Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Dark Skye (Immortals After Dark #14) by Kresley Cole

Dark Skye (Immortals After Dark #14) by Kresley Cole
This is an adult paranormal romance novel (Rated NC-17)
 ♥♥♥1/2
(Three and a Half Skye Hearts)
Book Summary
 In this highly anticipated fifteenth novel in the Immortals After Dark series, #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole spins a sultry tale of a mighty warrior scarred inside and out and the beguiling sorceress with the power to heal him—or vanquish him forever.

ETERNAL OBSESSION

As a boy, Thronos, prince of Skye Hall, loved Lanthe, a mischievous Sorceri girl who made him question everything about his Vrekener clan. But when the two got caught in the middle of their families’ war, tragedy struck, leaving Thronos and Lanthe bitter enemies. Though centuries have passed, nothing can cool his seething need for the beautiful enchantress who scarred his body—and left an even deeper impression on his soul.

ENDLESS YEARNING

Lanthe, a once-formidable sorceress struggling to reclaim her gifts, searches for love and acceptance with all the wrong immortal suitors. But she’s never forgotten Thronos, the magnificent silver-eyed boy who protected her until she was ripped from the shelter of his arms. One harrowing night changed everything between them. Now he’s a notorious warlord with a blood vendetta against Lanthe, hunting her relentlessly.

CAN THE HEAT OF DESIRE BURN BRIGHTER THAN VENGEANCE?

With their families locked in conflict and battles raging all around them, will Thronos and Lanthe succumb to the brutal chaos that threatens everything they cherish? Or will the fragile bond they formed so long ago spark a passion strong enough to withstand even the darkest doubts?
My Review
As this series continues, I find myself falling in and out of love of book boyfriends but storyline too. Sometimes they feel like a repeat. And theme of virgins gets tiring over time. However, KC knows how to write a book. And a 3.5 heart book for her, would be a five heart book for others. So, not judging ratings against other books, just in relation to her own, have I given this book 3.5 hearts.
What I loved about the book was the adventure. Some of my favorite books in this series revolved around Indiana Jones like adventures. My favorite of all the guys next to the demon vamp, is my werewolf early in the series. I can’t remember his name at the moment. But anyway, they were in a jungle.
What I didn’t like about the book was the use of interruptions to stop intimacy in the story. This is a pet peeve of mine and may not bother others. I give an author one pass and if that author does it more in the story, that’s a total turn off for me. Thus the rating decrease.
But that wasn’t the only thing that bothered me. But the only one that impacted my rating. The other thing I hated was Lanthi and how she allowed others to destroy something. (no spoilers) And frankly her own actions. But can’t love them all.
All in all, it was a good read and I have no regrets.
Audio Review
Robert Petkoff is the master of voices and can he do a seduction like no other.
My book boyfriend is Thronos. (Since this model is on the cover, I'll stick with him)

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Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Reaper's Stand (Reapers MC #4) by Joanna Wylde

Reaper's Stand (Reapers MC #4) by Joanna Wylde
 
This is an adult contemporary romance novel (Rated NC-17)
 
 ♥♥♥♥
(Four Wonderful Hearts)
 
 
Book Summary
 
As Reapers Motorcycle Club president, Reese “Picnic” Hayes has given his entire life to the club. After losing his wife, he knew he’d never love another woman. And with two daughters to raise and a club to manage, that was just fine with him. These days, Reese keeps his relationships free and easy—he definitely doesn’t want to waste his time on a glorified cleaning lady like London Armstrong.

Too bad he’s completely obsessed with her.

Besides running her own business, London’s got her junkie cousin’s daughter to look after—a more reckless than average eighteen-year-old. Sure she’s attracted to the Reapers’ president, but she’s not stupid. Reese Hayes is a criminal and a thug. But when her young cousin gets caught up with a ruthless drug cartel, Reese might be the only man who can help her. Now London has to make the hardest decision of her life—how far will she go to save her family?
 
 
My Review 
 

Can you say YES? This series is a hit and I haven’t yet been disappointed in any of the books so far. The only disappointment is having to wait for the next installment.
How many sexy bikers in one series? Oh, let me count them. This series has it all from adventure, thriller, sexy time, hot bikers and kickass heroines. I can’t imagine reading another biker series by any other author and it being this good.
Up in this series, we have Picnic. So he’s not a hot twenty something or even thirty. And I’ll admit I had my doubts, but damn if I didn’t want to jump on the forty something and have hot monkey sex. Picnic made me want to scream YES.
Okay, so if I have all of this praise, why not 5 hearts?
Well, two minor issues. One is the prologue. By the end of the first chapter, I knew what was going to happen. I almost wish the prologue wasn’t there. I might have been more surprised by the turn of events. But honestly, after past meets prologue in the story, I had no idea how the author would turn the events around. And I’ll leave it at that for spoiler sake. Still, I had to take some off for predictability based on the prologue part.
The other issue was the feel of insta love. Although the characters don’t admit it to each other outloud, they muse on love only a week into their relationship. And for me that’s fast. I will say that it felt more like they straddled the line of insta love seeing that they knew and crushed on each other for a good while before they got together. For that, I won’t take off as much.
Still, this was a story worth listening to. It knocked my socks off and held me tight until I finished.
Audio Review
Tatiana Sokolov and Sean Crisen and did good jobs. Tatiana did an excellent job at both female and male voices. Sean, new to the lineup also did a good job with his side of things. Although, I didn’t much care for his choice of voice for Ruger or the softer voice for Horse, but all in all good.
My Book boyfriend is Picnic Reese Hayes.

 
 
 
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Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Last Light (Night Owl #2) by M. Pierce

Last Light (Night Owl #2) by M. Pierce

This is an adult erotica novel (Rated NC-17)

 ♥♥♥♥♥
(Five Bunny Hearts)


Book Summary

Matt Sky is missing. After a solo ascent of Longs Peak that left only a large blood stain, tatters of climbing clothing, and the tracks of an animal in the snow, he is presumed dead ...

Hannah Catalano is guarding a secret ...


Tensions rise, secrets grow bigger, and passions run deeper in the highly anticipated second book in the Night Owl Trilogy.


My Review

Wow what a bumpy ride. I will admit that there were times I hated this book… and there were a lot of them. But when I step back and really think about it, when a book makes your FEEL so passionately not just about the story but the characters themselves good or bad, then an author has done their job right?. They’ve made you care about words on a page. So if you are so passionate about your feelings about those words, how can you possibly give a book that made you hate, a low rating? Is that really fair to the author? Do we only want books with predicable happy endings? Or should an author risk it all and piss you off enough to make you feel and set their book apart from the thousands of books out there?

Me thinks, the later. I read a lot. A LOT. I’m pretty sure at this point I’ve seen it all or a version of it because I read all genres. And it’s hard to surprise me.

I’m selective in what I read because I have so many choices. So generally, I pick books I know I’m going to like.

But enough about me, this book…

The author mentions at the end of the story about readers writing reviews and how important it is and how this author reads every review.

So it got me to thinking. I know I couldn’t have been the only person who in the last book felt annoyed by Hannah’s passiveness. Not that she can’t be passive, but how she was kind of a doormat and didn’t question internally or externally about things I as a woman would have, even if I ultimately didn’t mind it.

Well, either the author continued with the set trajectory with the story, or felt Hannah had been bashed enough, or wanted to clarify Hannah’s character. Whatever the reasons, Hannah came out guns blazing. I don’t think there was a point in this story that I didn’t agree with the actions or reactions she had/took. And I loved her all the more for it. Finally, she had her big girl pants on.

Matt on the other hand made me fall a little out of love with him. Okay, maybe not that drastic, but certainly I fell out of like with him. He just to me did almost everything wrong. And I hated him for it. Thank god he didn’t go down the predictable paths I thought he would. But at the same time, his thoughts and actions still weren’t good. And maybe that’s just me. I have a moral line I drawn in the sand for both my human and fictional people, lol. A lot of my book reading fans don’t have those same notions. So for some of you, you may not get mad with Matt at all. So no spoilers here.

At the end of it, I was pleased with the ending more than anything. It could have gone a number of ways. And again no spoilers because sometimes things happen for the best. So I’ll leave it at I was completely surprised by the ending. I wasn’t expecting it at all.

I’m going to have to stray away from tradition and not have a book boyfriend. Matt just didn’t make the cut and it would be mean to have Seth be my boyfriend. So well deserved…

My book girlfriend is Hannah.



Okay... I'll give you Matt too!


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Monday, October 6, 2014

Tested (New World #3) by Janelle Stalder

Tested (New World #3) by Janelle Stalder
 
This is a new adult dystopian novel (Rated NC-17)
 
 ♥♥♥♥1/2
(Four and a half Tyler Hearts)
 
 
Book Summary
 
Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye.

Faced with the scariest decision of her life, Missy is going behind enemy lines to save the rebel that seems to haunt her every dream. Finding courage is one of the hardest things she’s ever done, especially when she comes face-to-face with a terrifying reality. The green eyes that have fascinated her, no longer gleam with recognition. Now Missy must find a way to not only get them out alive, but to save the mind of the man who is quickly capturing her heart. And she must do it all without getting caught. Put to the test, will Missy be able to rise above her fears and find love, or watch it all blow up in smoke?

*This book is for mature audiences due to sexual situations, violence and strong language.
 
 
My Review
 

This book is from one of my favorite authors. She’s never disappointed me (okay, besides killing off characters in a previous series), but overall, never disappoints me when I pick up one of her stories. And this next installment of her new adult dystopian doesn’t disappoint.
There was just something about Tyler when I first met him in an early book that I just knew I would fall for him. Okay, I’m a bit of a book slut especially with these series. Each book focuses on a different potential couple but the overall arc of the series continues on. And each guy has been awesome… Roman… yeah.
Oh, back to Tyler. I was devastated by what happens to Tyler in this one but I’ll still call him my gentle giant. Through all of his trials, he manages to maintain his protectiveness. And I just want to hug him.
But the real hero in this story is Missy. She had something horrible happen to her long ago that left her timid and shy or at least more so than she might have been. And as a reader you can’t help but sympathize with her plight. But when it counted the most, she puts on her big girl panties and faces her demons in order to try and help the ones she loves.
I didn’t read the final version, so I’m not exactly sure if some things changed. But my one remark is that I feel like Missy and Tyler’s story isn’t completely over. I hope we will get more of them in the coming books. So far, the other main characters still play a role in each book. This time though, I think we need just a bit more. And how things left off, I’m guessing we will get it.
Janelle is a fabulous writer who knows how to suck you into her world. So grab hold and be swept away into this new world.
If you love dystopian, you should pick this series up.
My book boyfriend Tyler.

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Friday, October 3, 2014

Devil's Game (Reapers MC #3) by Joanna Wylde

Devil's Game (Reapers MC #3) by Joanna Wylde
 
This is an adult contemporary romance (Rated NC-17)
 
 ♥♥♥♥1/2
 (Four and a half Hunter Hearts)

 
Book Summary
 
Liam "Hunter" Blake hates the Reapers MC. Born and raised a Devil's Jack, he knows his duty. He'll defend his club from their oldest enemies-the Reapers-using whatever weapons he can find. But why use force when the Reapers' president has a daughter who's alone and vulnerable? Hunter has wanted her from the minute he saw her, and now he has an excuse to take her.

Em has lived her entire life in the shadow of the Reapers. Her overprotective father, Picnic, is the club's president. The last time she had a boyfriend, Picnic shot him. Now the men in her life are far more interested in keeping her daddy happy than showing her a good time. Then she meets a handsome stranger-a man who isn't afraid to treat her like a real woman. One who isn't afraid of her father. His name is Liam, and he's The One.

Or so she thinks.
 
 
My Review
 
I just love this author. If I were a re-reader, I would re-read this series. And I’m totally considering it. I love the world she’s created and the uniqueness of each book. Although each is linked to the Reaper’s MC, the problems each club member faces so far has been vastly different. Yet the stories still remain linked in a world I feel a part of as I turn the pages of the story.
Although this isn’t paranormal to take me completely out of the normal world, MCs are a whole new world for me. So I feel like I’ve stepped into somethinga new and different that can bring me experiences I haven’t had.
These books have a way grounded in reality that makes them so believable and easily digested. This author rocks my world and I can’t wait for whatever she writes next.
Audio Review
Tatiana Sokolov and Todd Haberkorn and did good jobs. Tatiana did an excellent job at both female and male voices. Todd also did a good job with his side of things.
My book boyfriend Hunter.

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Thursday, October 2, 2014

Reaper's Legacy (Reapers MC #2) by Joanna Wylde

Reaper's Legacy (Reapers MC #2) by Joanna Wylde
 
This is an adult contemporary romance novel (Rated NC-17)
 
♥♥♥♥1/2 
 (Four and a half Ruger Hearts)

 
Book Summary
 
Reaper's Legacy is a raw and intensely erotic tale in Joanna Wylde's Reapers Motorcycle Club series.

Eight years ago, Sophie gave her heart-and her virginity-to Zach Barrett on a night that couldn't have been less romantic or more embarrassing. Zach's step-brother, a steely-muscled, tattooed biker named Ruger, caught them in the act, getting a peep show of Sophie he's never forgotten.

She may have lost her dignity that fateful night, but Sophie also gained something precious-her son Noah. Unfortunately, Zach's a deadbeat dad, leaving Ruger to be Noah's only male role model. When he discovers Sophie and his nephew living in near poverty, Ruger takes matters into his own hands-with the help of the Reapers Motorcycle Club-to give them a better life.

Living with outlaw bikers wasn't Sophie's plan for her son, but Ruger isn't giving her a choice. He'll be there for Noah, whether she wants him or not. But Sophie does want him, has always wanted him. Now she'll learn that taking a biker to bed can get a girl dirty in every way.
 
 
My Review 
 
 
WOW, a hot steamy sexy story that surrounds a single mother. YAY! Hope for the single gal who makes a mistake with the wrong guy.

This story heats up with tension from the first. Ruger is there when Sophie has baby and remains in the boy’s life. Too bad when it comes to women and relationships, he almost as bad as his step brother.

So this journey for Sophie and Ruger doesn’t come easy. And maybe that’s a good thing. It made for great reading and I loved every second of it.

Yes, the couple annoyed me at times, but given the situation, I didn’t blame Sophie at all. What can I say?

I waited too long to read this one. My friend who turned me onto Horse (Reaper’s Property) told me this was a dud along with others who concurred. And I trusted her. Urged by the third book’s release and others who said they liked it, I went ahead and tried it. And I loved it. Do I still trust my friend, absolutely. Whenever she’s told me a book is a hit, it has been. However, that doesn’t mean our taste doesn’t vary at times. Anyway, for me it worked.

So if you’ve been hesitant about reading this one, give it a try.

Audio Review

Tatiana Sokolov and Todd Haberkorn and did good jobs. Tatiana did an excellent job at both female and male voices. Todd also did a good job with his side of things.
My book boyfriend Ruger.

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Wednesday, October 1, 2014

White Hot Kiss (The Dark Elements #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

White Hot Kiss (The Dark Elements #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

This is a young adult paranormal fantasy novel (Rated PG-13)

♥♥♥♥
(Four Solids Hearts)


Book Summary

One kiss could be the last.

Seventeen-year-old Layla just wants to be normal. But with a kiss that kills anything with a soul, she's anything but normal. Half demon, half gargoyle, Layla has abilities no one else possesses.

Raised among the Wardens—a race of gargoyles tasked with hunting demons and keeping humanity safe—Layla tries to fit in, but that means hiding her own dark side from those she loves the most. Especially Zayne, the swoon-worthy, incredibly gorgeous and completely off-limits Warden she's crushed on since forever.

Then she meets Roth—a tattooed, sinfully hot demon who claims to know all her secrets. Layla knows she should stay away, but she's not sure she wants to—especially when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue, considering Roth has no soul.

But when Layla discovers she's the reason for the violent demon uprising, trusting Roth could not only ruin her chances with Zayne…it could brand her a traitor to her family. Worse yet, it could become a one-way ticket to the end of the world.


My Review


Granted this isn’t Divergent even if Divergent would have been paranormal and not dystopian but it is classic JLA. My personal belief is that this author is at her best when writing angsty hormone filled young adult stories like her Lux and Convent series. What makes this one good is it is more unique in its opening book than the other two, not to take away from those amazing series.
I wasn’t sure what to expect after reading the first line of the blurb one kiss could be her last. It read much like another young adult paranormal series I read long ago. Kind of the same with a “good guy” that the heroine shouldn’t be with and a “bad boy” she’s perfect for.  And the whole kissing theme is kind of the same. But the plot arc is different I guess.
If you are a YA urban fantasy lover, this book may not be for you. This is more of a paranormal romance story because the focus is more on hormone filled moments. And in my opinion, there is nothing wrong with it. There is still world building and a problem or problems to solve, but they center more around the heroine and her life. Much like a coming to age story.
And there were times when I wanted to smack Layla, but she’s lived a sheltered life. I couldn’t blame her for some of her reactions and responses to certain things. She did however break out of her shell at some point in the book and I’m totally looking forward to the next one.
There are two hunky guys in this one. I can’t say it’s much of a love triangle when one guy isn’t available for a number of reasons. And it’s only her love for him that makes some sort of triangle. Anyway, I’m anxious for the next book in the series and will snap it up as soon as the audio version becomes available.

Audio Review
Saskia Maarleveld did a good job with narration. She did a great job with keeping the characters sounding different.
My book boyfriend Roth (as if there was any other choice)



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