Tag Archives: Review

ARC Review: Lone Wolf

Leave a reply

Lone Wolf

Jennifer Ashley
Penguin Group USA
Publication Date: April 15, 2013
Description:

LoneWolfEllison Rowe is a wolf Shifter who has embraced all things Texas. He’s a cowboy through and through, complete with a Texas drawl, cowboy hat, and well-worn cowboy boots. He’s also lonely, though he feels obligated to look after his sister who is recovering from a hit-and-run accident that has left her striving to control her feral tendencies.

Enter Maria, a human woman taking refuge with the Shifters, who volunteers to look after the cubs and help Ellison’s sister. Maria too is recovering from a haunted past—she was kidnapped and held hostage by a rogue Shifter and then disowned by her family when she was set free. Now she’s on her own, but determined to put her life back together and leave Shiftertown for good.

But someone is attempting to abduct Shifter cubs, and Maria and Ellison know they must stop him. As Maria works with Ellison to track down the kidnapper, she finds her heart slowly awakening once more. And Ellison realizes that Maria may be just the one to bring light back into his life…

My Thoughts:

I have been totally enthralled with the alternate reality world created by Ms. Ashley in her Shifters Unbound series, and the entry of Lone Wolf is no exception to that. She continues to expand the world, letting us see that there is much more going on with the conflict between Shifter, human, and to a lesser degree, the Fae.

Maria was rescued from a group of feral shifters in a prior book, and because she’s viewed as “tarnished” by her no-good (my opinion and Ellison’s) brother, she’s taken refuge in the Austin Shiftertown while she tries to put the pieces of her life together again. She wants to go to school, become a doctor, and be able to help others. But she isn’t a martyr about it, it’s simply the core of who she is, and how she’s chosen to put herself back together after her horrific experience as a captive and Shifter-cub incubator (tragedy there) over several years.

Ellison. Mm, what is there really to say about Ellison? He’s tall, awesome, and totally devoted to protecting Maria, even before he realizes he wants the mate-claim with her. This leads him to declare a Challenge when fellow Shiftertown resident Broderick tries to claim her, despite her refusal to agree to it.

On top of all the testosterone floating around with the oh-so-eligible and available Shifters, there is a meaty subplot about kidnapping of cubs and humans who want to keep them as pets. Tiger, a created shifter introduced in the same book as Maria, is given a nice role in defending the cubs and taking out the bad guys, all in preparation for his book, #5 in this series, coming out in June.

If you like you some alpha lions and tigers and bears (oh my!) and wolves (Ellison is wolf), and a brave, devoted human who’s trying to make sense of the world after many years in captivity, this is quite the book. You can read it without having read the others, but I highly HIGHLY recommend you read the others in the series. You’ll understand the set up for the book much better and feel a much stronger connection to the myriad characters throughout.

An easy 4/5, edging toward a 4.5/5.

Book provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

–Review by Victoria

heat Rating 4

ARC Review: Loving the Marquess

1 Reply

Loving the Marquess

Suzanna Medeiros
CreateSpace (per Amazon)
Publication Date: March 21, 2013 (per Amazon)
Description:

LovingShe is on the verge of losing everything…

To save her home and keep her two younger siblings safe, Louisa Evans must turn to the head of the family that ruined hers.

He needs an heir…

The Marquess of Overlea is starting to show signs of having inherited the same illness that killed his father and older brother. To prevent the marquisate from falling into the hands of an unscrupulous cousin, Overlea must secure an heir before that illness also claims him.

But he is determined not to be the father of that heir…

Overlea’s plan is simple—marry the practical, yet desperate, Miss Evans and hold Louisa to her promise to provide him with an heir. But he waits until after they are married to tell his wife that he intends to have another man father that heir. His careful plan becomes complicated by an almost desperate need to claim Louisa for himself and an outside threat that proves even more dangerous than his illness.

My Thoughts:

I’m really not sure where to begin with this book. I thought the romance was lovely, as one might expect from the talented Ms. Medeiros. The hero, Overlea, was a tragic figure. He was never supposed to be the Marquess, but his father and brother both died from a tragic illness, and he’s shouldered the burden of the marquessate as best he can, considering he had no training prior to their deaths. Louisa wasn’t wispy, a martyr (much) or a victim. She was smart and not about to let a bad situation get the best of her.

An improper suggestion by Overlea’s cousin brings these two together after Louisa saved Overlea’s life when he passed out on her door from a massive headache, a series of which plague him throughout the book. It’s hard to nail down any of the plot that surrounds those headaches without offering any spoilers, so I just won’t.

As you might expect, there was a villain (can’t have a good Regency romance without a villain), but in the end, I was surprised as to who the ultimate villain was. One of the lesser villains I nailed the first second they appeared on the page. Which is one of the reasons I had such an issue with the book. It was simply too obvious, at least to me. Maybe I just read the right kinds of books. The discovery that I was right as to who was involved (except for the final villain) and what was going on sort of lessened my enjoyment of this book.

However, don’t let that dissuade you from reading Loving the Marquess. Overlea and Louisa deserve the happiness they get. I’m quite curious to know what happens to Louisa’s brother (he runs off to join the Navy after Louisa’s wedding). More curious about him, actually, than the (I suspect) sequel-bait characters of Louisa’s sister Catherine and the Earl of Kerrich. Still, I look forward to the chance to read more in the Landing a Lord series from Ms. Medieros.

In the end, because of my unhappiness with the villain/that part of the plot, I can only give the book a 3/5 rating.

Book provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

–Review by Victoria

Heat Rating 3

ARC Review: Night Demon

1 Reply

Night Demon

Lisa Kessler
Entangled Publishing
Release Date: March 13, 2013
Description:Night Demon

Gretchen Finch’s job would be much easier if she weren’t alone in the jungle with a brilliant recluse whose every glance sets her on fire. But the more she focuses on her work, the closer she gets to unlocking the mysteries of a terrible creature—the Night Demon—that threatens the world as she knows it. Though her scientific mind tells her it’s impossible, she’s beginning to believe the ancient Mayan tales as the sinister jungle comes alive around her.

Lukas Smith has spent hundreds of years searching for answers to his immortal Night Walker nature. As a series of ancient glyphs become clear, he’s about to find out more than he’d ever hoped, but the more he learns, the more his fate intertwines with the Night Demon, and the harder it becomes to hide his immortal secret from the beautiful, intelligent Gretchen.

Together, they must find a way to stop the inexplicable violence and mass destruction surging across the earth before the Night Demon destroys more than just mankind.

My Thoughts:

First let me say that this book is part of a series. When I got the book from NetGalley, I hadn’t realized that, nor did I actually realize that I’d read a novella that took place in this same world (Night Thief) until I actually started reading the book. I was nervous when I made the realization because while I liked Night Thief, it seemed to be a bit lacking and cliched.

My worries were for nothing. Night Demon is Book 2 in the series, but you don’t need to read Book 1 or the novella to be brought up to speed. You’ll get to see Kane and Rita (Night Thief’s couple) when they get into hunting down the evil titular demon. The beginning and middle were well paced and I loved the tension between Lukas and Gretchen. You know it’s a romance, but after a while I began to wonder if they’d ever work through Lukas’s issues (and yes, it was primarily Lukas holding back – the whole “I’m a vampire” thing sort of weighed him down, even after he ‘fessed up to what he was.

Night Demon gives the reader a chance to get a better look at some of the mythology and beliefs that were so important to the Mayan people, which made for a different world view than, say, someone who’d grown up with European or Egyptian mythologies as their basis for beliefs. I loved the idea of the cyclical universe, with mankind being on its second or third (at least) run through (Ms. Kessler even indicates that one of the mankinds that developed on earth existed during the time of the dinosaurs, which was awesome!).

While the book was fabulous and kept me reading page after page, the very end left me very wanting and knocked this down from what could have been a 5-star to a 4. While it certainly expanded the universe of the Night Walkers, it also raised a lot of questions I don’t like getting raised right at the end. Work them in earlier. I really didn’t like the ending and how it sort of dragged on and opened up a whole new can of worms/problems. But the last page or so probably guaranteed I’ll want to read #3 in the series. Just because it was seriously creepy.

So – check it out!

Provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

–Review by Victoria

heat Rating 4

ARC Review: Three Sisters by Susan Mallery

1 Reply

Three Sisterscover22100-medium

Susan Mallery

Harlequin

Pub Date   Feb 26 2013

Description

New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery’s prose has been called “gritty and magical” and “luscious and provocative” (Publishers Weekly). Now she returns to Blackberry Island with the story of three women whose friendship will change their lives forever.

After Andi Gordon is jilted at the altar, she makes the most impetuous decision of her life—buying one of the famed Three Sisters Queen Anne houses on Blackberry Island. Now the proud-ish owner of the ugly duckling of the trio, she plans to open her own pediatric office on the first floor, just as soon as her hunky contractor completes the work. Andi’s new future may be coming together, but the truth is she’s just as badly in need of a major renovation as her house.

When Deanna Phillips confronts her husband about a suspected affair, she opens up a Pandora’s box of unhappiness. And he claims that she is the problem. The terrible thing is, he’s right. In her quest to be the perfect woman, she’s lost herself, and she’s in danger of losing her entire family if things don’t change.

Next door, artist Boston King thought she and her college sweetheart would be married forever. Their passion for one another has always seemed indestructible. But after tragedy tears them apart, she’s not so sure. Now it’s time for them to move forward, with or without one another.

Thrown together by fate and geography, and bound by the strongest of friendships, these three women will discover what they’re really made of: laughter, tears, love and all.

My Thoughts

Three Sisters is an emotional rollercoaster that holds you close and never lets go. Susan Mallery is famous for her light romance that brings in the emotion. But her Blackberry Island series isn’t about the ending, but the journey. Each heroine has been through hell and is still going through it. It then takes everything they have to find each other and the men and families they love.

I won’t get into each woman because I feel you need to read them yourselves. But I will say I loved all three. Even Deanna, who people thought was a bitch. I saw through that and saw the fragileness that threatened to break.

This isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s something that takes you down deep and makes you cry. But honestly, I loved it.

Loved it.

I rooted for all these woman and I will say the journey is worth the end.

I received an ARC of this novel via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

–Review by Nicole

RS-sample1 Magic book

ARC Review: Little Cowgirl on His Doorstep by Donna Alward

1 Reply

Little Cowgirl on His Doorstepcover22956-medium

Donna Alward

Harlequin

Pub Date   Mar 5 2013

Description

Little cowgirl makes three

For Avery Spencer, the sight of rugged, sullen and dangerously sexy Callum Shepard is enough to set her pulse racing. Too bad she’s only on his ranch to tell him that her adorable baby niece is his daughter!

Reclusive rancher Callum is shocked to discover he’s a father. But now Callum must learn to believe he does have what it takes to become a dad, and convince Avery that both she and baby Nell belong on the ranch-with him!

My Thoughts

Little Cowgirl on His Doorstep was a cute, emotional novel that was surprisingly deep. Avery is Nell’s aunt and now sole provider. Callum is Nell’s father, though he didn’t know it. Avery’s sister and Callum had a one night stand to make sure they get over the pain in their pasts. They had no strings and no promises—just a consequence Callum didn’t know about.

After he gets over the shock of Nell’s existence, he and Avery have to figure out how he’ll be in Nell’s live…and in Avery’s.

I really enjoyed the chemistry between these two, even if they fought it. They were both trying to do what was best for Nell, even if they had to figure out what that was.

Little Cowgirl on His Doorstep is a good book for those who like light contemporary romances to get you through the day.

I received an ARC of this novel via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

–Review by Nicole

RS-3