WHATEVER HE WANTS by Eve Vaughn
Description: When the shy, sensitive, and damaged artist, Noelle Greene, collides with the handsome, commanding, and also-damaged alpha male, James Rothschild, sparks fly, but dignity gets destroyed. The Good: What an intense novel and what a crazy and tumultuous relationship. I ripped through this book and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. It was like reading a paso doble. As someone with natural hair and anxiety issues, who ended up in a different field than what I studied in college, the character of Noelle and her journey to self-realization really resonated with me. But this also made reading this novel a little upsetting. Noelle reminded me so much of myself, that I had a very visceral reaction to her — I don’t think I’ve ever...
Gone for Good?
That was the subject line of an email I just received about three hours ago, the last in a long line of emails I’ve received over the past almost six months; and man, do I feel terrible. I work in a very content-focused business, and I often assume that no one wants to hear from me unless I have…well, content. So I haven’t been reading or answering email or much of anything, because I was focused on creating content, both for the day job and for the 50 Loving States series. So do I apologize for the lack of response and updates as of late? Profusely. And, am I gone for good? No way! But did I have a baby earlier in the year? Yep, I did. And, did I insanely overestimate what I could get done during my maternity leave? That would be another yep. I...
SPECIAL KIND OF WOMAN by Jamallah Bergman
Note of apology: I haven’t not been posting as much for happy reasons. Life has been a little too bountiful as of late, and I’ve been struggling to keep up. I’m hoping to have a handle on all my blessings soon–especially since they’re keeping me from reading as much as I’d like. Boo-hoo-hoo! Description: Collin Noonan is handsome, rich, and the youngest executive at his company. He’s also an asshole, and is only flirting with plain jane mailroom clerk, Regina Talbot, in order to win a game — basically which executive can bring the ugliest date to their annual “pig party.” But then he unexpectedly starts developing feelings for Regina. Will their romance be ruined when she finds out about the real impetus...
THEY SAY LOVE IS BLIND by Pepper Pace
Description: When plus-sized Tory meets blind Floresian hottie, Lee, on the bus, she has no idea that she’s in for the romance of a lifetime. The Good: Ms. Pace has created yet another compelling couple in Lee and Tory. Loved the details of Lee’s day-to-day life as a blind man, and especially loved learning about Flores, an island country I had never heard of before reading this book. I appreciated that they were both insecure about things the other didn’t mind, size for Tory, sight for Lee. Lee is an excellent hero, and his big family really makes this lovable story shine. The Bad: The main characters fall in love very quickly, which rings false, considering how insecure they are. Also, the story treads water for a bit in the middle. The...
CARNAL KNOWLEDGE by Celeste Anwar
Description: When sassy Kaeli collides with Cajun Lycan, Navarre Lyssandro, it’s chemistry at first sight. If they can survive the vampires who are out to get Navarre, they just might make it work. The Good: Really good action scenes. Kaeli was very sassy and Navarre was very sexy with clever claws that extended (kind of like Wolverine’s). Also, gotta love a Cajun accent. The Bad: Though I liked the characters, there was no time to get to know or care about them. And though the story has really good bones, it was clumsily executed. It felt like getting an outline as opposed to a fully fleshed out short. Also, see the Editing section. The Naughty: Steamy. Explicit language. Editing issues: Weird indents in places. Incorrect capitalization in places....
BABY GIRL AND THE MEAN BOSS by Pepper Pace
Description: Nicole–Baby Girl to her co-workers, even though she’s not that young–barely manages to put up with her grumpy boss, Marty. That is, until she gets into a terrible car accident and he unexpectedly comes through. Could this be a case of mistaken intentions, or is Nicole’s mean boss the perfect guy for her? The Good: This book is a highly romantic read, with one of my favorite tropes, damaged people–in this case literally and figuratively–finding healing in each other. I love that the heroine and the hero get to see each other at their worst, and Ms. Pace does a great job of illuminating the vulnerable people under their hard shells. There’s also a nice emotional mystery running through the story. You’ll...
My Latest Book Is Here and My Last Freebie Promotion
I feel like I say this every time I announce a new book, but sorry, once again, for the blog silence. As you might have guessed by now, if I’m not posting regularly that means I’m working hard to get the next book up. Can you believe it’s been an almost a year since I posted my first book, THE OWNER OF HIS HEART? Insane, right! I’ve learned a lot in that year, mostly about work/writing balance and how the cure to just about anything from diminishing sales to disgruntled readers/commenters is writing another book. And unfortunately for people who love free reads, I’ve also learned a lot about writing discipline. What does that mean? Well, long story short, though I appreciate the KDP Select program, especially the early boost it gave...
SHIRA by Tressie Lockwood
Description: Shira narrowly escapes an abusive relationship, only to find herself in the lair of much more dangerous, not to mention grumpy, predator — a leopard shifter named Max. But could this strange relationship eventually turn into love? The Good: I respected Shira’s desire to get out of her abusive relationship, and cheered for her to do so. Also, I liked that she had an even better relationship with Max’s leopard than the hero himself. The Bad: Great obstacles are set up, only to be somewhat clumsily surmounted. Max’s initial resistance to a relationship with Shira is overcome with an unexplained change of heart, and the final showdown with the main villain is a little too neat. The Naughty: Erotic. Editing issues: Minor...
Books I Recently Downloaded After Reading the Sample — Fall Edition
Oh, my goodness. I’m sorry that I haven’t been blogging as much as usual over the past few weeks. My day job isn’t directly connected to the election, but things always become almost overwhelmingly busy during election times. So despite starting this blog right around this time last year, I don’t have nearly as much time to read this year. Let me tell you, I can’t wait for November 7th. Hopefully Obama will still be in the White House and I’ll have time to read again. And wow, do I have a list compiled. But before I get into that, let’s go over the books I didn’t end up finishing from my last list. 1. THE DOCTOR’S SECRET BRIDE by Ana E. Ross. I don’t have a concise explanation for why this book...
WORTH THE PRICE (Hart’s Fall, Montana) by Delilah Hunt
Description: With her father facing possible bankruptcy, Danika turns to his worst enemy, Brandon Sharpe, for help. Brandon agrees to help her, but under one condition. She must become his wife! The Good: I love, love, love, blackmail marriage stories, and I love Ms. Hunt’s writing, so this was a good combination for me. I’m also a sucker for a hero who isn’t traditionally handsome. Brandon is not only tortured and vulnerable, he also has both emotional and physical scars. Sexy! Sexy! Also, there’s a very intriguing B story with Danika’s best friend that will definitely bring me back for the next installment of the Hart’s Fall, Montana series. The Bad: The story starts off strong, but falters when Ms. Hunt runs into a rather...
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