Monthly Archives: May 2016

Review: Dominated

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Review: DominatedDominated (The Enforcers, #2) by Maya Banks
Series: The Enforcers #2
Published by Berkley on May 3rd 2016
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 352
Goodreads
two-stars

“Evangeline. His angel. He’d found her. Finally.”

FINAL DECISION:  I loved the first book in this series and had high hopes for this second book.  Unfortunately, I didn’t feel that the relationship between Evangeline and Drake developed at all and Drake’s poor treatment of Evangeline never really gets better.

THE STORY: Beginning right where the events of MASTERED ended, DOMINATED tells the story of Drake and Evangeline. Drake has devastated Evangeline with his treatment of her.  Trying to protect her, Drake savaged her emotionally in front of his business rivals. Evangeline has left Drake and now Drake is determined to find her and get her to forgive him.

OPINION: I had high hopes for this book.  I really loved the first book in the series and couldn’t wait until this book came out to complete Drake and Evangeline’s story.  Unfortunately, I was deeply disappointed.  The problem for me was that Drake and Evangeline’s emotional story didn’t progress at all.  It has seemed at the end of MASTERED that Drake had reached a crisis point.  After his treatment of Evangeline, it seemed like once they were back together that he would change, that she would change, that their relationship would be different.  Instead, Evangeline forgave Drake too easy and once again in this book he treated her abominably.

I don’t mind alpha dominate jerks as heroes as long as they end up treating the heroine with love and respect. Drake never learned this lesson.  While the two reconcile at the end of DOMINATED, I had no confidence that he wouldn’t go off the rails and treat Evangeline terribly again. I never felt that his characters made any changes that would justify a belief in an ultimate HEA. I ended up liking his “brothers” more than him because they believed in Evangeline while he immediately distrusted her without much reason.

For me, this book felt like an afterthought that was no necessary.  I don’t think that this story needed two books to tell and probably would have been better as one book.  Too much of this book felt repetitive of MASTERED both in the story and also emotionally. The characters relationship seemed to stagnate and I lost interest.

After enjoying MASTERED, I was highly disappointed because not only was this book not what I had hoped it would be, but also it lessened my enjoyment with MASTERED because that book needs a conclusion.  Sadly, that conclusion is not worthy of the first book in the series.

WORTH MENTIONING:  There is a MMF menage scene in this book but no emotional menage relationship.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  DOMINATED is the second book in The Enforcers series.  This book is the second part of the romance between Drake and Evangeline and should be read after MASTERED.

STAR RATING:  I give this book 2 stars.

two-stars

Review: Only Beloved

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Review: Only BelovedOnly Beloved (The Survivors' Club #7) by Mary Balogh
Series: Survivor's Club #7
Published by Signet on May 3rd 2016
Genres: Historical
Pages: 393
Goodreads
four-half-stars

“Surely everyone was entitled to some companionship, some contentment in life even when youth was a thing of the past.”

FINAL DECISION:  Absolutely loved this lovely story of two people who later in life look for companionship and find love beyond what they ever expected.  Balogh managed to finish her Survivor’s Club series in a emotional and redemptive fashion filled with hope and love.

THE STORY:  George Crabb, the Duke of Stanbrook has been widowed for 12 years after his wife committed suicide following the death of their son in the Peninsular Wars.  Now at 48 years old, George is considering marrying again since all his Survivor’s Club friends have found love.  When he thinks of marriage, however, George has only one woman in his mind.  He thinks of Dora Debbins, a woman he met briefly a year ago and still hasn’t forgotten.  He seeks her out and proposes marriage for companionship and friendship.  Dora gave up hope of marrying when a family scandal left her to care for her younger sister.  Dora has made a life for herself as an independent music teacher and yet the possibility of marrying the man she hasn’t been able to get out of her mind is seductively attractive.  As George and Dora think to build a good marriage, they find out that the past which previously robbed them of their happy ending is dangerously close to stealing their happiness again.

OPINION:  I adore how Balogh goes deep into the emotion of her characters.  While there is a storyline plot that moves the action forward, the emphasis in ONLY BELOVED is on the developing relationship between George and Dora.  George and Dora are characters which I fell in love with.  Both had their youthful dreams of love and marriage taken from them, they reached an age when they believed that the possibility of happiness had passed them by.  Instead, each had built a life helping others.  The marriages of all the other Survivor’s Club members prompt George to think about Dora again and wonder if they might find a measure of companionship, friendship and happiness together. What he knows is that he cannot love — that possibility having been burned out of him by his first marriage.

As Dora and George so obviously fall in love, there is immense sadness that these two people believe that their lives lack the possibility and hope of love.  As they reveal themselves to one another, they discover that love exists for everyone.  I love how the story develops with a maturity and yet a joyful discovery between these two people.  This story demands patience and a willingness to allow these characters their journey.  Their story unfolds slowly and patiently but at the perfect pace for these two.

I love the beauty and gentleness of the relationship between Dora and George.  I like that it reflected both their maturity and the newness of falling deeply in love.  They are both wise in the difficulties in life but also neophytes in loving and trusting and building a life together.

I loved this book and as the last book in the series, I was not disappointed.

WORTH MENTIONING:  Fans of the series will be pleased by the appearances and updates on the couples from the series.  Just what you would expect from a concluding book.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  ONLY BELOVED is the seventh and final book in the Survivor’s Club series.  It can be read as a standalone although I think the book has more emotional meaning at the end of the series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.

four-half-stars

Review: Calamity Mom

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Review: Calamity MomCalamity Mom by Diana Palmer
Published by Harlequin Books on April 25th 2016
Genres: Contemporary
Goodreads
two-half-stars

FINAL DECISION:  This is a sweet story but fairly forgettable.  I read it once and thought it was fine, but I didn’t see anything special about the story or the characters.

THE STORY:  Faulkner Scott’s twelve year old son wants a mom and has set his eyes on Shelly Aster.  Although Faulkner believes Shelly is too young, too poor and too inexperienced for him, he can’t seem to stop spending time with her.  As both Faulker and his son fall for Shelly, she has secrets of her own which might make her perfect match for them both.

OPINION:  This is a straightforward and sweet story.  For a story like this, to be a really good story, I think that there have to be memorable characters.  For me, the story was nice, light and easy to read and enjoy, but there was nothing special about it or its characters.  I like Diana Palmer’s books, but this story isn’t one of the best.  Nice one time read but nothing about it was lasting for me.

WORTH MENTIONING: This novella was originally published in 1993.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  CALAMITY MOM is a standalone.

STAR RATING:  I give this book 2.5 stars.

two-half-stars

Review: The Earl Takes All

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Review: The Earl Takes AllThe Earl Takes All (The Hellions of Havisham, #2) by Lorraine Heath
Series: The Hellions of Havisham #2
Published by Avon on April 26th 2016
Genres: Historical
Pages: 384
Goodreads
four-stars

“Don’t let her figure out that it’s me, the sneaky bastard who takes what isn’t his. Don’t let her realize that I’m not her husband.”

FINAL DECISION: I love how Heath creates situations between characters that seem impossible and then goes deep into the emotions of the characters to make a situation work out.  I thought this story would never work and yet Heath made it a lovely romance.

THE STORY: Edward Alcott returns from a safari with his dead twin but is himself masquerading as his twin.  It was his brother’s dying wish that Edward care for his wife who is pregnant. Edward intends on pretending to be his twin until his sister in law gives birth.  Pretending to be his brother is more difficult than he expected since Edward has been enamored of his sister in law for years.  Julia is surprised by the changes in her husband on his return.  He seems more wicked and bolder than the man she married.  As she falls even more in love, she can’t help but wonder what has changed her husband so much.

OPINION:  I often start a Lorraine Heath book thinking “there is no way she can make this work” sometimes I even hate the premise.  This book was difficult to imagine from the blurb of the book.  I couldn’t imagine that a relationship that begins with the hero impersonating his dead twin to his sister-in-law was going to work.  For the most part, the book did work. There were a couple of rough parts that called for more acceptance than analysis on my part, but I got wrapped up in the emotional journey of these characters that by the end, I was totally bound up with wanting their happy ending.

This book does demand some patience from its readers as (1) you have to accept that Julia would not recognize Edward’s impersonation of her husband and (2) you have to accept that she will ultimately forgive him for his deception.  Some readers might not be able to get past these hurdles, but accepting these premises allowed me to become absorbed by the emotional conflict in the story which is filled with love, guilt, pain and joy.

In the story, Edward begins as the typical rake, but we soon find out that he is hiding a love for Julia which he always believed was hopeless.  His masquerade of a thoughtless rake allowed him to mask his feelings.  By pretending to be his brother, Edward begins to lose control of those feelings and falls deeply in love with Julia.

I liked these characters and especially appreciated how Heath walks the line of Julia falling in love with both brothers without diminishing either of them.  This is a difficult task and is largely successful — even if I admit that I like Edward better.

The central conflict of the story becomes that even if Julia and Edward fall in love, the deception will have to continue because English law forbids a man from marrying his brother’s widow.  The resolution of this story might seem like a cheat to some, but I really liked that the solution, like the conflict itself, is based on historical fact.  Heath explains some of the real legal issues involved in her afterword.

WORTH MENTIONING:  Fans of Heath’s other series might see some familiar faces.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE EARL TAKES ALL is the second book in the Hellions of Havisham series.  It can be read as a standalone although the first book of the series gives some further background on the characters and their connection to significant secondary characters.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

four-stars

Review: ‘Til Death Do Us Part

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Review: ‘Til Death Do Us Part'Til Death Do Us Part by Amanda Quick
Published by Berkley on April 19th 2016
Genres: Historical
Pages: 352
Goodreads
three-stars

“She belonged to him.”

FINAL DECISION: This book was good in many ways but didn’t live up to my expectations for an Amanda Quick book.  The mystery so central to the story was just meh and I found to romance good, but not one that I’d want to reread.

THE STORY: Calista Langley owns a Victorian matching agency where she introduces men and women looking for companionship.  A stalker begins sending her gifts that creep her out because they are mourning gifts personalized for her.  When Trent Hastings, author of a series of detective stories comes to her to complain about Calista involving his sister in her matching agency, the two strike sparks off one another and soon seem to be meeting all the time.  Calista seeks Trent’s help in discovering who is stalking her.

OPINION:  This book had the setup to be a really good story with Trent’s initial mistrust of Calista and a creepy mystery.  For me, however, everything about this story sort of petered out and by the end I was only mildly interested in the romance and the mystery.

I thought the conflict between Trent and Calista was resolved so quickly that it eliminated most of the tension between the characters and made their romance nice but not particularly compelling or memorable.

Instead, the story rested on the mystery of who was stalking Calista.  Unfortunately, that story was not good enough to rest the entirety of the book on.  I quickly figured out the villain and thus there was no surprise reveal in the book for me.  Because there was more emphasis in the book on the mystery than the romance, I needed a better, scarier, more compelling mystery.  This one did not engage me enough.

WORTH MENTIONING: I would classify this book as historical suspense with a dash of romance.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  ‘TIL DEATH DO US PART is a standalone.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

three-stars

Review: What We Find

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I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.


Review: What We FindWhat We Find (Sullivan's Crossing, #1) by Robyn Carr
Series: Sullivan's Crossing #1
Published by MIRA on April 5th 2016
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 352
Goodreads
four-stars

“He was falling in love with her.  It was a terrifying concept.”

FINAL DECISION: I fell right into this story, but for me the most compelling part of the story was the insight into two professional people who reached a crisis in their lives that made them rethink the entire trajectory of their lives.  A story of a deeply personal journey which also includes a romance, I really enjoyed the path these characters take.

THE STORY: Maggie Sullivan is a neurosurgeon who reaches a crisis in her career and her personal life.  This leads her to come to Sullivan’s Crossing where her father resides. Sullivan’s Crossing is a small town located where the Continental Divide Trail and the Colorado Trail cross.  While there, Maggie meets a mysterious hiker named Cal Jones. Cal has his own personal struggles and the two develop a friendship and then a romance.

OPINION:  I loved this story, but the romance was only the secondary reason why.  I really felt a connection with both Maggie and Cal who had reached what they thought was success in their personal and professional lives only to have things fall apart on them.  This is the story of how these two people emerge from their shattered lives and build a new personal and professional lives, fall in love and build a new life together.

I think that Carr really nailed the inner journey of these two characters.  Lives in upheaval are sometimes prime places to build bad relationships and I appreciated that these characters know they must find themselves before they are capable to giving themselves to someone else and sharing a new life together.

Carr has a wonderful way of giving her books a special place.  Sullivan’s Crossing feels real and settled and a place that anyone can go to. I love these small town stories because it gives the books a sense of community and there is much humor to be found in small town life.

While I enjoyed the romance, this book felt like a personal journey for two characters.  I felt a connection with each of these people who is asking “what do I want of my life now”.  The romance felt real and natural and special between these two, but I think the personal journey was even more compelling than the romance itself.

WORTH MENTIONING: Carr does quirky little towns so well.

CONNECTED BOOKS: WHAT WE FIND is the first book in the Sullivan’s Crossing series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

four-stars

Review: White Tiger

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Review: White TigerWhite Tiger (Shifters Unbound, #8) by Jennifer Ashley
Series: Shifters Unbound #8
Published by Berkley on April 5th 2016
Genres: Paranormal
Pages: 335
Goodreads
four-stars

“Addie never paid much attention to Shifters — they weren’t part of her world. And now one had come to her diner to eat pie.”

FINAL DECISION: An enjoyable romp, WHITE TIGER continues to expand the Shifter universe.  As always, the world building is strong here. The sweetness of the romance between Kendrick and Addison is matched with an adventurous story.  The only thing I missed here was a progression in the overarching story.

THE STORY: Kendrick is a Guardian and the white tiger shfiter leader of a group of uncollared shifters. A father with motherless children, Kendrick has lived for so many years in secret in order to protect his family and his shifters, Kendrick has not been able to resist a nightly trip to a diner to see a waitress Addison Price.  When an attack leaves them all vulnerable, Addison is pulled into the world of the Shifters.

OPINION:  I really enjoyed this book because Kendrick and Addison are such a sweet pair. Addie is really strong as a woman and I love her protective instincts.  Kendrick has a hidden gentleness to him and the pain he has experienced makes him wary of falling for Addie but he quickly does even as he wants to keep his distance to protect her.

Most of the conflict in this story involves Kendrick’s clan and a shifter who wants Kendrick for herself.  That part of the story didn’t work as well for me, but I enjoyed the overall story in such a way that I could overlook it.

Aside from the romance, my favorite part of the book was watching Kendrick, with Addie’s help begin to build a home for his shifters.  The sense of finding a home and building a place where shifters can find happiness and community just made me happy.

WORTH MENTIONING:  Any book where Tiger appears is a great book to me!  I love that guy and was pleased to see this part of his story.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  WHITE TIGER is the eighth book in the Shifters Unbound series.  It can be read as a standalone although a new reader might feel challenged by the worldbuilding that has already been done and isn’t explained here.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

four-stars

Review: The Pirate Prince

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Review: The Pirate PrinceThe Pirate Prince (Ascencion Trilogy #1) by Gaelen Foley
Series: Ascencion Trilogy
Published by Ivy Books on July 29th 1998
Genres: Historical
Pages: 407
Goodreads
three-half-stars

‘It has been fifteen years since Prince Lazar di Fiore last set foot on Ascencion.”

FINAL DECISION: This book was uneven to me.  There were parts that were compelling and beautiful and parts that just dragged and made me want to skip ahead.  I ended up liking it more than not but I doubt I would read it again.

THE STORY: Lazar di Fiori returns to avenge what was stolen from him.  As a youth, his royal family was murdered and he barely escaped with his life.  He intends on seeking revenge by killing the only daughter of his sworn enemy.  Allegra Monteverdi inadvertently ends up in Lazar’s hands, and her sweetness and purity makes it impossible for Lazar to kill her.  Instead, Allegra offers to be his captive in exchange for her family’s lives.  Despite himself, Lazar agrees and finds himself challenged by a woman who demands that he be better than he could have imagined.

OPINION: This book should have been tailor made for me.  I love those dark, tormented heroes and Lazar definitely falls into that category.  I could never fall completely into the story.  I found it uneven and I didn’t become completely captivated by the story or the characters.  Parts of the book were absorbing but so much was tedious and I felt like skipping ahead.  I didn’t find the totality of Lazar’s journey as compelling as I might have expected.  The story had the possibility to being a compelling and rollicking adventure, but while parts were great, there were too many parts that pulled me out of the grand adventure for me to think of the book as anything other than good but not great.

WORTH MENTIONING: Spoilers:  The book contains references to slavery and rape.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE PIRATE PRINCE is the first book in the Ascencion Trilogy.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

three-half-stars

Review: The Girl from Summer Hill

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I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.


Review: The Girl from Summer HillThe Girl from Summer Hill (Summer Hill, #1) by Jude Deveraux
Series: Summer Hill #1
Published by Ballantine Books on May 3rd 2016
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 384
Goodreads
four-stars

“There was a naked man on Casey’s back porch. She would have called the police or, at the very least, screamed if he hadn’t been so damned beautiful.”

FINAL DECISION: The funny and poignant drama of a cast of townspeople who perform Pride and Prejudice and live a version of it as well, THE GIRL FROM SUMMER HILL updates the story enough to be interesting while keeping the essential elements of Jane Austin’s timeless story.

THE STORY: Casey Reddick was a successful chef who allowed her career to take precedence over her love life.  After a failed relationship, Casey decided to take a break, spend time in Summer Hill and decide what to do with her life.  Unexpectedly she ends up being Elizabeth in a local production of Pride and Prejudice. Darcy is played by Tate Landers, a Hollywood star, who winds up in the production as well.  Tate has a rough, prideful exterior which ruffles Casey.  The two start off on the wrong foot and their romance is played out through the play itself which mirrors their romantic journey.

OPINION: This is an enjoyable light romance.  For me, the best part was the similarities and differences from Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice.  The story explicitly embraces its homage to Pride and Prejudice which makes the twists clever and funny.  It also allowed me to accept reactions that might otherwise annoy me such as Casey’s willingness to accept stories which paint Tate as a bad guy. In this reimagining of P&P, I am willing to forgive story twists which also annoyed me in P&P.  (FYI: I’m not really a fan of Austin’s P&P but I liked the romance between Elizabeth and Darcy).

One difference for me what that I liked Tate a lot more than I liked Darcy.  Tate is incredibly sweet which is typified by his incredibly lovely relationship with his niece.  I liked him so well that it made up for my meh feelings toward Casey until the middle of the book.

One thing I always love about Deveraux’s books is the great sense of place and community. This book is especially sweet because of the multilayed storytelling techniques — play, P&P and the actual events in this novel.  This sense of being in the play is especially emphasized by the chapter divisions which reflect the scene divisions in the play.

Adventurous fans of Pride and Prejudice should be tempted by this modern adaptation which respects Austin’s vision while providing enough contrast to provide modernity and creative contrast.

WORTH MENTIONING: This story actually has several secondary romances which mirror those in Pride and Prejudice — but also some surprises.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE GIRL FROM SUMMER HILL is the first book in the Summer Hill series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

four-stars

Review: The Untamed Earl

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I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.


Review: The Untamed EarlThe Untamed Earl (Playful Brides, #5) by Valerie Bowman
Series: Playful Brides #5
Published by St. Martin's Paperbacks on May 3rd 2016
Genres: Historical
Pages: 304
Goodreads
four-half-stars

“Being fifteen years of age an a bit plump and unconventional when one’s elder siter was eighteen years of age and willowy a ethereal — if waspish — was decidedly unpleasant.”

FINAL DECISION:  My favorite of the series, THE UNTAMED EARL benefits from a sweet romance between two people who are overlooked, underestimated and unappreciated by others but find something special in one another.

THE STORY: At fifteen, Lady Alexandra Hobbs feel in love with a “knight in shining armor” who saved her brother and his friend. The object of her affections is Lord Owen Monroe, a rake who leads a life of drink, gambling and women.  Three years later, Alex discovers that her father, the duke, has chosen Owen to marry Alex’s older sister who happens to be a genuine shrew.  Owen has to marry because his father will cut off his allowance if he does not convince the duke’s eldest daughter to accept his match.  Alex wants to sabotage Owen’s courtship so she offers to groom him into the man Alex’s sister will want to marry while intending exactly the opposite.

OPINION: I loved the couple in this book.  Two people who are overlooked, misunderstood and underappreciated by their families find something special in one another.  Alex has always been placed second to her older sister.  What she wants doesn’t matter in the face of her older sister’s wants.  Alex makes a break when she becomes determined to sabotage the engagement of her sister to the man that Alex has wanted since she was fifteen.  Through the story and the romance, Alex discovers that she matters and what she wants matters.  Owen has also been misunderstood by his father.  Because his father does not think much of him, Owen has tried to live up to his poor reputation.  In his heart, however, Owen is a good man which Alex recognizes quickly and thus sets her heart toward this “hero” rake.  When Owen agrees to marry Alex’s sister, he does so because his father threatens to cut off his allowance, but also because it gives him an opportunity to finally satisfy his father.  The need for parental acceptance is strong with Owen even as he denies that desire.  For Owen, his journey is being his own man without the desire to satisfy or thwart his father.

In a plot that at times is funny, at times frustrating and at times horrifying, I loved how Alex and Owen find acceptance, strength and purpose in their relationship.

WORTH MENTIONING: The story has a passing feeling of being inspired by Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew even though there are not really strong parallels. The shrewish older sister that must be married first, mixed up romances and some comedy gives this a Shrewish feel without being derivative.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  THE UNTAMED EARL is the fifth book in the Playful Brides series. It can be read as a standalone although other characters from the series appear.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.

four-half-stars