Audiobook Review: Making Faces by Amy Harmon

Pub. Date:	March 19, 2014
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrators:	Rob Shapiro
Length:	6 hrs 33 min
Source:	Audible Romance

This is a book from my blogger shame pile that I got from NetGalley some time ago. I actually picked it up and put it down a couple times due to the age of the characters. I am not much of a young adult reader and I didn't realize that this was a young adult coming-of-age type novel. I generally like Amy Harmon, so I didn't want to write the story off so it has sat out there lingering for a while. But when I saw that it was available on Audible Romance, I decided to give it another shot. I'm glad I was listening while I was at home, as there was definitely some ugly crying and tissues needed for this one.

ARC Review: The First Kiss of Spring by Emily March

Series:	Eternity Springs #14
Pub. Date:	Feb. 27, 2018
Publisher:	St. Martin's Press
Length:	368 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

I'm not gonna lie - I was totally sucked in by this cover. I just love the look of the colorful house in a small town Colorado setting... the whole thing is just appealing. I have not read any of Eternity Springs books, and I have not previously read Emily March. So I was trying something new here. And I'm glad I did! I want to move to Eternity Springs now... and I definitely need Celeste working her matchmaking magic to set me up.

Side note - while I didn't feel lost without having read the earlier books in the series, there is a ton of character crossover and maybe some spoilers for previous books. There was probably also some world building having to do with the town as the series has progressed. So you may want to start at the beginning instead of jumping in at Book 14 like me.

ARC Review: Judgment Road by Christine Feehan

Series:	Torpedo Ink #1
Pub Date:	Jan 23, 2018
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	462 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

I have been totally excited about this new series from Christine Feehan. I was a little worried as its a spinoff of the popular Sea Haven series and, despite my work on reading her back list, I haven't read this entire series yet. While there were a few areas where I wished I had the backstory, for the most part I was fine reading this without reading that earlier series.

So... Torpedo Ink. A motorcycle club and family forged in horrific circumstances. Seriously, the back story on these guys (and girls) is so sad and intense and sometimes hard to read. So it was emotional as hell y'all. In addition to their tortured background, these guys are trained assassins and most have some special ability. There were only light paranormal elements, not enough to really classify this as a paranormal romance, but a nice blend of fantasy and dark reality to make our characters more interesting.

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.

ARC Review and Author's Top 5: Duke of Desire by Elizabeth Hoyt

Series:	Maiden Lane #12
Pub. Date:	Oct 17, 2017
Publisher:	Grand Central
Length:	364 pages
Source:	NetGalley

Duke of Desire is the conclusion to the Maiden Lane series, and man did Elizabeth Hoyt take us out with a bang. I was supposed to be packing today for my big move, but this book kept me totally distracted and camped out my couch turning page after page.

Lady Iris Jordan was the friend of Hugh Fitzroy, Duke of Kyle, from Duke of Pleasure. Thought to be Kyle's new wife, Iris was kidnapped by the Lords of Chaos, a group of sadistic and pedophilic men operating in the dark of London society.  Iris is a widow and, after her unhappy first marriage, she was hoping to marry again for love and children. Finding herself married to the beastly Duke of Dyemore was not in the cards, but Iris found herself compelled by his dark vulnerability. I really liked this heroine. She was mature and did not despair of her circumstances. She looked past Dyemore's scarred visage and saw the wounded boy underneath, and the good man that he was trying to be. I liked that she was brave in her uncertainty and didn't allow the Duke to push her away or intimidate her.

Audiobook Review: Beauty and the Highland Beast by Lecia Cornwall

Series:	Highland Fairytale #1
Pub. Date:	June 20, 2017
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Ruth Urquhart
Length:	9 hrs 33 min
Source:	Publisher

I have had Beauty and the Highland Beast on my TBR for a while, so I was happy to see it come out in audio just in time for my latest road trip. I'm a sucker for Beauty and the Beast retellings, so I was extra excited about a Highland beast!

Dair Sinclair is our beast. He is a once proud son, rumored to be a pirate, with all the cocky swagger that entails. But after being captured and tortured, Dair has returned home a broken man whom most of his clan thinks to be mad. Between injuries, scars and nightmares, he made a sympathetic beast.

ARC Review: Claim & Protect by Rhenna Morgan

Series:	Haven Brotherhood #3
Pub. Date:	June 12. 2017
Publisher:	Carina Press
Length:	416 pages
Source:	NetGalley

Rhenna Morgan is killing me. 

KILLING. ME!!! 

Starting with Rough & Tumble, I fell in love with Jace. I figured he would be my favorite of the series, second only to Axel (who has a sexy smutty Scot thing going on). But then there was Zeke in Wild & Sweet, who was AWESOME. And now... NOW... Rhenna gives us freaking Trevor, who blows both of the previous heroes out of the water. Seriously - each hero has been better than the last! By the time we get around to Axel, my head is just going to explode. Or my ovaries. Or something. And let it be known RIGHT NOW, that I am claiming Axel and his proclivities for all things kink. He. Is. Mine. Period. Exclamation Point!

If you haven't read Rough & Tumble or Wild & Sweet, then you are totally missing out. But if you want to start with Claim & Protect and read out of order, you should be fine. Basically what you need to know is that the Haven Brotherhood is a group of unconventional alpha males that have become family. These men are totally hot, totally possessive alpha male, and totally successful. From club owners to pilots to doctors... you are sure to find a hero to suit your tastes. (Just stay away from Axel!)

ARC Review: Satisfaction by Lexi Blake

Series:	Lawless #2
Pub. Date:	Jan. 3, 2017
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	384 pages
Source:	NetGalley

This is one of my blogger shame books - a review that fell through the cracks back the first of the year when I had to get one of those dreaded eye injections. So I apologize to Lexi and Berkley for this being so late. I definitely wish I would have gotten to it sooner than now! Things have gotten very interesting in the Lawless family.

The next mark for the Lawless siblings is Carly Fisher, personal assistant to the evil television homemaker, Patty Cain. Carly got conned by an embezzling ex-husband and is being blackmailed to stay in her job with Patty, so her life is fairly miserable. When the country girl escaped from Alabama to join the glitzy team with Patricia's Paradise, things didn't turn out quite like she hoped. Despite her friendly and caring personality, things with Patty and the ex instilled Carly with self-esteem and adequacy issues. When she is approached by Brandon Lawless, with his movie star good looks and mesmerizing smile, Carly's perceived inadequacies often went into overdrive and had her second-guessing his motives, words and attraction.

ARC Review: The Wedding GIft by Gemma Brocato

Pub. Date:	April 18, 2017
Publisher:	Lucky Red Press
Length:	2712 pages
Source:	Author

I'm bringing you a fabulous value with this Indie Wednesday spotlight... this anthology has over 2,500 pages of wedded bliss for only 99 pennies! I will be packing this compilation around on my kindle for a while to pull out in the waiting room at the doctor's office, auto shop, etc. For now, I'm reviewing one of the stories for one of the Kickass Chicks.

Audiobook Review: Risk by Dannika Dark

Series:	Mageri World
Pub. Date:	Aug. 16, 2016
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Narrator:	Nicole Poole
Length:	10 hrs 6 min
Source:	Publisher

I remember that I really enjoyed the Mageri series by Dannika Dark. After checking Goodreads, I saw that all of the books got 4 or 5 stars from me, so I was excited to see another book in the Mageri World. Unfortunately I should have re-read the original series before reading this book. Having read the series in one swoop more than three years ago, I didn't remember anything! There was a lot of character crossover in this story that made me feel like I was missing out. I couldn't remember Silver or Sunny or Levi or Novis or Justice... or anyone! I didn't even remember our hero, Simon. Gah! 

ARC Review: Highland Temptation by Jennifer Haymore

Series:	Highland Knights #3
Pub. Date:	Aug. 23, 2016
Publisher:	Loveswept
Length:	220 pages
Source:	Edelweiss

I have really been enjoying Haymore's Highland Knights series. Though it seems that with each book, I have been pleasantly surprised, having forgotten how much I enjoyed the previous story until I read the next one. I do recommend that you read the previous books in the series as there is a lot of character crossover and past couples continue to play a role in future books.

Audiobook Review: Reaper by A. Zavarelli

Series:	Boston Underworld #2
Pub. Date:	July 22, 2016
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Narrator:	Tracy Marks
Length:	8 hrs 42 min
Source:	Author/Audible

It's been a while since I've read a mafia romance... and this one intrigued me because the author said the audiobook was accent-heavy. I love accents in my audiobooks, so I jumped on the chance to review. It's also my first read by A. Zavarelli, and I have to say that I am a fan. I will definitely check out the rest of this series now.

ARC Review: The Highlander by Kerrigan Byrne

Series:	Victorian Rebels #3
Pub. Date:	Aug. 2, 2016
Publisher:	St. Martin's Press
Length:	368 pages
Source:	NetGalley

Kerrigan Byrne tricks us with deceptively simple titles for such complex and tormented heroes. Because The Highwayman, The Hunter, and now, The Highlander, are anything but what these simple labels would imply. For me, Kerrigan Byrne is a throwback author - her writing is a throwback to the 70s-90s when historical romances contained darker elements, more action, and complicated characters and plots. I heart her so much and, with this series, she has cemented herself onto my favorite authors list. Plus - she's super nice! I got to fangirl over Kerrigan a little at RT this year and I can't wait to stalk her down again at another signing.

Throwback Thursday: Stormswept by Sabrina Jeffries

Series:	Wales #1
Original Pub. Date:	Sept. 1, 1995
Re-Release Date:	June 28, 2016
Publisher:	Pocket Books
Length:	400 pages
Source:	NetGalley

Man, this is a second chance romance in the extreme! I am glad some of these older historical romances are being re-released. Many of the historicals from the 80s and 90s are so much more dramatic from what we are seeing today. Stormswept was no exception.

Audiobook Review: That One Moment by Amy Daws

Series:	London Lovers #5
Pub. Date:	June 28, 2016
Publisher:	Star Hollows Pub.
Narrators:	Charlotte Cole Will M. Watt
Length:	9 hrs 59 min
Source:	Author / Audible

I met Amy Daws at the RT Convention earlier this year, and she was so sweet and nice, I knew I had to try one of her books soon.  I picked up a signed copy of Not the One - but its so pretty I haven't wanted to crack the spine! So I was stoked when I saw this review opportunity for That One Moment. I have yet to read the earlier books of the London Lovers series, and I know the characters crossover quite a bit.  However, Daws included enough backstory in this one to keep you from feeling lost if you are starting in the middle, like me.

ARC Review: His Scandalous Kiss by Sophie Barnes

Series:	Thorncliff Manor #3
Pub. Date:	July 26, 2016
Publisher:	Avon
Length:	384 pages
Source:	Edelweiss

House parties and matchmaking abound at Thorncliff Manor, where its guests inevitably find themselves embroiled in a search for evidence of a secret societies. This story is follows the same vein, but gives us new and unique characters to refresh a familiar plot line.

ARC Review: Dirty Sexy Cuffed by Carly Phillips & Erika Wilde

Series:	Dirty Sexy #3
Pub. Date:	June 21, 2016
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	230 pages
Source:	Rockstar PR

This is the third installment of Carly Phillips' and Erika Wilde's Dirty Sexy series, which has followed the romantic pairing of each of three brothers, all tortured heroes that you want to snatch up and smother with love. Each brother is different... the caretaker, the bad boy, and the good guy - but they are all undeniably hot hot hot.

ARC Review: Duke of Sin by Elizabeth Hoyt

Series:	Maiden Lane #10
Pub. Date:	May 31, 2016
Publisher:	Grand Central Pub.
Length:	364 Pages
Source:	NetGalley

Please forgive me, for I have been living under a rock. This is my first read from Elizabeth Hoyt, and I so wish I would have picked her up before now! But one good thing about finding a stellar author late in the game is that you have their whole backlist of books to work through instead of waiting around months or a year for a new release! I will definitely be working through this lady's backlist because I totally dug her writing style.