyes, and oh boy, did he live up to it. Also, him keeping stuff from Kip about his campaign made him come across as a self-serving asshat. I hope that he got what was coming for him.

Kip and Annie’s romance was delightful, even though it started on the wrong foot, and the sex scenes were hot.

The end of the book was perfect and sweet.

I would give Whatever You Call Me 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 Whatever You Call Me. I would recommend it to family and friends.

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

I Was a Bitch by Emily Ruben

I Was a Bitch: A Romance Mystery Book by [Ruben, Emily]

4 Stars

Publisher: Inkitt

Date of publication: October 10th, 2016

Genre: Romance, Young Adult

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Goodreads synopsis:

After waking up from a coma, Lacey Jones discovers that she is the ruling queen bitch of high-school and in the middle of a love triangle with two guys. If only she hadn’t lost all memory of it!

When Lacey Jones wakes up after a horrific accident, she realizes that she’s lost all memory of the last two years. In this time, she has turned from a wallflower into the gorgeous and popular Queen Bee of her high school. Adding to the confusion, she is confronted with two guys who claim to love her; her football star boyfriend and the mysterious and attractive Finn.

Now Lacey has to figure out who she can trust as she starts to put her life back together and slowly discovers what really happened on the night of the accident.

Will she be able to resist her developing feelings for Finn and stay loyal to her boyfriend?

My review:

I Was a Bitch is a book that you definitely shouldn’t judge by its cover or title. When I first started reading it, I thought it was going to be a Mean Girls knock-off. What I got, instead, was this excellent book where the main character has to discover not only herself but what happened to her the night got into the accident that led to her 2-month coma.

Imagine thinking that you are 16 again and being told, nope, you are 18 and almost graduating high school. It was a shock to Lacey. The passage where she sees her face was hilarious and a little sad

I had boobs. And my teeth were white and aligned like a model’s. My hair was a chestnut-brown with beautiful waves, framing my-dare I say-perfect face. But it wasn’t the most shocking thing. No, no. The thing was: I looked…way older. Like, eighteen-years-old girl older

When she meets Mel, Claire, and Derek, she can’t believe that these people who look like models are her best friends and boyfriend.

Then she meets Finn and omg, did the sparks fly between them. There was instant chemistry. Finn leaves her his laptop, and she finds out that there is something between them. What, she isn’t sure (remember that the last two years of her memory is gone).

She also realizes that she wasn’t a very nice person before her accident. She figures that out by reading texts and looking at pictures of her drunk at parties. She starts to feel very ashamed about some of the things that she did before the accident.

It isn’t very long for her to realize that there is something up about the night of her accident (Derek wasn’t exactly smooth about his questions). She is determined to get her memory back. When she starts to have memory flashes, she gets closer to what happened and the events leading up to it. Finn was a godsend to her during this time. He tried to jog her memory and was so sweet to her. I did “awwwww” during about 90% of his scenes with her.

Her romance with Finn was sweet, but it did seem to be a little one-sided at first. She kept stringing him along while still going out with Derek, and it bothered me. She was stringing him along before the accident, and she was stringing him along after the accident. In Lacey’s defense, though, she had no memory and people were telling her that she and Derek were still together. They also had no clue about Finn (maybe because he was her side guy).

Derek started nice and then morphed into something else. The comment about Finn’s mother started me down the path of not liking him, and by the end of the book, I couldn’t stand him. I cheered when Lacey did what she did to him. He deserved it.

The ending was perfect, and the epilogue, there are no words to describe it. I cried during it, that is how emotionally vested I got in Lacey’s (and eventually Finn’s) story.

I would give I Was a Bitch an Older Teen rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 16 read this book.

I am on the fence if I would reread I Was a Bitch. I would recommend it to family and friends.

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

Necrobloods by Lauren Stock and Robert Stock

Necrobloods by [Stock, Lauren, Stock, Robert]

5 Stars

Publisher: Dragon Girl Press

Date of publication: November 10th, 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Goodreads synopsis:

16 year old Celeste Boyd casts Elemental magic. With the great battle coming, she and her best friend Gena are learning more about their abilities. Even more pressing, though, are the basketball finals and the mysterious new boy in school, Carter Wells. Celeste now has to choose between her crush and Carter, who is showing quite the interest. And then there are the crazy dreams with the huge dragon eye…

My review:

Another great book from the authors Lauren and Robert Stock. Also, another book that is going on my “must get B when she turns older” shelf. I seriously have a list of books that I am getting her which includes Lauren and Robert’s Tamzin Clarke series.

I liked Celeste. She was your typical teenager with a twist. See, she lives in Salem MA and she can cast Elemental magic. She also plays basketball and is crushing on her friend Gena’s older brother and the popular boy in school. Life is good for her.

Then the principal of her high school is murdered, and she meets Carter, the gorgeous new kid in school. Sparks fly between them, which I thought was cute. Later on, that night, while she was lying in bed, her nightmares begin. The next day, at Gena’s pool party, Luke and Sean get into a fight over her, and Celeste faints. While she faints, she has a bizarre and gross vision involving blood and Luke.

Fast forward a few days, and Gena fills Celeste in on something that her parents had been keeping from her. Every thousand years, there is a war for dominance between Elementals and Spirituals. 10 people from each faction are called to an arena, and they fight each other to the death — the last faction standing rules for the next thousand years. Anyone from the ages of 16 on can be chosen. And guess what, the thousand years are about to be done with. Of course, Celeste is pretty upset that her parents never told her.

From this point on, the book gets pretty impressive. Another character is introduced, Camille, who is a Spiritual and who seems to hate Celeste on sight. Carter and Celeste’s relationship heats up, as does her relationship with Sean. I was wondering who she was going to choose and wasn’t surprised by her choice.

There are a couple of twists in the book that took me by surprise and a couple I did see coming but weren’t prepared for.

The ending of the book was great, and everything was wrapped up perfectly. I was left wondering if there will be a book 2.

I would give Necrobloods an Older Teen rating. There is no sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 16 read this book.

I am on the fence if I would reread Necrobloods. I would recommend it to family and friends.

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

Creed (Fallen Angel’s MC: Book 1) by Erin Trejo

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Date of publication: February 3rd, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Fallen Angel’s MC

Creed – Book 1

Tank – Book 2

Ryker – Book 3

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Goodreads synopsis:

Creed doesn’t have his life mapped out but he knows he has a family in Jason and Jada, his neighbors. They always accepted him for who he was. One fatal mistake takes his best friend Jason away from him. Leaving his sister Jada behind to pick herself up, Creed seeks solace in her. Jada gives in to her feelings for Creed to only have them crushed when he leaves. Creed moves on with his life, which isn’t the best life possible. He finds a new family with the Fallen Angel’s Motorcycle Club. They become the family he lost. Taking risks, he doesn’t care about his life anymore until Jada falls into his clubhouse one fateful night. After he learns her involvement with a rival, Creed wants her safe but he knows he can never be the man she needs. Will he save himself and Jada? Or will they both lose everything forever?

My review: 

The man on the cover of this book is good-looking. I sat at my desk for 10 mins, drooling over him. I have a thing for muscular, tat’d bad guys. I usually don’t comment on the cover of books I review but this one I had to.

What I loved about this book was that there was no InstaLove or InstaLust. Jada and Creed have been in lust/love with each other since they were teenagers. Creed didn’t exactly hide his wanting Jada from anyone. The only one holding him back was Jason, Jada’s twin brother and Creed’s best friend. Jason asked Creed not to hook up with Jada (even though they both wanted to). There is a horrible accident where Jason dies. After the funeral, Creed and Jada do hook up on the roof of her house and then left right afterward.

The author does fast forward a year, and Creed has turned into an enforcer for an MC. He doesn’t give a flying flapjack about anything or anyone. Jason’s death has affected him greatly. Then there is a fast forward four years from Jason’s death, and Creed is the same. He uses the club’s Angel chasers for sex but doesn’t have a connection with them or anyone. He is still hung up on Jada.

Then, bam, Jada is back in the picture. She is the old lady to Kenny, a member of the Shadows Heat MC (storyline #2). She is beaten daily, uses god knows what drugs, prostitutes and is forced to have sex with other brothers. She is also drugged up all the time (Kenny shoots her up). She is a hot mess. The night she meets up with Creed again, she is at the Fallen Angel’s clubhouse with her friend.

Creed about flips a lid when he sees her again, but he can’t get her to stay with him. The next time they meet up, Jada is in the hospital after ODing, and Creed is there after being shot. Creed busts both of them out and so begins their relationship again.

While the sex was hot, I read those scenes shuddering. Jada was a prostitute who had sex with many men, and she does it bareback with Creed. All the time. I am not a prude but jeez.

Jada and Creed’s relationship also moved very fast too. But, as I said above, these two have been lusting after each other since they were teenagers. So I wasn’t surprised when they started doing the dirty almost right away.

Kenny isn’t happy that Jada left him (and his club) and has taken up with Creed and his club. There was a twist that was revealed mid-book that I didn’t see coming. I also didn’t understand Sharp doing a 180 during the book after the twist was revealed. The ending of the book surprised me. I wasn’t expecting what happened to happen.

How many stars will I give Creed: 3

Why: While I really liked the book, I really couldn’t move past the violence and the swearing. Like I said above, I am not a prude at all, but when every other word out of both Jada and Creed’s mouth is “effing”, it just drags the book down. I found myself skimming some of the dialogue because of that.

Will I reread: Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends: Yes but with a warning about the explicit sex and graphic violence.

Age range: Adult

Why: Language, Sex, Violence

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

Undoing Time (The Fine Art of Deception: Book 1) by Alyssa Richards

The Fine Art of Deception: A Time Travel Romance Book Series (Book 1) by [Richards, Alyssa]

Publisher: 

Date of publication: January 18th, 2015

Genre: Paranormal, Romance, Suspense, Mystery, Thriller

Series: Undoing Time

The Fine Art of Deception – Book 1

Somewhere in Time – Book 2

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Goodreads synopsis:

Art appraiser Addison Montgomery just wants a normal life. One where she can ignore the vicious ghosts who follow her. One where she’s free from her “gift” of touching an object and seeing the owner’s deepest secrets. And one where she can fall in love without having all of the above get in the way.

But when tall, dark, and dangerous gallery owner Blake Greenwood enters her life, normal is the last thing she’s feeling. The man has more secrets than the priceless art he sells, giving Addison’s quest for normal no chance. That, and he may just hold the key to uncovering the truth behind her father’s unexplained disappearance.

Despite her paranormal gifts warning her to stay away, she feels an inexplicable, captivating fascination for him, something that goes deeper than attraction. There’s something between them that’s older than time, and if she can learn to give him her trust, it may just save her life.

My review:

I felt awful for Addie in the first few chapters of this book. She had a horrific breakup with her ex-fiance. At first, she glossed over the details. He left her to be with her best friend But, no, her ex-bestie and himself decided to ruin Addie at her job. The author didn’t get into what they did, but whatever it was, it was awful and caused Addie to become a hermit of sorts. She didn’t find comfort at home. Addie has special psychic powers. She is an empath, can see and talk to ghosts, and if she touches an object, she can see past owners and events attached to the object. All 3 of these “gifts” have made her life a living hell.

I couldn’t even imagine living as she did. She barely slept, barely went out, and lived like a hermit. I am a homebody, but it would drive me nuts to not run to the store. Her only comfort is a sapphire ring that she bought while in Paris. For some reason, she dreams that she is the woman (named Sassy) and she has a lover named Jack.

She decides to apply for a job at her grandfather’s old art agency that is now being run by her grandfather’s partner. She has always loved art and decided that this would be a great career for her.

Now, this is where the book got fascinating. Addie meets Blake and has an instant attraction to him. She was almost pulled to him, and she was scared to death. I mean, who wouldn’t be after what she went through.

Speaking of Blake, I liked him…even when he was less than honest with Addie. But he did get on my nerves, a little bit, with his secretiveness. While I understand why he was so secretive, it still bugged me— what a way to start a relationship.

I also liked that the book was pretty cut and dry with who the bad guy was. No guessing, no red herrings…which was excellent.

The chemistry between Blake and Addie was intense, and the sex was through the roof. I did think that they were going to go “let’s go bareback because you haven’t had any partners for a while and I am clean” but it didn’t. I did a fist pump and praised the author for doing that. Hooray for fictional safe sex.

I will say that the ending was pretty satisfying. More secrets come out, and there were a couple in there that surprised me. Kept me interested enough to want to read the next book and see how everything is resolved.

How many stars will I give The Fine Art of Deception? 4

Why? Great storyline and great characters.

Will I reread? Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends? Yes

Age range: Adult

Why: Sex, language, some violence

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

Unsportsmanlike Conduct (Pilots Hockey: Book 4) by Sophia Henry

Unsportsmanlike Conduct: A Pilots Hockey Novel by [Henry, Sophia]

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Loveswept, Loveswept

Date of publication: October 18th, 2016

Genre: Romance

Series: Pilots Hockey

Delayed Penalty – Book 1

Power Play – Book 2

Interference – Book 3

Unsportsmanlike Conduct – Book 4

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Goodreads synopsis:

The author of Delayed Penalty returns with the story of a free spirit who believes she’s found forever with a playboy on a singles cruise. Discover why Kelly Jamieson calls the Pilots Hockey series “fun and flirty, warm and sweet.”

Kristen Katsaros wants a life full of adventure and laughter. After a difficult childhood, her motto is to live each day like it’s her last—because it just might be. So when Kristen’s parents send her on a post-grad singles cruise in the Caribbean to meet a Greek husband, she promptly hooks up with the hottest guy she’s ever met. Pasha’s decidedly not Greek, but Kristen gives him a pass because he’s got fun written all over his rock-hard abs.

Pavel Gribov, the cocky playboy of the Detroit Pilots hockey team, can score any girl he wants. But when a teammate drags him on a singles cruise, he can’t resist the chance to help out a drop-dead gorgeous damsel in distress by pretending to be her boyfriend. Before long, the fake fling turns intimate, fueled by something much deeper than lust.

Kristen and Pasha both agree to walk away once the cruise is over, but reality hits like a slap shot when Kristen finds out Pasha lied about everything. Just when she’s ready to start living again, the two stubborn survivors must decide if they can bear to lose the best thing that ever happened to either of them

My review:

Do not judge this book by the blurb or the cover. Please don’t because they are misleading (even though the guy is uber hot on the cover).

I went into this book, thinking that it was going to be about a cruise ship romance that continued after the cruise. And it does but (and stress but) the story is so much more. There is an actual story in this book. It isn’t all about sex after Kristin and Pasha do the dirty, and that is what I loved about this book.

I am not one to give spoilers, at all, but to provide an honest review, I am going to have to let one slip here. So, stop reading here and skip to the end if you don’t want spoilers.

I loved Kristin’s attitude towards life and in general. She was the most upbeat, positive person that I have ever read in a book. She has Cystic Fibrosis. Her outlook on Cystic Fibrosis is positive. While she will die from it, she manages it through medications, exercise, and a healthy lifestyle. She also believes that she will not find a man who will stick by her after her HS boyfriend dumped her and told her that.

The only reason she was on that cruise was to please her parents. It was a singles cruise, and the man who her parents want her to marry went on it too, which didn’t please Kristin too much. To get him off her back, she starts flirting with the first guy she crashes into which happens to be Pavel Gribov.

Oh my, let’s talk about Pavel (aka Pasha) for a minute. He is a hot mess. I mean, someone who tries to screw up his best friend’s relationship has issues, which he has. He blames himself for the deaths of his mother and abusive father. He drinks too much, has casual sex with too many ladies (manwhore alert!!) and throws himself into hockey. He was only on the ship to accompany his friend, not to meet anyone. But he meets Kristin, and his world (and hers) gets turned upside down.

He isn’t honest with her at all, which is a pretty sucky way to start any relationship. She knows this but is still surprised when she finds out WHO he is and WHAT he does for a living. Remember the best friend, well, his best friend is getting married to Kristin’s best friend. So, yeah, I can see why he wouldn’t mention it to Kristin. And when she finds out, she is beyond upset.

The sex was hot, but as I said above, the focus of this book was more on the relationship between Pasha and Kristin. While it started as instalust, it evolved into love (and not within the week…over 3-4 or so months). It was sweet, it was sad, and it was perfect.

The ending was what I thought it would be, and the epilogue made me happy for both of them. I might have to buy the next book to see if there is any mention of them.

How many stars will I give Unsportsmanlike? 4

Why? It was more than a boy meets girl/has sex/falls in love/finds her outside of the cruise. So much more and I loved it!!!

Will I reread? Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends? Yes

Age range: Adult

Why: Sex and language

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