Review: Dark Wild Night

Review: Dark Wild NightDark Wild Night (Wild Seasons, #3) by Christina Lauren
Series: Wild Seasons #3
Published by Gallery Books on September 15, 2015
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 341
Goodreads
four-half-stars

FINAL DECISION: My favorite of this series by far. I loved Lola and Oliver. Their friends to lovers story was complicated and emotional and difficult. These two are perfect for one another but have to find a way to be together.

THE STORY: Lola and Oliver are the final couple of the three that met and married impulsively in Las Vegas. But Lola and Oliver see themselves as the wise couple. Instead of engaging in sex, the two spent the evening walking Las Vegas and talking before their quickie divorce the next day. In the months since the two have become good friends. But there are deep undercurrents to their friendship as each is intensely attracted to the other but fear destroying their friendship by reaching for more.

OPINION: This is the first book that I really loved in this series. Lola and Oliver felt much more relatable to me. They are proud nerds, Oliver owns a comic book store and Lola writes graphic novels. Both have issues arising from parental abandonment when they were children. But each has a different sensitivity because of their past — and that causes complications.

Lola and Oliver have built a special friendship with one another. I loved their relationship which felt real and connected. When so often romance books concern couples meeting and falling in love in days, I really enjoyed this story where Lola and Oliver have an obvious rapport with one another. By the time their relationship becomes something more, there is a deep emotional significance. And that made the sex scenes hotter and more emotional.

I adored Oliver who is much more understanding and tolerant than many would be of Lola’s quirks, insecurities and naivete. I might have believed him too tolerant until he finally took a stand. I loved that he retains all his strength but loves Lola and wants her to be her best self as well. I also really love a hero with glasses.

Lola is the more difficult character in this book. She was sometimes hard for me to feel sympathy for, but I loved how this book unravels her fears and shows her development. Things are messy with her and imperfect and I enjoyed seeing how she grows as an individual.

I was really into these characters. I truly felt that these two had a basis for which to love one another. Their issues are many, but I think this is one couple I can see making it long term.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book sets up the couple for the next book.

CONNECTED BOOKS: DARK WILD NIGHT is the third book in the Wild Seasons series. This story can be read as a standalone although there are overlapping characters and their relationships span the entirety of the series so far.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.

four-half-stars

Review: Beautiful Secret

Review: Beautiful SecretBeautiful Secret (Beautiful Bastard, #4) by Christina Lauren
Series: Beautiful #4
on April 14, 2015
Genres: Contemporary
Goodreads
three-stars

FINAL DECISION: This book was okay, but disappointing compared to the other books in this series. I quickly got annoyed by Ruby who seemed immature and annoying for pretty much all the book.

THE STORY: Ruby Miller has had a crush on Niall Stella for months. When she is sent to New York with Niall for work, Ruby worries that she will embarrass herself because she can’t think when Niall is near. But soon the two are flirting with one another. Niall is finding his feet after his divorce. He doesn’t know how to deal with women, but there is something about Ruby that brings Niall out of his shell. But time spent away from real life in London might not last when they return.

OPINION: I think this book would have benefited from giving this couple some time to live their relationship. Ruby comes across too aggressive emotionally toward Niall. If the roles had been reversed, he would be excoriated as being an alpha jerk. This is Ruby. She’s pushing a man who is just divorced from his wife of fifteen years and plays the victim when he doesn’t act as committed as her.  Just because she has been “stalking” him for months is no reason for her to not give him real time in their relationship. Parts of this book made me cringe because I kept thinking — just give the guy some time to breathe.

Despite this, I did enjoy this quieter man who has been keeping himself so under control for years finding his sexual groove. I also enjoyed the two different characters finding a middle ground for their lives together.

Niall was adorable in the prior novella where he was introduced, but I wish he was more adorable and less neurotic here. He is still recovering from his relationship with his ex-wife, the only woman he has ever loved or ever had a relationship with. He is tentative and unsure about how to move forward. This seemed a reasonable position to me.

I had mixed feelings about this story. I would greatly enjoy portions as the two got to know one another and then I would feel uncomfortable at points. I wanted to like this more and thus I was disappointed.

Things seemed to finally be getting better when the two returned to London and then we had the big problem and that was resolved in a few pages. I left this book not feeling confident about this couple.

WORTH MENTIONING: The heroine here, Ruby, was mentioned in a very, very minor way in DIRTY ROWDY THING.

CONNECTED BOOKS: BEAUTIFUL SECRET is the fourth book in the Beautiful series. This book can be read as a standalone although there are some overlapping characters.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

three-stars

Review: The Hollow of Fear

Review: The Hollow of FearThe Hollow of Fear (Lady Sherlock, #3) by Sherry Thomas
Series: Lady Sherlock #3
Published by Berkley on October 2, 2018
Genres: Historical, Mystery
Pages: 326
Goodreads
five-stars

FINAL DECISION: Cementing this series as one of the most original and intriguing historical mystery series around, Thomas allows readers to delve into the relationship between Charlotte Holmes and Lord Ingram in ways that are unexpected and clever.

THE STORY: Charlotte Holmes, who uses her intelligence and reasoning to solve crimes, is confronted with the most serious case of her career. Lady Ingram, the wife of her friend, Lord Ingram is found dead and Lord Ingram is the prime suspect. Beginning on the heals of the event of A CONSPIRACY IN BELGRAVIA, Lord Ingram’s estranged wife has been running from Moriarty and Charlotte has to go undercover to save Lord Ingram.

OPINION: I loved this book. I enjoy a story that surprises me and this one had me twisted around until the very end. Unfortunately the nature of the book precludes much discussion of the plot beyond the blurb, but I very much enjoyed the mystery in this book. It was complex and intriguing and by the end I was surprised but also satisfied by the resolution.

Charlotte and Ingram are the focus of this book and readers who may have wondered about the chance of a romance between them will get some interesting time between these two. Yet Charlotte still remains her own person with a strong sense of self and her own agency. I loved how the story progressed and the book feels satisfying while pushing some of the overarching storylines forward for future books.

Original and compelling, the seriousness of the events can be impressed upon readers that Charlotte, loses her appetite — which basically makes this a serious crisis.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book follows directly from the events in A CONSPIRACY IN BELGRAVIA and I recommend refreshing the memory of what happened in that book.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE HOLLOW OF FEAR is the third book in the Lady Sherlock series. This book especially should be read after the second book in the series. I think it assumes knowledge about the characters and situation that one can only really gleam from having read the prior book.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

five-stars

Review: Lord John and the Hand of Devils

Review: Lord John and the Hand of DevilsLord John and the Hand of Devils by Diana Gabaldon
Series: Lord John Grey #0.5, #1.5, #1.5, #2.5, #2.5
Published by Delta on November 25th 2008
Genres: Historical, Mystery
Pages: 336
Goodreads
three-half-stars

This is a collection of three novellas about Lord John which have all been previously published. The stories about Lord John are a spinoff of the Outlander series.

LORD JOHN AND THE HELLFIRE CLUB: Lord John is approached by a man who bears a resemblance to Jaime and agrees to meet with the man about a political problem. The man is soon murdered and Lord John investigates and is drawn into the Hellfire Club. This is a very short story (around 40 pages) which gives a glimpse into Lord John’s life and a quick investigation, but it didn’t really stick with me. Neither the mystery, nor the life glimpse seemed that grand. Okay story for fans, but not a necessary read. Rating 2.5 stars.

LORD JOHN AND THE SUCCUBUS: Lord John is in Prussia and encounters another murder. This time the suspect is a succubus (female demon). Lord John investigates the death. This is a longer story (about 100 pages) and has a bit of supernatural flare which won’t surprise readers of the Outlander series. The mystery was intriguing to be because of the supernatural possibilities mixed with possible prosaic answers. The closeness of the possibility of supernatural answers feels really time appropriate. The story was enjoyable and I liked the resolution. Rating: 3.5 stars.

LORD JOHN AND THE HAUNTED SOLDIER: Lord John is engaged in an inquiry as to the explosion of a cannon during battle. Through a series of events, Lord John ends up with the only evidence that the cannon was poorly constructed, perhaps even criminally so. The novellas in this series have so far not interested me as much as the previous novel. I was interested in the investigation but perhaps the parts of this novella that overlap with the Outlander series was the most interesting part to me. Rating: 3.5 stars.

three-half-stars

Review: Beautiful Beloved

Review: Beautiful BelovedBeautiful Beloved (Beautiful Bastard, #3.6) by Christina Lauren
Series: Beautiful #3.6
Published by Pocket Star on February 2, 2015
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 102
Goodreads
five-stars

FINAL DECISION: Max and Sara are probably my favorite couple in the series, and I loved seeing them struggle after the birth of their daughter with how to deal with all the changes in their relationship. The book is funny and serious and sweet and hot, hot, hot.

THE STORY: After the birth of their beautiful beloved daughter, Max and Sara are trying to find the balance between parenthood and the sexy escapades that they have enjoyed as a couple. With help from their family and friends, they try to recapture the joys of being a couple while adapting to being a family of three.

OPINION: This is a continuation of Max and Sara’s relationship. Now that their daughter has been born, the two have to find a new balance between them. I loved that this story continues the tone of BEAUTIFUL STRANGER. This novella has humor and is super hot (if you were offended by the sexcapades of Max and Sara before, this novella is not any different). This is a definite read for fans of Max and Sara. As a parent, it also felt uncomfortably and amusingly real and immediate. Loved this one for fans of the Beautiful series.

WORTH  MENTIONING: This book also introduces Max’s brother Niall who is the hero of the next book in the series, BEAUTIFUL SECRET.

CONNECTED BOOKS: BEAUTIFUL BELOVED is book 3.6 of the Beautiful series. This is a followup on Max and Sara from BEAUTIFUL STRANGER. This novella is better knowing everything that has happened before in the series, but at least BEAUTIFUL STRANGER should be read first.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

five-stars

Review: Strong

Review: StrongStrong (Stage Dive #4.5; 1001 Dark Nights #88) by Kylie Scott
on September 25, 2018
Genres: Contemporary
Goodreads
three-stars

FINAL DECISION: Nothing to dislike about this story, but it is pretty unremarkable. The best parts of the story are the humorous scenes with the existing Stage Dive characters. A nice add on for fans, but I wouldn’t recommend it for new readers.

THE STORY: Sam Knowles, the head of security for Stage Dive, has had his eye on Martha Nicholson for years. When Martha returns to help her brother and his wife with caring for their son, Sam begins to make his move. Martha, who has been a troublemaker and who doesn’t intend to get involved with the quiet and determined Sam, nevertheless can’t help but be attracted him.

OPINION: I enjoyed this story, but I didn’t think it had much depth to it. Much of my enjoyment came from the appearances by the Stage Dive band and their wives. I can always enjoy seeing Mal again! But all the depth to the story (Martha confronting her misdeeds) comes from the prior books. I enjoyed the story and would definitely read it as an add on to the Stage Dive series, but I don’t think it stands on its own. Sam and Martha don’t have much depth to their story. Therefore, I put this as a good read that really depends upon the prior series to make it worth reading.

WORTH  MENTIONING: I don’t believe the official blurb is an accurate depiction of the story here. Sam doesn’t have any reservations about the relationship and indeed spends most of the story chasing Martha.

CONNECTED BOOKS: STRONG is book 4.5 of the Stage Dive series. The romance in this book is self contained and can be read independent of the series. The assumption of knowledge, however, makes me recommend this only as part of the series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

three-stars

Review: Dirty Rowdy Thing

Review: Dirty Rowdy ThingDirty Rowdy Thing (Wild Seasons, #2) by Christina Lauren
Series: Wild Seasons #2
Published by Gallery Books on November 4, 2014
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 352
Goodreads
four-stars

FINAL DECISION: Better than the first in the series, I really enjoyed how these two traveled in their relationship. Getting both characters points of view helped with understanding when they acted like jerks to one another. Fun and really hot.

THE STORY: Harlow Vega and Finn Roberts can’t get along except their hot sexual escapades. Married for less than a day in Vegas (after a drunken wedding and a quickie divorce), the two seem like oil and water and yet they keep circling back to one another. Both hard headed and fiercely independent, perhaps they are both too alike for their own good.

OPINION: This antagonistic relationship to something completely different was much better than the first book in the series to me. Perhaps because we get the thoughts of both characters, I understood them both even when they were pretty much jerks to one another.

Both characters are at crossroads in their lives and only slowly reveal themselves to one another. The sex in this book is definitely scorching and as the two draw closer, readers can see their fears of true intimacy. Their sexual encounters become more intimate emotionally and they both have fears.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book is told in alternating first person points of view.

CONNECTED BOOKS: DIRTY ROWDY THING is the second book in the Wild Seasons series. The book can be read as a standalone although the characters from this book appear in the prior book and the events where the two have a Vegas wedding are in the first book.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

four-stars

Review: Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade

Review: Lord John and the Brotherhood of the BladeLord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade (Lord John Grey, #2) by Diana Gabaldon
Series: Lord John Grey #2
Published by Delacorte Press on August 28, 2007
Genres: Historical
Pages: 511
Goodreads
four-stars

FINAL DECISION: A winding walk through 18th Century England with Lord John Grey who is investigating the truth of his father’s allegiances, preparing his troops for war, and trying to live his life as a gay man where dangers threaten at every turn. The character of John is so vivid here, that I enjoyed this journey.

THE STORY: In the mid 1700s, Lord John and his brother are both soldiers in the Seven Years’ War. As their mother prepares to marry again, secrets from their father’s death and questions of whether he was a Jacobite traitor arise again. Lord John looks into the matter and someone seems to be taunting the family and threatening Lord John int he process. At the same time, Lord John’s new stepbrother is attracting Lord John’s attention.

OPINION: This book rests almost entirely on the character of Lord John. I enjoy reading of his life and how he deals with the complications of his family, his sexuality and just how he fits into the historical events of his time. He is a complex character. He has an unrequited love for Jamie Fraser, but he continues to live his life.

This book is driven by the mystery surrounding Lord John’s father’s death and whether he was a Jacobite sympathizer. However, while that is the framing of the story, this book is also about relationship and family and the dangers and events that Lord John experiences in his historical time period.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit and am more and more impressed with the historical depth of Gabaldon’s books.

WORTH MENTIONING: Jamie makes a couple small appearances here in a book that happens during the events of VOYAGER.

CONNECTED BOOKS: LORD JOHN AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE BLADE is the second book in the Lord John Grey series which is a spinoff of her Outlander series. I don’t know if people read these books apart from the Outlander books, but I think that this book assumes a reader already knows who these characters are so I would only recommend this series if a reader is familiar with the Outlander books

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

four-stars

Review: Consumed

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: ConsumedConsumed (Firefighters, #1) by J.R. Ward
Series: Firefighters #1
Published by Gallery Books on October 2, 2018
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 416
Goodreads
four-half-stars

 

FINAL DECISION: Wow, this book has one of the most heart pounding and shocking introduction to characters and their situation as any book I have read. I really enjoyed this book. The characters are flawed and complicated; the story kept me interested and I left this book wanting more.

THE STORY: Anne Ashburn is a woman with something to prove. The daughter of a revered firefighter (who wasn’t who he seemed) and the sister of the current fire chief, Anne is fighting for her own identity in a profession dominated by men. Brash, opinionated, independent and strong, Anne loves being a firefighter. The thorn in her side is Danny McGuire a fellow firefighter. There is a blazing hot attraction between them that Anne acted on once, but never again. One fire changes everything.

OPINION: While I’ve always read and thoroughly enjoyed and sometimes outright loved Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series, I think I might enjoy her recent contemporary series even more. Her BDB series is sprawling in scope with a huge set of characters. Her contemporaries take her ability to write overarching stories with compelling characters and compress them into smaller bites.

Whereas her Bourbon Kings series was a lush soap opera, the Firefighters series has a compelling sense of action, drama and urgency that is reminiscent of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, but exhibited in a totally different context. This is not the BDB and may disappoint those looking for a similar series, but I loved the complexity of the characters, their flaws and individuality, the connection between Anne and Danny, and the intriguing plot which propels the characters.

Anne is a woman who struggles with love, connection and trust after finding out the truth about her father. She loves the same profession that is the family calling but has difficultly reconciling being respected, being open and being driven. She is stubborn and reckless and good at her job. When her life is turned upside down, she has to find in herself the ability to go forward and reform her life into something worth living. I especially liked that Anne doesn’t fit traditional ideas of femininity. Like many of Ward’s heroines in the BDB universe, she is physically strong and unwilling to be the victim. And yet, she struggles with ideas of her own attractiveness and where she fits. She is flawed, arrogant and difficult and I liked her all the more for it.

Danny is excellent at his job, but terrible at following orders. But the realities of the job and its costs weigh on his soul. The dramatic events which occur at the beginning of the book tip him toward self-destruction. But through it all, he has a connection to Anne that marks him as a passionate hopeless romantic — even if he would never agree to that characterization. He can’t forget her and while he accepts her wishes for a while, I cheered when he finally decided that he was going to go for what I wanted.

At times I didn’t like the characters very much. They are at times, angry, foolish, annoying and arrogant. They are flawed. And ultimately, that is what made me fall for them. They felt raw and real. By the end of the book, I didn’t want their story to end and I hope that we get to see more of them in future books in the series.

WORTH MENTIONING: There is a slight overarching storyline that isn’t completed here. This book is a complete story, but there are threads that I expect will be picked up in the next book in the series.

CONNECTED BOOKS: CONSUMED is the first book in the Firefighters series. There are two prequel vignettes (and one prequel that is in fact the beginning of this book) but those are not necessary to read although you get some background on the characters.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in order to prepare this review. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

 

four-half-stars

Review: Obsession

Review: ObsessionObsession (Regency Lovers #2) by Carole Mortimer
Series: Regency Lovers #2
Published by Carole Mortimer on September 14, 2018
Genres: Historical
Goodreads
two-half-stars

FINAL DECISION: Unrealistic and simplistic in many ways, but I enjoyed this easy and short read. More impression than full story, this was an okay one time read.

THE STORY: Lord Alexander Stirling was made the guardian of a fifteen year old girl, sent her to a boarding school and promptly forgot about her. Years later, that ward, Amanda Fullerton has come to London to confront Alex and demand that she be recognized. Alex is shocked by Amanda who isn’t the demur young woman he expects.

OPINION: This is a easy and uncomplicated read. The characters are written in broad strokes, their relationship is mostly drama without much emotional depth. This isn’t one of the complicated romances that I love, but I still thought this book was okay.

Some books are meant to be complicated journeys and some can be enjoyable popcorn that can be read in a quick manner and then put aside. This book is that second type. I enjoyed the quick and dirty story with plenty of heat between the characters. Once the book was done, I put is aside. There wasn’t really much to the story beyond the blurb description, but that was okay because I knew what I was getting.

In many ways, this book is like a novella that is focused on the broad outlines of the story.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book has a lot of sexual activity, but no full sexual consummation.

CONNECTED BOOKS: OBSESSION is the second book in the Regency Lovers series. This book can be read as a standalone although there are overlapping characters from the first book.

STAR RATING: I give this book 2.5 stars.

two-half-stars