Category Archives: New Releases

book reviews, New Releases, Romance

New Release & Review ~ Crash Into Us by Shana Vanterpool

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Title: Crash Into Us
Author: Shana Vanterpool
Genre: Contemporary/2nd Chance Romance
Release Date: December 18, 2017
They met when they were kids.
They were friends, lovers, and then husband and wife.
They were supposed to be together forever.
He was her Superman.
She was his happiness.

And then he went pro.
And she doubted something that was supposed to be forever.
Mistakes were made in exchange for dreams, and hearts were shattered.
Their forever crumbled right before their eyes.

He went on to play for the Washington Warriors. He ate, breathed, and slept professional hockey. All he had left after her was the ice. He was in magazines, he won a Stanley Cup, and he had a crowd of people screaming his name. He had everything. Didn’t he?

It’s hard to move on from an addiction, and she was addicted. Drunk on love too early on, she never truly moved on from her first love. She faded in and out of life, trying to ignore her need. But bad habits have a way of coming back when you least expect them too.

For years they went separate ways, until her Superman falls from the sky.

He was on a helicopter after a big win when the engine cut out. He knows he’s not making it out alive. Even with the screams of his teammates shouting in the background as they crash toward earth, all he can think of is her. He’ll never get to see her again…

Love is unforgiving dragging her back to heartache. She only wants to help him get better from the accident and move on with her life. She never planned on falling back in love with him. She never planned on falling so hard a second time.

Lovesick and broken, they crash right back into each other.

I finished this book pretty quickly and now…I don’t know where to begin.

So, I’ll start where I always do with books written in first person. My preference. Yes, we all know that they aren’t my favorite books to read which probably says more about me as a reader and a person than about the author. But I received an email asking if I wanted to review Crash Into Us and after reading the synopsis I was ALL IN.

…then I received the ARC. First person.

Still, I pushed on and, crap on a cracker, I really liked it. A lot.

I liked Jasmeen almost as much as I had problems with her, but she was stronger than she thought and that’s a characteristic I always enjoy reading. My first impression of her was that she was very sad woman who needed to go out and figure out what fueled her. Oh, and that her mom was a big ol’ ass. But slowly I came to see her strength in her actions, because most people wouldn’t have done what she did to help Gavin.

Who, in my opinion absolutely did not deserve it. Or so I thought.

And this is where my only real problem with the Crash Into Us came into play. The whole reason for their divorce became so murky and muddled after a while that I honestly just stopped caring. I mean, if she’s going to forgive him then the details don’t really matter, right? At least that was my perspective until this part of the story was actually resolved.

I also didn’t love the flashbacks because I don’t think they added to the story. It gave depth, but who they were at ten years old wasn’t all the relevant in the face of accusations of infidelity.

As I neared the 45% mark I had been contemplating calling it quits, and not because Shana Vanterpool is a bad author, she’s not, but because I felt that Jasmeen gave in too easily. Gavin needed to work harder to earn her love back, but he didn’t have to so…

I gave this story 4.5 cocktails because it was good. Really good. The love between Jasmeen and Gavin was intense, for most of us that would be scary as hell, overwhelming, but it was right for them. Crash Into Us was packed with emotion and angst, so if those aren’t your jam you’re not going to like this story, but damn the emotion was so good. It was like crying over Dawson’s Creek or Party of Five or even the early seasons of Grey’s Anatomy, that kind of angst.

It fed my 90’s grunge girl at heart need for good, solid angst. This wasn’t drama for the sake of drama, this was grown folk’s problems drama and damn, I read it in 2 days when I should have been finishing final edits on my own book.

I’ve never read Shana Vanterpool but this book gave me the FEELZ.

Romance author, coffee drinker, and bad boy aficionado. Every second not spent breathing is an opportunity to write and read. I live in Northern California with my family and actress dog, Halle Bella. (Just Bella when she decides to cut the crap.) Escaping with a good book is something I live for and I write so others can do the same.

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Holiday, New Releases, Novellas, Romance

LIVE ~ Countdown to Midnight by Katy Regenry

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From New York Times bestselling author, Katy Regnery, comes a standalone New Years-themed romance novella with TWO happily-ever-afters!

After a busy Christmas surrounded by the wedded bliss of their three married sisters, still-single Elizabeth and Jane Story deserve a little fun for New Years!

Heading to the ultra-exclusive Point on Saranac Lake, they expect a week of ski, snow and socializing . . . what they get is a computer glitch that double-books their luxury slopeside condo to handsome Bostonians, Merit and Amity Atwell.

With few other options, the two sets of sibs decide to share the deluxe digs.

Surgical resident, Amity, is more than happy to renew his acquaintance with med school flame, Jane, whom he’s always considered “the one that got away.” But that leaves bar-owner, Merit, and litigator, Elizabeth, way too much time to get on each other’s nerves…

Spend New Years with the Story sisters and Atwell brothers as they spend Christmas week counting down to midnight!

New Releases, Romance

LIVE ~ Her First Kiss by MJ Fields

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Title: Her First Kiss
Series: First Series #1
Author: MJ Fields
Genre: Romance
Release Date: December 12, 2017
One woman with her entire life in front of her.

 


Having experienced a lifetime’s amount of loss and love under the spotlight of her stepfather and stepbrother’s rock and roll stardom, London Fields decides now is her time to shine. Leaving for college with a clear focus and big dreams around her musical theater major, she is ready to take on the world … under an assumed name. Protecting her identity will allow her the freedom to experience life and maybe love for the very first time.

One man with a second chance to live for himself.

A horrible accident devastated life as Logan Links and his family knew it. He spent a semester off from college to help them begin to heal and returns to school just in time to play one more season of college football.

Only one thing can make things … hard.

Logan and London have had a tumultuous relationship since he was twelve and she was eight. One that has always been buffered by their families’ close connection. Now, they are on their own.

What happens when these two repeatedly run into each other without the watchful eyes of others? Will London’s daydreams of Logan Links being the first man she kisses become a heavenly reality, or will his devil dimples lead her straight to hell?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

He rubs his cheek. “It’s a condition?”

“Yep.”

“Okay.” He extends his hand for me to shake. When I shake his, though, he pulls me in hard and I crash into him. He then puts his hand on my ass and pulls me in harder against him. I feel all of him against me.

“Oh, my God.”

“You feel this?” he asks, fisting my hair and pulling it back so I’m looking up at him.

“Yeah,” I whimper.

“You’re not the only one who can hide shit.” He leans down and licks behind my ear. “They didn’t see it.”

“How?” I whimper as he rotates his hips, grinding against me.

“It finds a leg.” He grips my ass hard then lifts me. I wrap my legs around him as he pushes me against the wall.

The poster behind me falls. I catch the corner and look up. There’s a big hole behind it.

“Logan, what’s this?”

“Had a few bad weeks,” he says before grinding into me and licking up my neck.

I grab the back of his head and pull it closer. 

Hearing the framed poster fall to the ground, I turn, but he captures the side of my head and slides his open mouth up my jaw.

I whimper and press my breasts against him. He pulls me away from the wall as he sucks on my neck then sits on the end of his bed, bringing me down on top of him.

Heat turns to fire. I can’t help grinding against him.

“Fuck, London,” he hisses and pulls me tighter, flipping me onto my back and hovering over me. “You wanna take this slow, you let me lead. You keep grinding on me, you leave me no choice but to give you what we both want.”

“Kiss me, dammit.”

He presses his body against mine, his elbows on the mattress, and grabs my face. I am panting, squirming beneath him.

He pulls me up and, within seconds, I am shirtless. With no time to panic, he lays me back down, and only then do I realize he has unhooked my bra, as well. 

His lips fall just above my breasts, where he kisses up. His lips feel so soft against my skin, but the pressure he applies is that of need, want, and almost uncontrollable hunger. When he reaches my chin, I swipe my tongue across my lips to wet them, and he catches it in his mouth, sucking on it slowly. 

A hum vibrates from his chest. No, mine. No, both. Then he rubs his tongue up and down mine. I open my mouth farther, wanting, needing, imploring him to taste me deeper, and he does.

He licks inside my mouth while holding my head, angling it so he can get deeper. I swear he’s fucking it, and I know this spinning in my belly, the heat, the electricity, the pulsing everywhere is exactly what I imagined it would be, only better.
https://open.spotify.com/embed?uri=spotify:user:12129332150:playlist:7Attjbwfqfyq5NGUnW7Uxy
USA Today bestselling author MJ Fields write books that scorch pages and melt hearts.  
Her style is raw, gritty and authentic.
Love an alpha and a strong heroine? She does too.

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New Releases, Romance

COVER REVEAL – Crash Into Us by Shana Vanterpool

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Title: Crash Into Us
Author: Shana Vanterpool
Genre: Contemporary/2nd Chance Romance
Release Date: December 18, 2017

 

Cover Designer: Letitia Hasser w/ RBA Designs

 

They met when they were kids.

 

They were friends, lovers, and then husband and wife.

 

They were supposed to be together forever.
He was her Superman.
She was his happiness.

And then he went pro.
And she doubted something that was supposed to be forever.
Mistakes were made in exchange for dreams, and hearts were shattered.
Their forever crumbled right before their eyes.

He went on to play for the Washington Warriors. He ate, breathed, and slept professional hockey. All he had left after her was the ice. He was in magazines, he won a Stanley Cup, and he had a crowd of people screaming his name. He had everything. Didn’t he?

It’s hard to move on from an addiction, and she was addicted. Drunk on love too early on, she never truly moved on from her first love. She faded in and out of life, trying to ignore her need. But bad habits have a way of coming back when you least expect them too.

For years they went separate ways, until her Superman falls from the sky.

He was on a helicopter after a big win when the engine cut out. He knows he’s not making it out alive. Even with the screams of his teammates shouting in the background as they crash toward earth, all he can think of is her. He’ll never get to see her again…

Love is unforgiving dragging her back to heartache. She only wants to help him get better from the accident and move on with her life. She never planned on falling back in love with him. She never planned on falling so hard a second time.

Lovesick and broken, they crash right back into each other.
Romance author, coffee drinker, and bad boy aficionado. Every second not spent breathing is an opportunity to write and read. I live in Northern California with my family and actress dog, Halle Bella. (Just Bella when she decides to cut the crap.) Escaping with a good book is something I live for and I write so others can do the same.

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New Releases, Romance

#LIVE Twice As Delicious

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How can Harper be sweet when all she wants to do is give them a taste of her honey?

She’s in trouble. Big trouble. Mafia big. Harper Larson works. Hard. She’s had no breaks in life, but that only drives her to put it all on the line. Nothing’s going to stop her from succeeding at building her catering business. At least until she gets mixed up with the Irish mafia. There’s only one person…no, two, who will help her stay alive. Dane and Leo.

One look at Harper’s sweet curves and irresistible body is all it takes to make two alpha males hungry, and not for food. They know she’s going to be theirs. One taste and there’s no going back. And when witnessing more than she bargained for puts her life at risk, they’ll do whatever it takes to protect her.

 

 

Holiday, New Releases, Novellas

The Homespun Holiday by Sarah O’Rourke…99 cents!!!

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Dr. Mackenzie Daniels was a loner. He had the divorce, a far-away family, and well-known cranky persona to prove it. And if he had his way, he would continue on his loner way, in spite of the attempts of the townspeople to infiltrate his life with their irritating, so-called charming ways. That was…until he met the beautiful Nurse Millicent Robbins.

Millie Robbins had done the love and marriage thing, and all she could say was that she got a beautiful daughter out of the entire debacle. Love was not in her long-term plans when she graduated from nursing school, thank you very much….until she found herself falling head over heels for the grouchiest but most gorgeous doctor she’d ever met.

Can Mack and Millie find their way to love in spite of their histories? Can happiness actually exist for two star-crossed lovers?

Join the entire town of Paradise for a Christmas celebration of lasting love!

Just #99cents on Amazon US & UK! ENDS December 10th!

book reviews, New Releases, Romance

NEW RELEASE & Review ~ Roomies by Christina Lauren

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Get your copy HERE!!!

ABOUT:

Marriages of convenience are so…inconvenient. 

For months Holland Bakker has invented excuses to descend into the subway station near her apartment, drawn to the captivating music performed by her street musician crush. Lacking the nerve to actually talk to the gorgeous stranger, fate steps in one night in the form of a drunken attacker. Calvin Mcloughlin rescues her, but quickly disappears when the police start asking questions.

Using the only resource she has to pay the brilliant musician back, Holland gets Calvin an audition with her uncle, Broadway’s hottest musical director. When the tryout goes better than even Holland could have imagined, Calvin is set for a great entry into Broadway—until his reason for disappearing earlier becomes clear: he’s in the country illegally, his student visa having expired years ago.

Seeing that her uncle needs Calvin as much as Calvin needs him, a wild idea takes hold of her. Impulsively, she marries the Irishman, her infatuation a secret only to him. As their relationship evolves and Calvin becomes the darling of Broadway—in the middle of the theatrics and the acting-not-acting—will Holland and Calvin to realize that they both stopped pretending a long time ago?

Roomies was a fun read and it would have been a great one if not for its first person telling. But despite all that, I loved the story of Holland and Calvin.

Holland is a glorified gofer for her uncle’s wildly successful musical productions but she secretly longs to be something more. A novelist. But her own lack of self-confidence is getting in the way so she’s content-ish to keep working for her uncle.

Until she hears the voice of an angel in the subway, screws up her courage to go talk to him and then falls prey to a random attacker and her sweet singer steps in to protect her. What’s a girl to do? Honestly the only thing she can do is return the favor, in the form of her brilliant musically successful uncle. But this is a romance novel which means there is some sort of problem, which in this case, is Calvin’s citizenship status. Or lack of.

And that’s where things really get interesting!

His story is so inspiring and brave that Holland offers to help him with his problem because he’s talented and because it’s the right thing to do. One of the things I loved that Christina Lauren did with this story was, she made Holland honorable. Sure she was harboring a serious crush on Calvin, but it didn’t feel like that’s why she decided to help him. The chemistry was apparent from the moment she gave him an adorable mini-lecture about Holland. In the Netherlands.

And my goodness but unrequited love is the worst and I felt her pain. Down deep. But I loved how Calvin didn’t just take from her. Nope, Roomies is a tale about two good people who form a bond and help each other achieve their dreams. And that is what a really good romance is all about.

So I’m giving this story 4.5, it didn’t bother me that it was written in first person stars!

New Releases, Novellas, Romance

LIVE!!! ~ The Christmas Fountain by Kait Nolan

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Elementary school teacher Mary Alice Reed wanted a nice, stable guy to share her happily ever after. When she thought she’d found him, everyone tried to tell her that the guy she thought was her Mr. Right, was really Mr. Somebody Else’s. Living with a town’s worth of I-told-you-so isn’t easy, but she’s coping. And definitely taking a break from love in order to get past her last disaster to chair her favorite Christmas charity.

Trauma surgeon Chad Phillips gave up the intensity and long hours of a big city hospital to move to Wishful. He wants a home and family, a town with a slower pace, where he can actually build a life. Being one of Wishful’s most eligible bachelors has gotten him a lot of pie and casseroles, but it hasn’t helped him find that special someone to come home to.

When a friend’s accident lands Mary Alice in his ER, Chad finds himself more than intrigued. Part Martha Stewart, part Mary Poppins, and all Girl Next Door, she’s exactly what he’s been looking for. Volunteering for the Fountain of Hope charity seems like the perfect way to get to know his Christmas crush. But just as he seems to be overcoming Mary Alice’s once bitten, twice shy caution, that one tiny thing from his past, that he probably should have told her about, shows up for a Christmas season visit. Chad’s gonna have some explaining to do.

Get it HERE!!!

book reviews, New Releases, Novellas, Romance

Review ~ The Christmas Fountain – Kait Nolan

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Get your copy HERE!!!

ABOUT:

Elementary school teacher Mary Alice Reed wanted a nice, stable guy to share her happily ever after. When she thought she’d found him, everyone tried to tell her that the guy she thought was her Mr. Right, was really Mr. Somebody Else’s. Living with a town’s worth of I-told-you-so isn’t easy, but she’s coping. And definitely taking a break from love in order to get past her last disaster to chair her favorite Christmas charity.

Trauma surgeon Chad Phillips gave up the intensity and long hours of a big city hospital to move to Wishful. He wants a home and family, a town with a slower pace, where he can actually build a life. Being one of Wishful’s most eligible bachelors has gotten him a lot of pie and casseroles, but it hasn’t helped him find that special someone to come home to.

When a friend’s accident lands Mary Alice in his ER, Chad finds himself more than intrigued. Part Martha Stewart, part Mary Poppins, and all Girl Next Door, she’s exactly what he’s been looking for. Volunteering for the Fountain of Hope charity seems like the perfect way to get to know his Christmas crush. But just as he seems to be overcoming Mary Alice’s once bitten, twice shy caution, that one tiny thing from his past, that he probably should have told her about, shows up for a Christmas season visit. Chad’s gonna have some explaining to do.

The Christmas Fountain by Kait Nolan is the perfect holiday story. It’s a full blown romance, complete with meet cute and a slow, sexy buildup. Only it all happens around the holidays. There are no cheesy Christmas themes or kitsch thrown in, just Mary Alice and Chad.

And I LOVED them together. Flirting in the ER over drunk friend was the perfect way for this serious couple to meet. And from that point their relationship progressed perfectly, with fun dates and plenty of sweet romance and a whole lotta steamy romance. There was a little bit of everything for everyone who loves a great small town romance.

I can’t say there was a part of this story I didn’t like. I cracked open my Kindle yesterday and finished it just a minutes before starting on this review. It was quick, fun and easy. But, I’m gonna have to call BS on Chad for one tiny little misunderstanding. Yeah, I know it’s a romance and there has to be drama and/or misunderstanding, I got it and love it. Hell, I write romance myself and I have a bit of a girl crush on Kait. But Chad…seriously? I think Mary Alice was totally within her rights to be pissed off because of ALL the things you hide or keep to yourself IT’S NOT THAT! Not when you know her history, so while it all worked out, I’m calling Dr. Phillips out on his behavior on that part.

Overall, I loved this story. It had just enough holiday for the season and I loved some of the secondary characters. Kait Nolan is one author who excels at pulling in different characters without overloading the story with too many people.

The Christmas Fountain was a fun holiday romance to get you in the spirit!

book reviews, New Releases, Romance

Review ~ Romancing the Bachelor – Diane Alberts

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Get your copy HERE!!!

ABOUT:

Eric Hamilton isn’t looking for love. Hell, he isn’t even looking for a girl. He has a five-year plan, and he’s one hundred percent focused on that. But then Shelby walks into his life, and suddenly, he can’t think about anything else. Unfortunately for him, she hates his guts, and wants nothing to do with him. But he’s a man who loves a challenge.

Shelby Jefferson can’t wait to get out of the city, and back to her country roots. She moved to Atlanta for a guy who promptly left her, and the last thing she wants is to fall for another man who might make her want to stay. But Eric is nothing if not persistent, and before long she’s inside his arms, in his bed, and falling for him. Hard. But when history repeats itself, she’s left having to choose between a man and herself…again.

The thing I liked best about Romancing the Bachelor was that these two people, so seemingly different, were so much alike. Not what they liked, but the baggage they carried. Eric is more than a bachelor, he’s a player. A love’em and leave’em kind of guy who makes sure everyone woman knows what to expect from him up front.

And it’s no secret.

So when he finally notices Shelby, who’s been a court reporter in the courts where he argues cases for years. What makes his attention even worse? They also live in the same building and in all those years he never once noticed her. Oh, but she noticed him all right. How could she not? Eric is hot, successful and did I mention hot? But, guess what? Yep, Shelby has baggage too and that baggage is taking her out of the city and back to a small town…somewhere.

But Eric is relentless and Shelby starts to think, why not. She’s leaving no matter what, so why not? Well there are about a billion reasons why not, but when a guy like Eric Hamilton wants in your bed…you let him in!

Romancing the Bachelor was a really good time. I really enjoyed the chemistry between the leads, the flirting and fun sexy banter. It felt real, like you want to feel during those first dates when you’re falling. Diane Alberts is an author I always give a shot to, and this book was no different. There was, of course, drama and misunderstanding but it wasn’t so over the top that it ruined the story.