Blog Tour Book Review: Stroke of Luck by B.J. Daniels

 

From New York Times bestselling author B.J. Daniels, comes STROKE OF LUCK—the stunning first novel in her brand new Western-set romantic suspense Sterling’s Montana Series!

STROKE OF LUCK is now available! Grab your copy today!

Author: B.J. Daniels
Series: Sterling's Montana #1
Audience: +18
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Publisher: HQN
Release Date: February 19th 2019
My Rating: 4 Cups
Source: InkSlinger PR
Blurb (from Goodreads):

He’s hoping to bury the past. She’s ready to settle the score.

The Sterling Ranch’s season opening isn’t going so smoothly. With the ranch’s lodge full of guests and a Montana blizzard threatening, Will Sterling needs help—and he needs it fast. So when his childhood friend Poppy Carmichael agrees to lend a hand, he’s grateful for a second chance…and more enticed by the woman she’s become than he cares to admit.

For Poppy, it was supposed to be a retreat full of horse rides and hoedowns—with a side of showing Will what he’s been missing all these years. But as the snow deepens outside, the guests’ suspicion and mistrust turn sinister inside, catching Will and Poppy in the crosshairs.

Weathering the storm in each other’s arms is all too easy for Will and Poppy, but will a confrontation with a killer mean their reunion is short-lived?

New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author B.J. Daniels starts her Sterling’s Ranch series off with a bang in this suspenseful story of romance and revenge.

*Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this book from InkSlinger PR in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way.

**Disclaimer: This book contains mature content. As a result, my review may contain references to content intended for mature audiences only.

This was my first B.J. Daniels book and let me tell you, I quite enjoyed it.

Book Review: Unbeautifully Loved by Emma Grayson (+18)

Author: Emma Grayson
Series:  Breathe Again #1
Publisher:Emma Grayson
Release Date:April 25th 2013
My Rating: 5 Cups
Source:Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review
Blurb (from Goodreads):

In three words I can sum up everything I learned about life. Regardless of the shit going on in your life, this fact still remains.

It. Goes. On

Lexie Todd knew these 3 simple words. They were her mantra. So, after dealing with years of abuse at the hands of her boyfriend and the father of her son, she knows what needs to be done. With help from her best friend Mollie, they go on the run.

After months of being on the run they finally find the perfect town to settle in. Unable to trust and always having her guard up, the last thing Lexie wants is to get involved with Lukas Gunn.

Persistent, annoying, bossy, over protective and extremely hot, Detective Lukas Gunn.

After an incident leaves her vulnerable, Lukas knows there’s something haunting her. He’s determined to find out, wanting to protect her and make her his. But Lexie is determined also. Not wanting to give up her past, she pushes him away. Repeatedly.

But when history repeats itself, will Lexie finally be able to trust those around her to keep her safe? Will Lukas be able to save her? Or will Lexie succumb to only knowing what it’s like to be Unbeautifully Loved?

******************************
**Warning**
This book contains the following and is recommended for ages 18 and up.


-Sexual content.
-Abusive subject matter
-Attempted rape
-Language

Have you ever read a book that took you so much by surprise it left you a little breathless? That’s how I felt right after finishing Unbeautifully Loved. Lexie and Lukas’s story was so beautiful, it made me not want to leave it’s pages for a long, long time.

Lexie has had a rough life. At only 26 she went through some pretty horrible things, so horrible I have no idea how she managed to escape them. I liked that even though she is tired and scarred by her past, she has enough strength in her to not let them rule her entire life.

Lukas was an amazing hero. Sexy and funny, he’s also very perceptive and very honest. He saw through all of Lexie’s walls, defenses and fears and managed to get to see the real woman that she should’ve been all along. He protected her when she needed it, even though at times he might have come across as way too stubborn for his own good.

I loved this book. Some parts where a little predictable, but they didn’t pull me away from the story. I would love to see a HEA story for Mollie. I loved her and she deserves it after everything she did for Lexie.

Now I’m waiting for the next book in this series, Unbearable Guilt. *sighs* I have to wait until October *pout*

Happy Reading!!

Blog Tour Book Review: A Cast of Shadows by Hailey Edwards & Giveaway

Author: Hailey Edwards
Series: Araneae Nation #2.5
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Release Date: February 12th 2013
My Rating: 5 cups
Source: copy offered in exchange for an honest review
Blurb (from Goodreads):

"The strongest net is no match for destiny. "

An "Araneae Nation" Story

Daraja has grown up watching her brothers journey down the river on the traditional Deinopidae rite of passage. Each returned with riches from their travels, and lovers with whom to share their lives.

Now she has reached the age where she would strike out on her own to seek her fortune-if she were male. Instead, she is expected to sit patiently, weave her nets and wait for the river to bring a husband to her.

Patience, however, has never been her strong suit.

Brynmor haunts the forest surrounding the city of Cathis, his disembodied spirit inextricably bound to the wild canis roaming his lands. Until the day he stumbles across a brazen trespasser in his woods.

Compelled to step in when the canis suspect her of poaching one of their own, Brynmor fears he has lost a piece of his ragged soul to the feisty, adventure-seeking female. And when the canis confront the real poachers, he is forced to choose which life to sacrifice. Hers...or his own.

Warning: This book contains one heroine with a knack for weaving nets and one hero who relishes getting caught. Expect singing, some howling, ghostly shenanigans, and the start of a love that transcends death.

Ever since A Feast of Souls I've been hoping Brynmor will get some sort of happy ending. He wasn't exactly the easiest guy to be around in Vaughn's story and we already knew some bad stuff about him from the previous book and what he did to his mate and all that. But I have to be honest and say that somewhere along the way, during A Feast of Souls, he sort of charmed me. Yes, I know, I'm a sucker for a tortured hero, especially when he's trying so hard to help the people around him, even though he did things in the past that hurt those same people.

Anyway, I was very excited when I heard that he got a story. And it proved me that I was correct on two things: Vaughn did get his charms from Brynmor and there was a reason other than cruelness for Brynmor to do what he did.

Daraja was a very good heroine. I feel like she was the perfect match for our tortured hero. And I liked her. I am hoping we get to see this couple more in the upcoming books.

One thing that I was curious about was how the author would make their love story happen. I loved that we don't get the usual story with these two. I can't say more, for fear of giving something away, but it's nice to see fresh, new takes on a subject and this is one of them.

Of course, me being me, I wish we'll see more of the wild canis pack. Or maybe a story with them? Wouldn't that be great? *grins*

Now to wait impatiently for the next book in this series. Do read the series people, as it is very, very good.

Purchase Links: 

Samhain: http://bit.ly/13Mn06o 

Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/Vbt8oG 

Barnes & Noble.com: http://bit.ly/VOzLvB 

Author Bio: Born in the Deep South, Hailey is a lifelong resident of Alabama. Her husband works for the local sheriff’s department and her daughter is counting down the days until she’s old enough to audition for American Idol. Her doxie, Black Ilex, helps Hailey write by snoozing in his recliner in her office.

Her desire to explore without leaving the comforts of home fueled her love of reading and writing. Whenever the itch for adventure strikes, Hailey can be found with her nose glued to her Kindle’s screen or squinting at her monitor as she writes her next happily-ever-after.

Website: http://haileyedwards.net/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3345773.Hailey_Edwards
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HaileyEdwards
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/authorhaileyedwards
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/haileyredwards/

GIVEAWAY!!!

Giveaway Guidelines:

 Hailey is gifting a digital book from a select list of her backlist titles to a commenter per number of tour stops. The contest is open internationally to anyone 18 years or older, or the age of majority, and will run from 12:01am EST 2/11/13 – 11:59pm EST 2/18/13. No purchase is necessary. Void where prohibited by law. The winners will be randomly selected via the widget and notified via Lit Connect (http://litconnect.com) within five days close of the tour. Please follow the Rafflecopter directions for ways to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review: Slave by Sherri Hayes (+18)

Author: Sherri Hayes
Series: Finding Anna #1
My Rating: 4 cups
Publisher: The Writer's Coffee Shop Publishing House
Publishing Date: July 28th 2011
Blurb: (from Goodreads)

Stephan has lived the lifestyle of a Dominant for five years. After several rebellious teenage years, it gave him the stability and control he had been seeking after his parent’s death.

As president of a not-for-profit foundation, he knows what his future holds and what he wants out of life. All that changes when a simple lunch with his college friend and Mentor, Darren, leads him to buying a slave.

Thrust into a situation he never thought he’d be in, Stephan can’t walk away. He is compelled to help this girl in the only way he knows how.

Brianna knows only one thing, she is a slave. She has nothing. She is nothing.

Can Stephan help Brianna realize that she is much more than just a Slave?

You know how sometimes you read a book that manages to have this unique hold on you, both mentally and physically, that you feel drained after reading it? That's how I feel right now after reading Slave. It's not the bad kind of draining, it's just a testament to how much I loved the story. Maybe that's why I find it a bit hard to review it. 

The one thing that I'm completely grateful of is that we get both Stephan's and Brianna's views in this story. I think I would've been a mess had one of those be missing. Another thing that I found really surprising, in a pleasant way, was that this was one of those books that make you want to read each and every word carefully.

The emotional journey you take while reading this story is also pretty amazing. I know I felt anger each time Stephan discovered more and more about Brianna's traumatic experiences, or I felt such a tenderness towards her that I wanted to be able to help her in some way. I also wanted to cry a few times. And I like the fact that by the end of the book we get to see an improved Brianna. She's not done recovering, that's for sure, and I am also sure of the fact that it won't be an easy period, but she was a little better than when the book started.

I loved both Stephan and Brianna and I cannot describe to you how much I need to read the next book and find out what happens to them. I have the sneaky suspicion the second book, Need, is going to be even more interesting and emotionally engaging. And I'm ready for a certain someone to receive what they deserve. Well, actually several someones.

Book Review: Death on Heels by Ellen Byerrum

 

Author: Ellen Byerrum

Series: Crimes of Fashion #8

My Rating: 5 cups

Blurb (from Goodreads):

Never! D.C. style scribe Lacey Smithsonian always swore she would never go back—back to Sagebrush, Colorado, that scruffy hard-luck Western boomtown where she'd earned her reporter’s spurs. But then three young women are murdered, their bodies left barefoot on lonely country roads, and the accused is her old boyfriend, Sagebrush rancher Cole Tucker. Lacey cowgirls up and heads out West (in her best cowboy boots) to prove Tucker's innocence. And perhaps to resolve the last of her old feelings for the man she had loved and left. Naturally, Lacey's plan doesn’t sit well with her current beau, private investigator Vic Donovan, who has his own history (and game plan) in Sagebrush.

Tucker takes one look at Lacey and kicks over everyone's game plan: He abducts her in a daring courthouse escape into the badlands of northern Colorado. On the run from the law with her old flame, in stolen vehicles and on horseback, with Vic and the posse in pursuit, Lacey's world turns upside down. Who can she trust? Tucker or Vic? The law or her own feelings and her reporter's instincts? Caught between two men, with a vicious killer on her trail, Death on Heels is a whole new—and potentially fatal—frontier for this fashion reporter.

Amazing! That's the first word that comes to my mind when thinking about this book. I don't even know where to begin, since I loved the entire book. It had everything: it had humor, sarcasm, action, romance and everything in between.

I loved Lacey. She's so funny, sassy, sarcastic, incredibly curious, stubborn. It was so fun reading about her adventures. I also loved her fashion articles and recommendations. They were fun to read and for someone who has nothing in common with fashion they were actually full with good ideas. Though I'm not sure I want to give up my old, favorite bag yet :P

I am new to this series and I am very sorry for that, because I feel like I almost lost an amazing story and a great heroine. I have to go back and learn more about her friends, Brooke and Stella, and about how Lacey and Vic reunited. Also, I want to read more of Lacey's Fashion Bites columns and about the troubles she's getting into.

If you haven't yet started this series and you want to read something fun and entertaining and something new, don't wait any longer! Read this series NOW!

Book Review: Hotel Transylvania by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

Author: Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

Series: Saint-Germain #1

My Rating: 5 cups

Blurb: (from Goodreads):

France 1743 (Sun King era). Le Comte de Saint-Germain - cultured, well-traveled, articulate, elegant, learned, honorable, an alchemist, and a man of many secrets - he is a mystery to the court of Louis XV. For Madelaine de Montalia, making her debut in society, he is as fascinating as he is enigmatic, an admiration he returns. But others are interested in her as well. The dark folly of her father's youth exposes her to danger that only someone of Saint-Germain's vast experience can comprehend or repulse.
In this first book of the Saint-Germain cycle, Saint-Germain establishes himself as the compassionate hero whose adventures span continents and millennia.

This is one of the books that have a real special meaning for me. First of all, it was the first vampire book I read after Anne Rice's that I loved. Second of all, it was a book recommended to me by a girl from college (the same one who introduced me to Sookie Stackhouse and Eric Northman). There's another reason, but I'm going to tell you about it a bit later.

If you haven't yet read this book (and the series), you shouldn't wait any longer. I think this is one of the best horror books I've read. Saint-Germain is one sexy vampire. I was actually disappointed by the fact that he can't have sex, but the author makes up for it. He's dark, sexy, mysterious, compelling. I can't think of a flaw this vampire has (besides being impotent, of course).

Madelaine is a sweet, innocent young woman that becomes a target for the villain, Saint Sebastien. She also catches the eye of our sexy vampire. Saint-Germain falls for her, though he tries hard to hide his true nature from her. He ultimately decides to risk exposure to save her from the bad guy and his friends and followers.

I loved the difference between what is believed to be evil (the vampire) and what really is evil (the Satan worshipers). I really wasn't that surprised by the ending, but it still made me hold my breath a few times.

The thing I loved about this book were the letters. I loved how every chapter started with a letter. It was something very new, a glimpse "behind the scene", small subplots that developed at the same time as our main story.

I have the second book in this wonderful series, The Palace, but I'm pondering about reading it. The reason for that is that you can read these books in two ways: either in the order in which they were published, of chronologically. I decided to wait a little while and buy the entire series and then decide how I'm going to read it.

Remember there was a third reason this book was special to me? Well, this is going to sound weird a little. I first read this book 5 years ago, during my first semester in college. I think it was either November or December. I remember it was a work day and it was about...7 or 8 pm. Anyway, there was a blackout for about an hour, no electricity whatsoever. This book gets creepier if you read it surrounded by candles and with classical music as a soundtrack.

Anyway, I loved this book and I can't wait to read the entire series.

Book Review : The Perfect Play by Jaci Burton

Author: Jaci Burton
Series: Play by Play #1
Blurb (from Goodreads):

The last thing event planner Tara Lincoln needs is the jet-set lifestyle of a football pro like Mick Riley; even though their steamy and passionate one-night stand proved that Mick is an all-star-both on the field and in the bedroom.
Tara played the game of love once and lost big, and she doesn't intend to put herself out there again, especially with a certified heartbreaker. But when Mick sets his mind to win, nothing will stop him. And he has the perfect play in mind to catch this sultry vixen.

I can't talk about the book without first expressing my love for the cover. There are very few covers out there that do the book justice and this is one of them. It's very hard to find that perfect cover, you know? And it's sexy. I can't imagine a better cover for this book. And all the covers for this series are amazingly beautiful and sexy.

Now that I've covered that up, I can return to the book in question. When it comes to sexy books, Jaci Burton is one of the first authors that pops into my head. Not only are her stories sexy, they're funny and full of good characters. And her books aren't filled with unnecessary sex scenes, when you feel it's more sex than action. Knowing that, I was a little afraid to pick this book up. Why? Because of the sport part. I know nothing about sports. Not one little detail. So I putt it off for a few weeks, mainly to gather my courage and try to look past the sports details. I'm glad I finally managed to do so, because I liked this book a lot.

I loved the characters. Tara is such a strong woman. She's not one of those women that swoon at the sight of a famous guy and she doesn't seem to care about his pockets more than him. She's also a devoted mother. She's willing to sacrifice her happiness for that of her son and I think that says a lot about her. I totally understood her reasons for being weary of having a relationship with Mick. He's a famous guy and a relationship with him could have a bad influence on her teenage son.

Mick is one of those guys that don't change much once they become famous. He has managed to get away from trouble and I think that makes him a very strong guy. He's also sexy, or so he is in my head. He helps Tara's son when he makes a bad decision, knowing that by doing it he could be risking his career. I think this is what made me see him as a really nice guy and the perfect partner for Tara and the perfect father for her son. Maybe it's not much, but to willingly hand over a secret that could ruin his career forever to a 13 year old  means that he really wants to be a part of their lives.

I honestly can't say a thing I didn't like in this book. Well, there's actually one little thing that made me want to smack Mick, but I can't talk about it here, without going further into the second book in the series, Changing the Game.

I am waiting impatiently for the third installment, Taking a Shot, due March, 2012. Until then, I have all the time in the world to reread the first two books.

My Rating:

Book Review: Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon

Series: Dark Hunters

Rating: 4 cups

Blurb (from Amazon):

"Harm no human…

A hired gunslinger, William Jessup Brady lived his life with one foot in the grave. He believed that every life had a price. Until the day when he finally found a reason to live. In one single act of brutal betrayal, he lost everything, including his life. Brought back by a Greek goddess to be one of her Dark-Hunters, he gave his immortal soul for vengeance and swore he’d spend eternity protecting the humans he’d once considered prey.

Orphaned as a toddler, Abigail Yager was taken in by a family of vampires and raised on one belief—Dark-Hunters are the evil who prey on both their people and mankind, and they must all be destroyed. While protecting her adoptive race, she has spent her life eliminating the Dark-Hunters and training for the day when she meeting the man who killed her family: Jess Brady.

A gun in the hand is worth two in the holster…

Jess has been charged with finding and terminating the creature who’s assassinating Dark-Hunters. The last thing he expects to find is a human face behind the killings, but when that face bears a striking resemblance to the one who murdered him centuries ago, he knows something evil is going on. He also knows he’s not the one who killed her parents. But Abigail refuses to believe the truth and is determined to see him dead once and for all.

Brought together by an angry god and chased by ancient enemies out to kill them both, they must find a way to overcome their mutual hatred or watch as one of the darkest of powers rises and kills both the races they’ve sworn to protect."

I was going crazy without another Dark Hunter book. I craved a new book in this series. I can't say it's my favorite in the series (I'm saving that space for Acheron's book and for Savitar's, whenever his book will be released) but I like the new angle, the new direction this book takes. 

I loved Jess, the gunslinger. I liked the idea of him being the bad boy of his time, the man that makes every other people shake in fear, even if he was bad for a good reason. I adored his relationship with his Squire. Reminded me a little of Kyrian and Nick. 

I liked the new pantheon. I also like the fact that Kenyon is mixing the Dark Hunter universe with the whole Apocalypse and the 2012 myths and I can't wait to see how the story develops later in The Guardian and in Time Untime. 

Abigail's character was also fresh. I don't think there was another character who hated the Hunters so much and who, ironically, ended up in love with one. Yes, Stryker does hate the Dark Hunters, but he didn't marry one, thank God! 

I think this is one of the few series I've read that even after twenty books can keep things fresh and appealing. Or at least that's how I feel. I do believe that Sherrilyn Kenyon is doing an amazing job with this series and I can't wait to see what happens next. Maybe we'll see more of Savitar in the near future?