Sunday, September 30, 2018

Review: Hot Christmas Kisses

Hot Christmas Kisses Hot Christmas Kisses by Joss Wood
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Hot Christmas Kisses by Joss Wood is delectable! I thoroughly enjoyed DJ and Matt's story. DJ holds others at an arms length because everyone in her life leaves. Why should Matt be any different. He lives across the world. Matt fears commitment because the only time he ever felt like settling down everything was ripped from his grasp. So why should he lay his heart on the line and let it be runover by someone again. This book is about hidden secrets that must come out in order to move forward. It is fantastic. The sex scenes are fanatical and delicious.

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Saturday, September 29, 2018

Review: Secret Twins for the Texan

Secret Twins for the Texan Secret Twins for the Texan by Karen Booth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Secret Twins for the Texan by Karen Booth is seventh book in the Texas Cattleman's Club: The Imposter series. I absolutely adored Cole's story. This second chance romance between Cole and Dani is amazing. The fire burning beneath the surface as they find their way back to one another is astounding.

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Friday, September 28, 2018

Cyclone




Title: Cyclone
Series: Linear Tactical Series #1
Author: Janie Crouch
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release Date: September 25, 2018



Blurb

He’d protect her from any threat… 
But what if the biggest threat is him?

Doctor Anne Nichols is back in Oak Creek, Wyoming, only because she has no other options. Here, she was always the shy, stuttering girl, invisible to everyone. 

Except Zac Mackay. The very reason she left in the first place.

Zac’s years in Special Forces taught him survival skills, and he’s created a company—Linear Tactical—to teach those skills to others, so they never have to live in fear.

Then why is Annie, the last person he’d ever want to hurt, afraid of him

Zac’s determined to wipe the fear from the eyes of the woman who has never been far from his mind. And fix the mistakes—his mistakes—that put that look there in the first place. 

But a predator has set his sights on Annie. And now survival skills will become much more than lessons…







Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU





Excerpt

“I was here a couple of years ago, but only for a day or two,” Anne told Zac, looking away. She had booked a room out of Oak Creek both times she’d dared come back. The thought of staying at The Mayor’s Inn had been too painful. She couldn’t even look at that hotel without feeling sick to her stomach.

And she’d avoided everyone—particularly Zac—as much as possible. Just in case his words about not coming back were still true. She tried to swallow the panic that threatened to overwhelm her. Maybe he still felt that way now, even though he hadn’t said anything at the hospital.

“There.” He pointed at her. “That look that just came into your eyes. I saw it at the hospital. It’s like you’re afraid of me, Annie.” He took a step closer and she instinctively one back. One of his eyebrows shot up, letting her know she’d proved his point. “Do you think I’m going to hurt you?”

“No.” Not physically. She’d never worried that he’d hurt her that way, despite having five inches and probably fifty pounds—all muscle—on her.

But he was right. She couldn’t continue living in Oak Creek with them ignoring everything that had happened that night. What had been said. What had been done. Maybe she would’ve tried to, and to avoid Zac forever, if he hadn’t ended up in her ER. 

But the truth was, there weren’t enough bushes in this town for her to jump into. She was going to run into Zac. A lot.

Sometimes all you could do was face the past.

She pulled a breath in. “I’m not scared of you. I mean, I know you would never hurt me physically. For crying out loud, you wrecked your motorcycle rather than hit a dog.” She’d meant for her laugh to seem breezy, but it just sounded stilted. “But yeah, I mean, we can’t pretend like that night never happened. The stuff we did. Stuff you...we said.”

His eyes narrowed. “That night we spent together after Becky died.”

“Yeah. That night.” As if they’d had another. “The bottom line is, I can’t leave here, Zac. No matter what you said then, or even if you feel the same way now.”

He shook his head, brows furrowing. “I don’t expect you to leave. You’re obviously a respected doctor, more than competent. Why would you think I wanted you to leave?”

Some of the tension she’d been carrying since his arrival in the ER began to ease. He was right. Something said in grief and anger six years ago didn’t necessarily hold true all this time later. She was silly for thinking it did. “Okay, well, it’s good to know you don’t feel the same as you did back then.”

He took a single predatory step closer, and she tensed again. “I said something that night to make you think you needed to leave?”

She stared at him, her mouth flopping open like some sort of fish. “You don’t remember what you said?”

Those words would be engrained in her memory forever.

Get out and don’t come back.

He rubbed his forehead. “That whole night is fuzzy for me.”

I can’t even bear to look at you. You just betrayed the only person in this town who ever wanted you here. 

Tossing her naked into the hallway before flinging her clothes at her. 

“What do you remember?” She forced the words past a throat that seemed to have dried up.

His hand moved to the back of his neck. “Honestly, not much at all. It’s sort of a blur.”

She retreated a step from him again. That night had been the most important night of her life. The best. The worst. It had changed the very fabric of her being. 

And it was sort of a blur for him.






Author Bio


USA TODAY bestselling author Janie Crouch writes what she loves to read: passionate romantic suspense.  She is a winner and/or finalist of multiple romance literary awards including the Golden Quill Award for Best Romantic Suspense, the National Reader’s Choice Award, and the RITA© Award by the Romance Writers of America.

Janie recently relocated with her husband and their four teenagers to Germany (due to her husband's job as support for the U.S. Military), after living in Virginia for nearly 20 years. When she's not listening to the voices in her head—and even when she is—she enjoys engaging in all sorts of crazy adventures (200-mile relay races; Ironman Triathlons, treks to Mt. Everest Base Camp) traveling, and movies of all kinds. 


Author Links

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Cyclone Release Blitz

CycloneCyclone by Janie Crouch

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Cyclone is absolutely mouthwatering! I could not put this book down. Pretty sure I read it in a couple hours. I was literally devouring the pages! This second chance romance/thriller is everything you could want to read piled all in one book. Janie Crouch is pure genius when it comes to this one. She NAILED it! Anne and Zac are amazing together! You will be amazed at this story line.



View all my reviews



Title: Cyclone
Series: Linear Tactical Series #1
Author: Janie Crouch
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release Date: September 25, 2018



Blurb

He’d protect her from any threat… 
But what if the biggest threat is him?

Doctor Anne Nichols is back in Oak Creek, Wyoming, only because she has no other options. Here, she was always the shy, stuttering girl, invisible to everyone. 

Except Zac Mackay. The very reason she left in the first place.

Zac’s years in Special Forces taught him survival skills, and he’s created a company—Linear Tactical—to teach those skills to others, so they never have to live in fear.

Then why is Annie, the last person he’d ever want to hurt, afraid of him

Zac’s determined to wipe the fear from the eyes of the woman who has never been far from his mind. And fix the mistakes—his mistakes—that put that look there in the first place. 

But a predator has set his sights on Annie. And now survival skills will become much more than lessons…







Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU





Excerpt

“I was here a couple of years ago, but only for a day or two,” Anne told Zac, looking away. She had booked a room out of Oak Creek both times she’d dared come back. The thought of staying at The Mayor’s Inn had been too painful. She couldn’t even look at that hotel without feeling sick to her stomach.

And she’d avoided everyone—particularly Zac—as much as possible. Just in case his words about not coming back were still true. She tried to swallow the panic that threatened to overwhelm her. Maybe he still felt that way now, even though he hadn’t said anything at the hospital.

“There.” He pointed at her. “That look that just came into your eyes. I saw it at the hospital. It’s like you’re afraid of me, Annie.” He took a step closer and she instinctively one back. One of his eyebrows shot up, letting her know she’d proved his point. “Do you think I’m going to hurt you?”

“No.” Not physically. She’d never worried that he’d hurt her that way, despite having five inches and probably fifty pounds—all muscle—on her.

But he was right. She couldn’t continue living in Oak Creek with them ignoring everything that had happened that night. What had been said. What had been done. Maybe she would’ve tried to, and to avoid Zac forever, if he hadn’t ended up in her ER. 

But the truth was, there weren’t enough bushes in this town for her to jump into. She was going to run into Zac. A lot.

Sometimes all you could do was face the past.

She pulled a breath in. “I’m not scared of you. I mean, I know you would never hurt me physically. For crying out loud, you wrecked your motorcycle rather than hit a dog.” She’d meant for her laugh to seem breezy, but it just sounded stilted. “But yeah, I mean, we can’t pretend like that night never happened. The stuff we did. Stuff you...we said.”

His eyes narrowed. “That night we spent together after Becky died.”

“Yeah. That night.” As if they’d had another. “The bottom line is, I can’t leave here, Zac. No matter what you said then, or even if you feel the same way now.”

He shook his head, brows furrowing. “I don’t expect you to leave. You’re obviously a respected doctor, more than competent. Why would you think I wanted you to leave?”

Some of the tension she’d been carrying since his arrival in the ER began to ease. He was right. Something said in grief and anger six years ago didn’t necessarily hold true all this time later. She was silly for thinking it did. “Okay, well, it’s good to know you don’t feel the same as you did back then.”

He took a single predatory step closer, and she tensed again. “I said something that night to make you think you needed to leave?”

She stared at him, her mouth flopping open like some sort of fish. “You don’t remember what you said?”

Those words would be engrained in her memory forever.

Get out and don’t come back.

He rubbed his forehead. “That whole night is fuzzy for me.”

I can’t even bear to look at you. You just betrayed the only person in this town who ever wanted you here. 

Tossing her naked into the hallway before flinging her clothes at her. 

“What do you remember?” She forced the words past a throat that seemed to have dried up.

His hand moved to the back of his neck. “Honestly, not much at all. It’s sort of a blur.”

She retreated a step from him again. That night had been the most important night of her life. The best. The worst. It had changed the very fabric of her being. 

And it was sort of a blur for him.






Author Bio


USA TODAY bestselling author Janie Crouch writes what she loves to read: passionate romantic suspense.  She is a winner and/or finalist of multiple romance literary awards including the Golden Quill Award for Best Romantic Suspense, the National Reader’s Choice Award, and the RITA© Award by the Romance Writers of America.

Janie recently relocated with her husband and their four teenagers to Germany (due to her husband's job as support for the U.S. Military), after living in Virginia for nearly 20 years. When she's not listening to the voices in her head—and even when she is—she enjoys engaging in all sorts of crazy adventures (200-mile relay races; Ironman Triathlons, treks to Mt. Everest Base Camp) traveling, and movies of all kinds. 


Author Links

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

One Night Scandal

One Night Scandal (The McNeill Magnates #9)One Night Scandal by Joanne Rock
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One Night Scandal by Joanne Rock is the ninth book in the McNeil Magnates series. I must say this one was a great finish to the series. I adored the entire series. Rock shows us that love can conquer all through Hannah and Brock. They pretty much have love at first sight. The chemistry between the two pulls them together from the very first page. An excellent read.

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Title: One Night Scandal
Series: The McNeill Magnates #9
Author: Joanne Rock
Publisher: Harlequin Desire
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 1, 2018



Blurb

One night to remember with the perfect cowboy…

Or one step toward the perfect revenge?

Nothing in Hannah Ryder's plot included a scorchin'-hot fling with a drop-dead sexy cowboy. Especially when her cowboy turns out to be Brock McNeill—a potential enemy with ties to the man Hannah wants to destroy. When an accident claims Brock's memory, Hannah is caught in an intricate web of scandal. Falling dangerously for the one man she shouldn't trust...







Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU
B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS
GOOGLE PLAY





Excerpt

The cowboy’s voice smoked through her, heating her insides and sending a shiver of awareness over Hannah’s skin.
Did she want a ride?
Her subconscious was going to have way too much fun tormenting her with that image in her dreams tonight. For now, she needed to stop fantasizing about sexy Brock, the rancher who turned her inside out with just a handful of words and a smoldering gaze.
Her legs were still unsteady after whatever it was that had passed between them inside the barn. She’d had meaningful relationships in her past. Men she’d loved. And yet no one had ever given her the sizzling shock to the system that she felt from being around this stranger. Swallowing hard, she braced herself as she turned around to refuse his offer.
“That’s okay. I don’t mind walking.” Her voice was soft and breathless when she needed it to be firm and sure. “I, um, could use the fresh air.”
She could also use a new libido. One that wasn’t quite so susceptible to tall, muscular cowboys. It must be because of all the stress she was under with her sister. She’d latched onto a pleasurable distraction and now she couldn’t quite let go.
Brock folded his arms across his impressive chest. God, his arms were amazing, too. She wanted to skim her hands up the triceps and over his shoulders. Instead, she jammed her restless fingers in the back pockets of her jeans along with her phone.
“You’d probably be fine,” he acknowledged. “You must have walked over here in the dark in the first place, although the moon was higher at that hour, making the path a lot easier to follow than it will be now.”
She had been thinking the same thing since she didn’t remember exactly where she’d broken through the brush to find the cabin. Nightfall in this part of Wyoming was nothing like it was in Southern California. Here, there was no ambient light of any kind. Just deep blackness and stars.
“I’ve got my phone,” she argued, although she was beginning to wonder what else might be out there in the wilderness surrounding the ranch lands. She’d heard wolves—or some kind of wild dogs—baying in the distance on the walk over here. “The cabin I’m staying in is just through there.”
She pointed vaguely, trying to see any kind of trail.
“I’m not sure calling someone will do you any good if you meet up with a bear. Or an elk. Or some other wild animal that wasn’t expecting company at this hour.”
She didn’t want to be foolish. So, in spite of the out-of-control attraction, she figured the best thing to do would be accept the ride and get home as fast as possible.
And put this encounter out of her mind.
“Is your truck nearby?” she asked, peering around the barn. During the shoot, there’d been a couple of golf carts and two trucks parked there.
A smile curved that hard mouth of his. Nodding, he relaxed his arms and walked past her, close enough for her to feel the warmth of his body, close enough for his sleeve to brush hers.
“My horse is right this way.”
“Horse?” Her belly flipped.
Not because she minded riding a horse. Only because it implied a proximity that…
A shiver stole over her skin. Her nerve endings danced in anticipation of touching him. Something her brain knew was a very, very bad idea.
“I—” Her voice wasn’t even there. She licked her lips. Tried again. “I’m not sure—”
“You’ll be fine,” he assured her, holding a hand out for her while he stood next to a dark horse with a glossy coat. “I’ll help you up.” He flipped the ring for her foot so it was easier for her to see. “Step into the stirrup and you’ll be home in no time.”
Her heart pounded a chaotic, fast beat. But stalling wasn’t going to get her home any faster. She understood that much. Willing herself to remain calm, she stabbed the toe of her tennis shoe through the foothold.
Brock’s hands were quick and efficient as he boosted her up onto the saddle. He didn’t linger. But he might as well have been massaging her naked body for how her skin reacted under her clothes. Her thigh tingled. Her waist…
She wanted his hands there again. Before she could gather herself or prepare for more, Brock swung up onto the animal behind her. His chest was against her back. Her hips tucked into the cradle of his lap, his strong thighs bracketing hers.
There was no space. No distance. And it felt so good she couldn’t have spoken if she’d tried. The only thing she didn’t like about it was that she shouldn’t like it so damn much…



Author Bio


Four-time RITA nominee Joanne Rock has never met a romance sub-genre she didn't like. The author of over eighty books enjoys writing a wide range of stories, most recently focusing on sexy contemporaries and small town family sagas. An optimist by nature and perpetual seeker of silver linings, Joanne finds romance fits her life outlook perfectly--love is worth fighting for. A frequent speaker at regional and national writing conferences she enjoys giving back to the writing community that nurtured and inspired her early career. She has a Masters degree in Literature from the University of Louisville but credits her fiction writing skills to her intensive study with friend and fellow author Catherine Mann. When she's not writing, Joanne enjoys travel, especially to see her favorite sports teams play with her former sports editor husband and three athletic-minded sons.


Author Links

Monday, September 17, 2018

Country Gold Release Blitz

Country Gold (Wilder Sisters #1)Country Gold by Heatherly Bell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Country Gold is the first book in the Wilder Sister's series by Heatherly Bell. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This second chance romance was spectacular. I loved the story of Lexi and Luke. Even if Luke needed to find himself. This story is exactly what second chances are all about.

View all my reviews


Title: Country Gold
A Wilder Sisters Novel
Author: Heatherly Bell
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 17, 2018



Blurb

A second chance...

A scandal ended the careers of the Wilder Sisters, the chart topping country rock band. But Lexi Wilder is okay with that, thanks for asking. She's been on the road since roughly forever, and even if the scandal has followed her home to Whistle Cove, California, Lexi is going to enjoy the break. After all, there's quite nothing like the beautiful sandy beaches of Monterey Bay to calm a woman's soul.

Luke Wyatt never asked to trade fame and fortune for the only woman he's ever loved.
Now that he's finished a punishing year-long national tour, all bets are off. He's coming back to his hometown of Whistle Cove for the quiet, the beaches, the inspiration, and the girl. Not necessarily in that order. There's pressure from Nashville to deliver more country gold like the #1 song he co-wrote with Lexi Wilder.
But Lexi can’t forgive Luke for choosing fame over her…






Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU






Playlist

She’s My Kind of Rain by Tim McGraw
In Case You Didn’t Know by Brett Young
Make You Miss Me by Sam Hunt
Sober by Little Big Town
Die a Happy Man by Thomas Rhett
She’s Everything by Brad Paisley
Make me Wanna by Thomas Rhett





Excerpt

“Lexi Wilder.”
She recognized the deep voice, the smooth sound of whiskey if it could speak. Lexi whipped around to face Luke Wyatt. Her heart hiccupped at the sight of his long and lean body braced against the side of her cottage. One corner of his mouth tipped up in a half smile and he studied her with those deep and fathomless dark eyes.
Her mouth was dry. Knees? Liquid. “W-what are you doing here?”
“Wasn’t going to give you the chance to say you don’t want to see me.” He moved away from the side of the house and took a step toward her. “Tour’s over. I’m home.”
Despite her churning gut, she found her voice. “We have no vacancy. You’ll have to stay somewhere else.”
He went brows up. “Just checked in.”
When she didn’t speak, but simply swallowed and blinked, trying like hell to regain her balance, he filled in the silence.
“Still mad at me. Still won’t talk to me.”
She was so not prepared to deal with this today. With him. “Why would I be mad? You mean because you wrote an entire album all about our private life? Every single private and personal thing about us. After everything I’ve been through with Sabrina. No, why would I be mad about that?”
“Baby,” he said, squaring his shoulders. “It’s what songwriters do. We write about our life, the pain and the joy.”
I’d rather keep my private life private.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I was hurting. You wouldn’t take any of my calls. You wouldn’t come see me.”
“You didn’t seem to be hurting. You were all over my TV set, cozying up to gorgeous models and reality TV stars.”
She’d seen the woman practically on Luke’s lap at a televised awards show. And he was mad she hadn’t called him back? If he’d been hurt when she stopped taking his calls, he sure in the hell got over it quickly enough.
He took a step toward her making her take one back. No, no, no. Already she felt her body buzzing from being this close to him for the first time in a year.
“Give me a break, Lex. You know what this life is like. I didn’t even know that woman.”
Lexi did an internal face palm. No, no. It would not go this way. Check her out letting loose with all her pent up hurt and anger the minute he showed up, giving Luke every indication of how much she still cared about him. If she didn’t care at all, maybe the rumors of these women wouldn’t bother her so much. So she’d already blown her cover in the first twenty seconds of seeing him. Get a grip.
She’d expected to do much better than this if she ever ran into him again, say in Nashville while visiting Miranda Lambert to collaborate on some songs. Lexi would have another hit song by then. Maybe she’d be dating another handsome country singer not named Luke Wilder. She’d be over him by then.
Chalk it up to running into him so unexpectedly but this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. He shouldn’t still look so good to her, his beard making him look like a strong mountain man. Like a man who would take care of his woman.
For Luke, it turned out his career came first. Not her.
But the thing to do here was pretend it didn’t make a difference whether he stayed or left. Pretend he had that little effect on her. Maybe it wasn’t too late to salvage what little was left of her pride.
“I’m sorry.” She shook her head. “I’m being rude.”
He quirked a single brow. “Yeah?”
Score one for Lexi. She’d shocked him. Good.
“Of course. You’re a paying guest and I’m usually not so…so…”
“Pissy?” He gave her another smile, this one lifting both corners of his mouth and demonstrating he still had the power to render her speechless when he laid on the charm.
“Yeah. Pissy.” She let out a half-hearted fake laugh and waved hand in the air. “Rough day. You know how it is. Sisters.”
His brow furrowed. “And how’s Sabrina doing?”
Luke had a front row seat to the implosion of the Wilder Sisters. He’d been performing alongside them at the stadium in Oklahoma when Sabrina had her public mini-meltdown. Even though their demise as a band had meant his opportunity for stardom, Lexi didn’t doubt he’d been sorry about the way it had all happened.
When she’d been worried about Sabrina, whose entire life from the time she’d been ten had been the stage, Luke had held Lexi every night until she fell asleep, assuring her that Sabrina would survive this. They all would. And she’d fallen even deeper for the man. Luke reminded her there would be life after all the speculation and rumors. Because Luke Wyatt knew a lot about scandal. He understood what it was like to feel like you had to apologize just for being allowed to breathe the same air as everyone else.
“She’s okay. Still walks around with ear buds in all the time, singing and dancing. It’s in her blood. But I don’t think she wants to get back up on a stage anytime soon. None of us do.”
He nodded, as if he understood all too well. “And you. Are you still writing?”
Not with you.
Never again with you.
The wall was still up and there it would stay. If anything, she’d wallpaper it. But she was a Wilder first and foremost, and yes, they could put on a show.
She shrugged and got ready to lie. “Here and there.”
“I’m supposed to write a few more hit songs.” He held up finger quotes. “They want me back in the studio next week. So I thought I’d come here and relax. See if I can find some inspiration.”
His gaze took a slow slide down the length of her body and she almost felt…naked. She was so not going to be his inspiration. Not this time. He’d taken enough material from her already.
She took a breath and went for deep sincerity. “I hope you find what you’re looking for, Luke.”
And with that she opened the door to her cottage and closed it in his face.



Author Bio


Heatherly Bell drinks coffee, craves cupcakes, and occasionally wears real pants.

She lives in northern California with her family.


Author Links

Until Hanna ARC

EEEKKKK Yall I was so stinking excited to open my kindle to this today!!!