BOOK REVIEW- Wishes Under a Highland Star (A Tale from the Order of the Dragon Knights) by Mary Morgan

   

Historical Fiction | Romance | Sci Fi & Fantasy 

Description

As chieftain for his clan, Alex MacFhearguis struggles with the burden of an unwanted responsibility. With the midwinter feast approaching, he flees his castle to find comfort and solitude within the forest. Yet on his quest, Alex stumbles into a world filled with magic, mysteries, and a woman with beguiling eyes who could capture his heart.

When half-Fae Aine Fraser makes a powerful wish, her simple request unlocks the magic she possesses and brings forth a Highlander into her world. Though the man has lost all his memories, she finds her attraction growing for this brooding warrior with each passing day. Unable to deny her feelings, Aine risks everything when she confesses her greatest secret.

Can a beauty who wished for a champion tame the beast of Leòmhann Castle? 

AMAZON LINK 

 3.5  STARS

Although this was a well developed fairy-tale, I'm not so sure it was for me.  It just didn't grab me as much as I would have liked. 

I do have to give the author credit for building a beautiful world. It was like a fairy-tale inside a fairy-tale.  It was also charming in it's own way.   And it was good to see both Alex and Aine finding their way to each other. 

 “I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

(NETGALLEY)

 

BOOK REVIEW- The Lost Sheenan's Bride (#6 of Taming of the Sheenan's) by Jane Porter

     

Trying to get over a broken heart, twenty-four year old teacher Jet Diekerhof takes a gap year to travel and have an adventure. Her practical farming family is horrified until Jet's older sister Harley gets her a long term sub position at a one room school house in Montana's Paradise Valley. Jet's grateful it's 775 miles from her overly involved family-and the guy who broke her heart. She's also sworn off men until meeting darkly handsome Shane Swan changes everything...

Thirty-four year old Shane Swan has been an outsider since birth. Raised by his maternal grandmother near Flathead Lake, Montana, until her death when he was four, meant he ended up in foster care. But ever smart, determined, and ambitious, Shane has become one of the most successful writers in America. Yet none of his success has answered the burning question: why was he the one given away, and his brothers kept? Now Shane has moved to Marietta to unravel the secrets and lies and what it means to be a Sheenan, and nobody is closer to the Sheenans than Brock's young sister-in-law, Jet.

Normally Shane would never use a woman, but if Jet can connect him with the keys to his past, he doesn't seem to have choice. Until he begins to fall for her. Can two strangers, who were never meant to be, believe in love again?

 AMAZON LINK

4  STARS

It was a good story with intriguing main characters and a lot of well drawn local history.  It also had quite a few people in the story both past and present.  And a couple of times I got lost in who was who and how they connected because there was that intertwining of families.
The emotions in the story especially for Shane was spot on but so was Jet's.  I have to admit I liked her name and the explanation for it.  I found it a bit hard to navigate the reason for all of Shane's names though even though it was explained.   It was easy to understand him writing using an author name though.  And I liked the interchanges between the two and how tender but direct Shane was with Jet.
I liked how it all came together in the end.  I wasn't sure how that was going to happen.

I read this story through the HOOPLA Library App

Book Review- Surrendered Hearts by Nina Levine

   

An arranged marriage, cartel romance.

 

Javier Torres is the kind of man most run from.

He’s ruthless. Brutal. Unforgiving.

He’s dark power in an expensive suit.

I met him at fifteen, loved him at nineteen, and was broken by him two years ago when he shattered my heart and sent me away.

Now, our families want us married.

Joining in this way will strengthen the cartel Javier is poised to take over.

I’ll marry Javier.

I’ll give him my loyalty.

I’ll do what I must for my family.

But I will never give him my heart again or bow down to him.

Except, Javier demands everything from me.

And as far as he’s concerned, all is fair in love and war because when Javier wants something, nothing will stop him.

As our enemies close in on us, my fiancé pushes me to my limits and I discover that things might not be as they’ve always seemed. That maybe this man I’ve always loved would bleed for me in the same way I would for him. 

 

Welcome to the Badlands underworld where ruthless men wage wars for power and the love of a strong woman, and where queens always stand next to their king.

 

The Badlands world is a gritty, violent, mafia-inspired world that is all shades of grey. Raw, emotional romantic suspense with high heat and dark themes. It contains some situations that may upset the reader.

 

My thoughts-  Going in I knew that this was a novella but it just didn't do it for me. It did manage to put a fair amount of emotions into it along with dangers. And I have to give points for the spunky heroine of the story, Emilia. And Javier was hot but I just wanted a bit more depth to the story. Maybe I was expecting too much but that's what I felt.

Book Review- A Hard Day for a Hangover A Novel (Sunshine Vicram Series, 3) by Darynda Jones

   

Mystery & Thrillers 

 Some people greet the day with open arms. Sheriff Sunshine Vicram would rather give it a hearty shove and get back into bed, because there’s just too much going on right now. There’s a series of women going missing, and Sunny feels powerless to stop it. There’s her persistent and awesomely-rebellious daughter Auri, who’s out to singlehandedly become Del Sol’s youngest and fiercest investigator. And then there’s drama with Levi Ravinder—the guy she’s loved and lusted after for years. The guy who might just be her one and only. The guy who comes from a family of disingenuous vipers looking to oust him—and Sunshine—for good.

Like we said, the new day can take a hike.

The blockbuster conclusion to the bestselling Sunshine Vicram trilogy, A Hard Day for a Hangover will have readers laughing and cheering to the very last page.

AMAZON LINK 

4 STARS

I've pretty much read all the books in this series but if a new reader starts here, it should be pretty easy to follow. And what great characters are in it.  There is NO one quite like Sunshine.  Well, that might not be 100% true.  Because Sunshine's daughter Auri is more like her mother than you'd think.  Almost like a "Sunshine" in training. It seemed like Auri featured more in this story. She's smart and knows how to work a situation even if she doesn't win every time.  She also has "the nose" for digging deeper into mysteries even dangerous ones. She also makes some new friends (and enemies).  Cruz is some one on the Friend List.  

Quincy is Sunshine's deputy and best friend, who has her back but is also unafraid to call her on stuff.

Levi, the one that Sunshine has been in love with since forever also has some truths revealed.  I was happy to see that happen.  Although I enjoyed the humor, and the funny signs outside of the businesses this wasn't my favorite of the series.  But don't get me wrong, it still had a lot of points in it's favor.

 

 “I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

(Netgalley)

 

BOOK REVIEW- Bent: (An Everyday Heroes World Novel) by Rue Lennox

 

 

She's the hurricane I didn't see coming.
I knew from the moment I met her that I had to have her.
Too bad she belonged to someone else.
Or so I thought.
She dropped the man hanging on her arm with one well-placed kick.
Then she knocked me on my ass and stole my truck.
Avery James doesn’t belong to anyone.
She doesn’t back down.
She doesn’t walk away.
Even when she should.
Chaos might as well be her middle name.
From one disaster to the next, she’s a magnet for mayhem.
Plus, she's too stubborn for her own good.
Blindly charging head-first into a world she doesn't belong in.
My world.
Law, order, and everything in its place.
But Avery?
She makes me want to bend every rule I have.
Even if I break under the strain.

 

AMAZON LINK 

 

5 STARS

 

I took a risk when I decided to read this book.  It could have gone sideways on me, being just another hot book, with more sex than plot or depth.  Not this one!  And I ended up begin SO glad I picked it up. It was a surprise in all the best ways. 

 Let's start with Avery..wow, what a tiny magnet for trouble.  So often she doesn't start stuff but she sure knows how to finish it! She's a fighter that's for sure. And if you touch her without her permission?  Well, you've been warned. 

Carter, what a great guy but often put his foot into his mouth when it comes to Avery. It's just that he sees into her so clearly.  He has also been in love with her for a long time and just doesn't seem to know it while everyone else pretty much knows.  Everyone but Avery that is. It made me smile time and again when it was said to Carter, "little Avery James is your Kryptonite." Well, that was proved time and again too, often in hilarious ways!  I found Avery was someone that got under skin too when it came to enjoying a character.

While I enjoyed the humor a lot, there is also plenty of emotions, family dramas and even some grief.  All well done.  So was the families of both of the main characters.

It comes to an explosive ending with a satisfying epilogue.  

 

 

 “I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

 

 

(BOOKSPROUT)

BOOK REVIEW- Snowbound With My Boss BY Oona Ryda

   

A Billionaire boss, an overworked assistant, a remote cabin, and the blizzard of the century.

How will I function without her?
When my assistant hands me her resignation, I panic.
But that's not my biggest dilemma.
I need a wife ASAP or I’ll lose my company.
In a stroke of genius, I rope the uptight Ms. Miller into playing my fake fiancée for Christmas.
Maybe I’ll finally get to sample the curves hidden under her shapeless business attire.

It’s time to leave this soul-sucking job.
After four years at Cameron Steele’s beck and call, I’m done.
No more middle-of-the-night phone calls. No more incessant demands.
But when the smokin’ hot bosshole offers me eight months’ severance pay for one final assignment, it’s impossible to refuse.
Just my luck we end up snowbound in a remote cabin—with just one bed.

When the snow melts, will the passion fade too?

AMAZON LINK

 4 STARS

Surprisingly good main characters who each shared their own points of view.  That is something that I enjoy and did so in this story too. Talk about two people who seemed to be complete opposites.  There is more than what meets the eye.

 It was also a fun, quick story, which I went through pretty fast.  It also had a few surprises towards the end and a good finish.  The Epilogue was a nice addition too.  

I was given a free copy of this book and was not required to leave a review.  But all comments that I've made are my own  thoughts and opinions.

BOOK REVIEW- Blast Wave by Leo J. Maloney

   

Mystery & Thrillers

Description

From the clandestine corridors of power in London to Tokyo’s historic underground, Alex Morgan fights a devastating global threat in an explosive thriller by real-life Black Ops veteran Leo J. Maloney.

A sniper attack in London’s Trafalgar Square triggers the survive-and-protect instincts of Alex Morgan, special agent of the Zeta organization. As the city erupts into chaos, Alex knows it’s only the first move by the vicious Ares network. Fast-moving events propel her to Tokyo, where Yoki-Dyne, a lucrative and innovative tech company, is under attack.

Alex takes a deep dive into the heart of danger, only to encounter a female operative who may be her best ally – or her worst foe. It’s a race against time to fortify Yoki-Dyne, safeguard the future of Western democracy, and extinguish every threat that stands in her way. 

 AMAZON LINK

4 STARS

 I'm pretty sure I haven't read books by this author before. But what an interesting story it was starting with Alex Morgan herself.  She's just going along minding her business on the way to a "meeting'' and things started getting explosive.  And yes, there is a double meeting with that word, "meeting." I also liked that not only did Alex have skills when it came to physical security but also her second job was a working cover.  What do I mean by that?  That her cover was a real business, one that she loved and excelled at.  

Great world building is done in the story with plenty of details.  At times, it felt a bit much to me BUT you can tell the author knew their stuff. But what I loved best was The Action.  The action when it began to move did so really quickly, keeping me in the story.  Also the Zeta's computer team of hackers was something else that kept me reading. Shepard and O'Neal had to keep themselves on their toes on this op. They did a good job of racing around in cyber-world to try to help Alex.  I also couldn't help but like Temi, Alex's Japanese contact.

I really liked that right off the bat it became really clear why the book has the title that it does.  I always like that.  It fit so well.

 

 “I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

(NETGALLEY)