Book Review - Jackie Ashenden

I have literally just finished Jackie's debut story Falling for Finn and i can't believe no one picked her up for publication earlier. 
Her writing is fabulous! Raw, real and so emotional.
I've followed Jackie's struggles with writing, her bumpy road to publication and i just wanted to say that if that struggle is what produced this story? I can only hope i go through that same process. Phenomenal and no wonder she was finally, finally snapped up!
Here is my review of her awesome story. If you haven't purchased it yet - this is a MUST!

Jackie Ashenden has written a story so mindblowingly good! She goes so deep into her characters psyche you are left without a choice but to love them and know them. This story is raw, beautiful and hot! One of the love scenes left me nearly turning off my kindle so they could have privacy! The emotions and intensity are so real.

It is so refreshing to have a story with real epithets, real, modern cussing that feels so natural.

Awesome, awesome story Jackie and for a debut - wow!When's the next one out ;)

Book Review: Nicola Marsh

Buy it now!

I bought this story yesterday after i noticed on Nicola's blog (Romance, Rumours and Rogues) that this story was out for 0.99c on amazon kindle! She'd given a teaser to this on her blog either earlier in the year or end of last year, and i've wanted to read the whole thing ever since!

You all know that i LOVE Nicola Marsh's work. It's fresh, lively and i would so love to be able to capture her magic in my own writing (i'll just have to keep practicing and find my own!).

Fox and Lee are two very strong characters. You only have 7,200 words to get to know them, but on the last sentence i felt that i did know them. At least enough to anticipate what could possibly happen next!

Fast, hot and sizzling, with nowhere-to-run desire, this is a story you will devour in a few minutes. I only wanted more!

Here is the description from Amazon: 

A Victorian Police Special Ops team leader joins forces with an Australian Defence Force Tactical Assault Group expert who specializes in biological warfare to stop an imminent chemical threat.

When the threat becomes personal and the body count mounts, they find themselves locked in a safe room, where they discover their sizzling history takes little to ignite.

(Previously published in The Mammoth Book of Special Ops)

Don't you just love how strong they both are!
Go, on buy it! It will certainly not disappoint!

Book Review: Gaelen Foley

I have just finished the last book in Gaelen Foley's Knight Miscellany series, and it is fantastic! Set in the Regency period these seven stories are by no means the run of the mill Regency stories! Each one is so different. 

Each has such an interesting plot and delightful characters i couldn't put any of the books down until they were finished!

Check out Gaelen's website for more information, and you MUST read this series if you love Regency novels! 

On her website she ask:

Who's your favourite Knight Brother?


Is it the mysterious and coolly controlled head of the clan, Robert, the Duke of Hawkscliffe from The Duke? Or one of the irresistible twins—sly and sexy Lucien, the ex-spy in the Lord of Fire, or deadly Damien, the soldier from Lord of Ice?

Their spunky sister Jacinda Knight brings another bad boy into the family in Lady of Desire, while her best friend, lady’s companion, and honorary Knight “sister” is a bookish bluestocking hotly pursued by a decadent, aristocratic adventurer in Devil Takes a Bride

Rakehell Alec lives on the edge in One Knight of Sin, while wild Jack, the black sheep of the family, is running guns for South America freedom fighters in His Wicked Kiss.

I cannot chose my favourite - i love them all!

Book Review

This month i read a fantastic book by Kathleen Givens (who sadly passed away!). I love historical romance. My favourite historical author is Julie Garwood, but i was spellbound by this story.
A strong woman who i aware of another destiny, she marries a man who betrays her, but is in love with an Irishman who will stop at nothing to have her by his side.
Powerful, evocative and so passionate - i was lost in this story. It's too bad i won't (and other readers!) get the next installment and find out what happens to Margaret's sister and if they find her brother.
I compel you to read this book - it's beautiful!

From RITA Award winner Kathleen Givens comes a magnificently conceived, intricately detailed novel that brings to vivid life the tumult, adventure, and passion of thirteenth-century Scotland, when Norse invaders laid claim to the land and its people-and an explosive clash of cultures, politics and personal pride changed the world forever.

1263: On Scotland’s western shore, the village of Somerstrath prepares for the joyous wedding of Margaret MacDonald, the laird’s daughter. But a dark storm of bloodshed and betrayal is closing in, as a merciless band of Vikings roams the seas. Margaret is determined to hold her clan together and to locate her abducted younger brother. Can she trust the noblemen from King Alexander’s court, who insist that only by adhering to a betrothal conceived for political gain will she find safety? Or should she trust an imposing half-Irish, half-Norse warrior? Gannon MacMagnus alone offers her hope of reuniting her family and vanquishing the barbarous Norsemen. In whom should Margaret entrust the fate of the rugged, magnificent land she calls home?

(from kathleengivens.com)

Book Review - a double!

Well, i've read two fantastic books this month and i just couldn't choose which one to tell you about - so i'm doing both!

Walk on the Wild Side by Natalie Anderson (NZ author!!!) writing for Mills & Boon Riva.
This is HOT! I love how the heroine Kelsi is so unconventional. And I mean in looks! Jack is of course to die for, but this doesn't detract from the specialness of this story. Instead of giving anything away, here is the blurb from the back cover. And. GO and READ it!!

A fling with sinfully hot champion snowboarder Jack Greene isn't Kelsi Reid's normal behavior.but one glimpse of his wicked eyes has Kelsi throwing caution to the deep blue sea (along with her clothes!). After all, who better to go crazy with than a man who deserves a gold medal for his prowess on the slopes and in the bedroom.? Then Kelsi crashes down with a terrifying bump - of the baby kind. They couldn't be worse matched - Jack is Mr. Right-Now, while Kelsi craves stability. But it's hard to keep your feet on the ground once you've met the man who turns your world upside down..

And the second book is:

Surf, Sea and a Sexy Stranger by Heidi Rice writing for Mills & Boon Modern Heat (Sexy Sensation in Oz and NZ)

This story had me on the edge of my seat! I have never read a story where the man pleasures a woman just for that - her pleasure! And i mean without him culminating the act!
Then the story that built from it, WOW! I love the fact that SHE saves HIM at the beginning. A nice simple twist that leads to so much more.
The blurb:

Honed, handsome, and needing the kiss of life...

Millionaire entrepreneur Ryan King is mortified: he's just been pulled from the ocean by a pretty female lifeguard! Why, after months recovering from a horrific motorbike accident, did he get back on his surfboard? For the same reason he wants a hot, wild woman back in his bed - to prove he's the same man he was before...

Maddy Westmore is shocked to find that this half-drowned, totally gorgeous surfer has her body humming! She always ends up getting used - maybe this time it's her turn to do the using? It's the short, sizzling affair they both need - until their dangerously addictive liaison careers out of control...

Now, i just LOVE the covers of these books - new modern covers. But they aren't available on the shelves here in NZ so i had to order them from the 'net. You can order them from either authors website (click on their names above as i've linked it to their website!) or the book depository or your fav online store - just search through the titles and choose the cover you MUST have!

These are both awesome authors, both have joined my auto-buy list!!

Monthly Book Review

I was given this from a close friend to read. It reminded me of the books i used to read about the wild frontier, devouring the information liberally spread throughout the story that depicted what life was like way back when, following their struggle with life and love...and this book didn't disappoint!
With 4.5 stars on amazon it is highly deserved. Rich with description, vivid in the emotions you feel along with the characters, the pages just fly by. And, *spoiler alert* i loved how the author didn't just kill of Clementine's husband so she could have the man she wanted!
I really appreciated the depth of emotion Ms Williamson put her characters through to get to where they did, and me along with it. Read it, you won't be sorry!

Here is the back blurb:

Clementine Kennicutt, a ladylike New Englander, aches to leave her home and her oppressive father. So when Gus McQueen, a cowboy with laughing eyes and big dreams, presses her to elope with him to his Montana ranch, she is ready. But nothing has prepared her for the harsh realities of frontier life, or for the unpredictable hankering of her heart--and least of all for the fact that almost from the first moment she sets eyes on Zach, Gus's dashing, ne'er do-well brother, she knows he's the one she was destined to love. Brought up to be a lady, Clementine determines not to let the frontier--or her marriage--defeat her. She devours life, befriending the town prostitute, defending Indians, and suppressing her heart's desire, until Zach forces her to face him and make her choice. 

What have you been reading that has evoked strong emotions in you?

Happy New Year!

Well, i'm a bit early! But i've just gotten back from holiday in Taupo and will probably be busy come new years' so i'll do it early :)

Also i would like to take the opportunity to congratulate my friend and fellow writer Nicole MacDonald on being a newly published author! That's right, her book The Arrival (BirthRight Trilogy) is available now on Amazon.com for the kindle!
CONGRATULATIONS!

Now, an intro:

The Arrival starts with a love spell, cast to find friends each a soul mate. It works...but no the way the girls anticipated.
Thrown into a different world, in a different time, they encounter danger and near death, having to fight for their lives before they even know where they are. Holding their own, barely, until a group of Griffons arrive bearing their soul mates.


And now, my review :)

Nicole has a unique writing voice and style. You will enjoy reading from the viewpoint of many of the characters within the story which brings a richness and fullness to complete your reading experience. 
It has rich and descriptive detail, various points of view, conflicts, bloodcurdling battles, magic, fantastical creatures and a subtle layer of sexual tension to keep you going to the very end....where you realise you just HAVE to have the next installment.
Gripping and emotive, this story will leave you begging for more and thinking about it long after you have finished reading.
Go buy it now, experience the magic of Nicole MacDonald!

Book Review

Yep time for another review!
I've just finished a story written by one of the newest writers to Harlequin, Maisey Yates!
I follow her blog and she is one open and talented young lady!

I enjoyed her first book, His Virgin Acquisition, but unfortunately i didn't feel it when the hero realised he loved the heroine.

No such problem with Maisey's second book: A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy.

The instant attraction between Maximo and Alison is blistering, as is their fight to stay in control of themselves and not give into the fire burning within.
This story packed a passionate punch, the characters are loveable (just love an artist hero :D not to mention a strong heroine!), and totally relatable, even if he is a prince he still had the same conflicts of a normal man. The set up is awesome, Pregnant by a mix up at a fertility clinic, love it!
Read this one, you won't regret it!

So, what have you read in November that has you gushing??

What have you read in October?

I'd realised i hadn't done a post on what we are reading this month for October!

I've just finished Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning.
If any of you have read her Highlander series you will understand why i wanted to try this series.
Her writing is compelling. In the Highlander series Moning had woven the fae fantasy so well with the modern, the characters are believable and the sensuality is sky high, gosh, i just couldn't put those seven or so books down!
This series is just as compelling. Much darker with the threat to the main character and the world as the Fae, Unseelie are being unleashed onto Earth and devouring humans without them knowing.
It hasn't bothered me that there is no underlying or even overlying romance. I am getting a hint as i'm reading the second book, Bloodfever, of attraction between Mackayla and Barrons, her mentor if you could call him that.

here is the blurb:

My name is MacKayla, Mac for short. I'm a sidhe-seer, one who sees the Fae, a fact I accepted only recently and very reluctantly.

My philosophy is pretty simple--any day nobody's trying to kill me is a good day in my book. I haven't had many good days lately. Not since the walls between Man and Fae came down. But then, there's not a sidhe-seer alive who's had a good day since then.

When MacKayla's sister was murdered, she left a single clue to her death--a cryptic message on Mac's cel phone. Journeying to Ireland in search of answers, Mac is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to master a power she had no idea she possessed--a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae....

As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister's death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho Barrons...while at the same time, the ruthless V'lane--an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women--closes in on her. As the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac's true mission becomes clear: to find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book--because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control both worlds in their hands....

I really recommend anything written by Karen Marie Moning. She just has, well, that extra something about her writing, that i can't really put my finger on. But i so wish i could write like that!

So what have you been reading that you would recommend?



As to Nano. Yesterday day 3, i churned out another 1,300 words! But today? Well, ah, a mere 300. In my defense this is the first time all day i've been on the computer. Hopefully tomorrow will be better!

Monthly Book Review - Overdue!

Wow, i forgot to do this last month!
I've just finished Good Girl or Gold-Digger? by Kate Hardy and it is fabulous!
Usually a Harlequin Presents - M&B Modern contains a really alpha male, but Felix doesn't come across so arrogant and it is a welcome change. Her hero's are so subtle.
And i just love her daisies scene! You have to read this one to find out what i mean, i'm going to remember this one for a very long time.



oh - and is anyone else checking their emails every fifteen minutes just hopeing they have got a message from New Voices, with the smallest chance they have made it to the Top Ten???

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Monthly Book review

Overtime in the Boss's Bed by Nicola Marsh.

If you aren't a Mills and Boon reader that's okay, i wasn't in the past. They are a fantastic quick read. Right to the story, good characters, great story line, all about passion and heart and conflict - well depending on the line you choose of course :)

I just love Nicola Marsh. Her stories are fun, fast paced and... well you just have to read them to know what it is! She has that something about her stories that, despite the small size of the book, they really pack a punch!

I am traditionally a single title lover - you know the 100,000+ word novel. But her books are fantastic and this one...man!

Starr and Callum are hot, sassy and so good together you root for them right from page one! Go and buy it, you won't regret it!!

What did you read this month that you just have to gush about?

Book Review

I haven't done one of these before on my blog, but i thought it may be nice at the beginning of each month to do a review of a book i have read. It will be a chance to hear what you have been reading too!

For my birthday i was given Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

Hmm. Well. It's not something i would have bought myself. I think it is sacrilegious of Jane Austen's classic and my favourite novel. But as it was a gift from my kids (via my husband!) I gave it a go.

From curiousity to see how the death and zombies was interwoven with the society and propriety, it was rather amusing if nothing else. At times some parts didn't stay true to character, why would a battle hard woman simper and cry?, but otherwise it was done well.

If you are curious, or forced to read by obligation or don't want to hurt someones feelings, it is an amusing read, with some surprising twists to characters. But i still maintain it is sacrilegious of a major literary classic.