Review: The Girl in the Mist

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I am woefully behind on my Kristen Ashley reading, and I was in a romantic suspense mood, so I decided on The Girl in the Mist for my roadtrip. In true KA fashion, she kept me engaged and entertained for the long drive.

Audiobook Review: Under Currents by Nora Roberts

Pub. Date:	July 9, 2019
Publisher:	MacMillan Audio
Narrator:	January LaVoy
Length:	14 hrs 36 min
Source:	Publisher

Wow, Nora Roberts certainly knows how to create character connections. This book grabbed my emotional strings from the first chapter and just would not let go. I will put a little warning out there that this book may have triggers for abuse victims, but it was a wonderful story of survival, resilience, hope and family. It was definitely an audiobook that I didn't want to put down, and I found myself stealing a minute here and there so I could find out what happened next.

ARC Review: Secrets by Aleatha Romig

Series:	Web of Sin #1
Pub. Date:	Oct 30, 2018
Publisher:	Romig Works
Length:	312 pgs
Source:	Inkslingr PR

I was so excited to hear about a new dark romantic suspense from Aleatha Romig, as I love her dark and twisty stories. I won't say that this one is as dark as Consequences or as much as a mindfeck as Into the Light, but it was a dynamic story with lots of potential for danger and suspense going forward.

Review: You Belong to Me by Karen Rose

Series:	Baltimore #1
Pub. Date:	June 7, 2011
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	480 pgs
Source:	Library

Karen Rose has been on my TBR for such a long time... but I never quite knew where to start and was daunted by the back list, fearing that I would need to read from the beginning to understand what was going on. But I decided to just jump in here with the first in a mini-series (#1 in Baltimore series), but which is actually #12 in Rose's Romantic Suspense collection. I am happy to report that I was able to jump in just fine without feeling lost or not knowing who long-standing characters were. So if you are trying to get your feet wet in the Rose water like me, come on in, temperature is fine! And check out the character web below if you need to know how the characters for the Baltimore series intersect.

ARC Review: Mission: Anaconda by A.D. Starrling

Series:	Division Eight #3
Pub. Date:	Aug. 28, 2018
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	111 pgs
Source:	Author

Mission: Anaconda is the third book in A.D. Starrling's fast-paced romantic military suspense series, Division Eight. The series follows the covert operatives of Division Eight, a high level and secret military organization that is sent on tough and sensitive assignments around the world.

Audiobook Review: Sweet Dreams by Kristen Ashley

Series:	Colorado Mountain #2
Pub. Date:	June 24, 2014
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Narrator:	Emma Taylor
Length:	25 hrs 6 min
Source:	Audible

Last week I had to go to Denver for work, and decided that I would take the scenic route through Utah and the Rockies. I thought for sure that I would be lucky enough to get lost (and found) in Carnal, Colorado. Sadly, that didn't happen. (Though I did visit Evergreen - which was supposedly the inspirational setting for Gnaw Bone!)  Anywho, driving through the beautiful mountains made me nostalgic for the Colorado Mountains series, and I popped in Sweet Dreams so that Tatum Jackson could keep me company on the drive.

Sweet Dreams is the second book in the Colorado Mountains series, but it can be read as a standalone if you have not read the first book, The Gamble. Though I encourage you to read them all... you will probably be ready to pack up and move to a small Colorado mountain town at that point.

ARC Review: Order of Protection by Lexi Blake

Series:	Courting Justice #1
Pub. Date:	June 5, 2018
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	336 pages
Source:	NetGalley

Order of Protection is the first installment of the new Courting Justice series by Lexi Blake. This series ties into Lexi's other series involving the Lawless family and the McKay-Taggert guys. It seems that this series will follow some of the attorneys that we met in the Lawless series, and heavily features Noah Lawless, who has joined the firm. I am interested to see how these stories play out and entwines with the other two series.

Audiobook Review: By His Touch by Adriana Anders

Series:	Blank Canvas #2
Pub. Date:	June 20, 2017
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Wendy Tremont King
Length:	13 hrs 25 min
Source:	Hoopla

This is another of my blogger shame books that fell through the cracks last year, but I was happy to find it in audio for my latest road trip. I really liked the first book, and I was glad to see that the Blank Canvas series is staying in small town Virginia with our philanthropic dermatologist and her tattooed and traumatized patients.

Audiobook Review: Kill Without Shame by Alexandra Ivy

Series:	ARES Security #2
Pub. Date:	Feb. 27, 2018
Publisher:	Recorded Books
Narrator:	Jim Frangione
Length:	9 hrs 44 min
Source:	RBDigital

Kill Without Shame is the second book in the ARES Security series featuring five soldiers who were bound together in horror when they were taken prisoner by the Taliban. These protective alpha males have returned stateside and maintained their closeness to include starting a security firm together - ARES Security. Now each one will exercise those protective instincts to save a damsel and bring her into the fold.

Review: Dangerous Promise by Megan Hart

Series:	The Protector #1
Pub. Date:	Jan. 2, 2018
Publisher:	Swerve
Length:	255 pgs
Source:	3M Cloud Library

I've been a Megan Hart fan since the way back, loving the incredibly emotional erotic romances that she published. It seems she is branching out over the last few years and crossing genres into the realms of suspense and thrillers. With The Protector series, Megan offers a futuristic romance with an enhanced heroine and billionaire hero struggling through a contentious relationship.

Audiobook Review: About That Kiss by Jill Shalvis

Series:	Heartbreaker Bay #5
Pub. Date:	Jan. 23, 2018
Publisher:	Avon / HarperAudio
Narrator::	Karen White
Length:	9 hrs 26 min
Source:	Overdrive/Library

About That Kiss is the fifth book in the Heartbreaker Bay series, of which I have only read one book. While these may technically be read as standalones, I felt like I was missing info and wish I had read all the earlier books first. There is quite a bit of character crossover and references to their stories (particularly the fateful fountain) and, as I didn't know everyone, I felt like I was the clueless new kid on the block.

So this story is about a kiss (duh) that seems to have happened off-page... or maybe in a previous book? We start off the story two days after the kiss has happened. I wish that scene had been included in a prologue or something because I felt like I was coming into the story late. So the gist is that our heroine (Kylie) and hero (Joe) had a steamy, possibly drunken, kiss at a bar. Then he didn't call her, but comes into her reclaimed wood store a couple days after.

ARC Review: The Woman Left Behind by Linda Howard

Pub. Date:	March 6, 2018
Publisher:	William Morrow
Length:	368 pages
Source:	Edelweiss

This must be a week for new-to-me authors, as this is another new one for me. Though I have had Linda Howard on my TBR for a really long time, I just haven't found time to fit her in until now. And now I want to go back and read the whole back list! This was a great romantic suspense!

The premise revolves around GO Teams, a secret sect of the government sending highly specialized and trained teams out into dangerous situations to address whatever situation is needed. Unfortunately the teams, and their leader, Axel McNamara, have an enemy in Congress who wants to see them fail in the worst way. So there was suspense and danger at ever angle in this novel.

ARC Review: True to You by Jennifer Ryan

Series:	Montana Heat #2
Pub. Date:	Feb. 27, 2018
Publisher:	Avon
Length:	384 pgs
Source:	Edelweiss

True to You is the second book in the Montana Heat series. I have not read the prequel, Protected by Love, or the first book, Escape to You. I don't think its absolutely necessary to read the earlier books to keep from feeling lost, but there is discussion and maybe some light spoilers about the earlier books in this one.

I have been very curious about areas of the Northwest lately - particularly Montana and the Dakotas. I hope to visit now that I'm living on this side of the country. I wish this book had focused more on the setting, but I understand that the main focus was our romance and the hero's undercover assignment. I was just expecting a little more of that cowboy feel based on the cover.

ARC Review: Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz

Series:	Cutler Sutter & Salinas #2
Pub. Date:	Jan 2, 2018
Publisher:	Berkley Romance
Length:	334 pages
Source:	NetGalley

As I was reading When All the Girls Have Gone, I was very intrigued by Max Cutler and his foster brothers who were rescued from a cult fire. I thought the backstory was captivating and was interested to learn more about their time in the cult and their life afterwards.  So I was very interested in this second installment where both of our main characters were cult survivors.

Audiobook Review: Smoke and Sin by Shayla Black and Lexi Blake

Series:	Perfect Gentlemen #4
Pub. Date:	Nov. 21, 2017
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Greg Boudreaux
Length:	11 hrs 3 min
Source:	Publisher

Shayla and Lexi have been extremely evil with this series - giving us the teases of Mad and not answering the question of "is he or isn't he?" But I have been riveted to this series arc as they have dribbled out the facts of the conspiracy and huge political secret. I think it speaks to the quality of the writing that I have enjoyed this series despite being overtired of everything political over the past year.

The Perfect Gentlemen up in this installment is Roman Calder, right hand to the president, Zack Hayes. Roman is known around the White House as the Hitman... protecting the president with an iron hand. It seems that Roman's entire existence (at least since prep school) has been aimed at getting Zack Hayes to the White House. Nothing, and no one, is more important than his friend Zack. His single-minded focus has turned him into an asshole playboy, refusing to get serious about any woman unless she fits his cookie cutter mold for the perfect political wife. Unfortunately, when he found that woman, she was married to his best friend. He left a lot of broken hearts in the dust, including that of our heroine. I really had a hard time liking Roman... he seemed cold and manipulative, and he was very slow to learn a lesson from past mistakes. There were many times that I wanted to tell him to STFU and pay attention!

Guest Review by Julie: Break Me by Tiffany Snow

Series:	Corrupted Hearts #2
Pub. Date:	March 14, 2017
Publisher:	Montlake Romance
Length:	316 pages

Picking up two months after Follow Me ends, China is discovering the ups and downs of dating and relationships. And it's not all good. To the amusement of social media, her romance with Jackson has its fair share of hiccups. He's looking for commitment while she's...hesitant. Some of her waffling over Jackson was petty, but that may be the age thing along with her OCD quirks. Her relationship with Clark, however, appeared to be just friends, until Clark opened up over a personal matter. Now I'm wondering (okay, I'm hoping) if things will get complicated down the road...

Guest Review by Julie: Follow Me by Tiffany Snow

Series:	Corrupted Hearts #1
Pub. Date:	Oct 4, 2016
Publisher:	Montlake Romance
Length:	295 pages

China is a smart, socially awkward, computer programmer whose OCD tendencies border severe. Most of the time, I got a kick of her personality. Sometimes her extreme logic was annoying though and I couldn't decide if it helped or hindered her in some situations. 

Guest Review: Survival Instinct by Janie Crouch

Series:	Instinct #3
Pub. Date:	July 11, 2017
Publisher:	Calamity Jane
Length:	244 pages
Source:	Tasty Book Tours

Chloe Jeffries is a petite control freak with endless energy. Writing for a popular tv show let's her channel that energy into a lucrative and creative endeavor, but it's the voices in her head that provide the show with its entertaining storylines. Unfortunately, one of the voices is louder than most and has decided to stalk someone on set. Chloe doesn't know who the intended victim is, but she's willing to help figure it out..within reason, of course. She never expected someone like Shane Westman to show up and disrupt the little bubble of creativity she's created on the set, nor did she expect to be attracted to someone who has the personality of an ice cube.

ARC Review: Mission: Armor by A.D. .Starrling

Series:	Division Eight #2
Pub. Date:	July 14, 2017
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	150 pages
Source:	Author

This is a quickie review for the second book in A.D. Starrling's second installment of the Division Eight novella series.  Mission: Armor is a bit of a prequel for the series as I believe it takes place prior to the first book, Mission: Black. So I don't think you would have any problem starting with this book if you are just discovering the series.

Division Eight is a team of covert operatives headed by our hero, Alex Slade. Alex is an extremely skilled operative, but he is also a tortured hero experiencing some PTSD-type dreams from his former capture and torture by a drug cartel. Alex has sought out Vivian Thorpe to be his second-in-command based on their prior history, one that saw her rescuing him from the clutches of the cartel. Vivian knew she was in trouble when she joined the team, particularly as she fell in love at first sight with Alex during that prior rescue mission. 

Audiobook Review: The Watcher by Bella Jewel

Pub. Date:	May 30, 2017
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrators:	Maxine Mitchelle Joe Arden
Length:	7 hrs 11 min
Source:	Publisher

This will be a quickie mini review as I'm still traveling and continue to find myself pressed for time. I listened to this audiobook at the beginning of my road trip, and it made the miles fly by. Joe Arden and Maxine Mitchell did a good job with the character performances and held my attention quite well throughout the story.