Book Review: Everything I’ve Dreamed Of by Norah Bennett

everything i've dreamed of

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

I have just finished reading a beautifully written, plotted and emotionally charged contemporary romance that has given me a book hangover that I do not want to end! EVERYTHING I’VE DREAMED OF (Love In Lake Crossing, Book 2) by Norah Bennet is a romance that introduces two broken individuals that this author brings to life and shares their journey of realistic emotional growth and healing.

Kate Willowbrook has grown up experiencing physical and sexual abuse, hunger and fear. She runs away after witnessing a rape and murder in her high school and ends up on the streets. Kate is eventually taken in by an elderly, feisty woman in Texas and given love and stability for the first time and taught how to take care of herself. With the death of her mentor and the end of a bad relationship, it is time to find a place to call home.

Kate settles down when she finds her dream of an old bookstore for sale in Lakes Crossing, NJ. She turns it into a bookstore for children called “Dreamscapes” with her apartment above and her cockatoo, Shakespeare. After a year of living here and making only casual acquaintances, Noah Reed walks in to find books for his niece’s birthday and Kate can’t believe her reaction to him.

Noah Bennett grew up in Lakes Crossing, but lives and works in New York City. His wife was killed in a car accident while he was in London on business and he has never forgiven himself. He throws himself into work and occasionally dates, but is not interested in a relationship until he meets Kate. Kate makes him laugh again and every encounter makes him want her more and the more he wants her the more protective he becomes. This causes problems with Kate from her past and somehow they have to learn to balance both of their needs against their fears to have a chance at love.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Kate and Noah both have to learn to open up and share their past lives, learn to overcome their fears and learn to balance the needs of each other to make this relationship work. What makes this romance so special is that the H/h actually talk to each other and work through their problems. They do have an instant attraction, but after that the pacing of the romance is realistic. This book is part of a series, but can easily be read a standalone. Well written sex scenes and a few external problems make this book a wonderful contemporary romance read. I’ll be looking for more from this author.

Written for and posted first on The Romance Review.com.

Book Review: Ethan’s Heart by Vickie King

ethan's heart

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

It has been quite a while since I have read a historical cowboy romance. I am very glad that I tried this first in a series by a new to me author, ETHAN’S HEART (The Blackwood Brothers, #1) by Vickie King. The Blackwood family, a runaway with a sick baby and secrets, posses, outlaws, and Missouri in 1855 all come together for a great read.

Ethan Blackwood is a widower with two little girls. His beloved wife, Elizabeth was killed during a bank robbery. Grief has turned into a powerful need for revenge instead of justice for this sheriff, but first he has to find someone to take care of his little girls so he can go on the hunt for her killers.

Annabelle “Annie” Holt is on the run from St. Louis with little baby Lily. She has to abandon the wagon train due to Lily’s health and is helped by the town’s doctor, Andrew Blackwood. Annie needs to stay in town for Lily, but she has no money and considers accepting the job as the laundress for the salon girls. Andrew believes he has the perfect solution for Annie. She needs a home and security and his brother, Ethan needs a new wife to care for his home and girls.

Ethan and Annie marry and when Ethan makes it clear it is not for love, Annie has some rules of her own. It isn’t until he comes in with his star on his vest that Annie realizes she has married the town’s sheriff. It is now more important than ever to keep her secrets.

I loved Annie! She was so strong and loving even with all that had happened to her and what could happen if the truth of her past became known. The love and care she showed for everyone was wonderful to read. Ethan was a good and honest man who was being eaten alive by his need for revenge and how Ms. King dealt with his change of heart was very well done. I really enjoyed reading this story, even though at times it was predictable, because the familiar and HEA is what I am looking for in a good romance genre book.

Thank you to Salt Run Publishing LLC and Net Galley for allowing me to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the brothers’ stories!

Book Review: When It Hits You by Nicki Elson

when it hits you

RATING: 3 out of 5 Stars

WHEN IT HITS YOU by Nicki Elson is listed as Book 1 in the ‘It’ Series, but it was a previously released book with a different title. It is more of a Chick Lit book with a small amount of romance in the last 40 pages of the story, than Contemporary romances like books two and three in this series.

Lyssa Bates is a 26 year old financial analyst who has chosen her vibrator over her boyfriend when given that final ultimatum, the vibrator or me. She has decided her vibrator has everything she needs for now. As her love life takes a new turn, so does her work life. She is assigned to work on a major corporate account with the hottie, Hayden from estates.

Hayden King is a rising star in the investment company and this new opportunity is very important to him. He is also a man who believes in dating several woman and not committing to one, until if ever he meets the ‘one’. At first, Lyssa finds him conceited and overbearing, but as they work together for long hours, she begins to realize there is a difference between what you see and how Hayden really is.

I enjoyed Lyssa and Hayden and the banter that went on between the two, but to be honest I went into this thinking I was getting a Contemporary romance. The story ended that way, but was pure Chick Lit in the majority of the story. The dialogue was crisp and entertaining. It was interesting to learn why Lyssa and Hayden each behaved the way they did, also. Good story, but not what I was looking for in this series.

Written for and posted first on The Romance Reviews.com.

Book Review: Roots of Murder by R. Jean Reid

roots of murder

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

ROOTS OF MURDER by R. Jean Reid is a mystery that is both thought provoking and powerful.

I had a hard time putting this story down and it lingered in my mind when I was not reading. It starts out a little slow, but there is a lot of history to incorporate and it picks up speed very quickly with a suspenseful climax. Although fictional, this story covers very real topics regarding race relations, social injustice, poverty and voting rights in the South during the 1960’s and today.

Nell McGraw is trying to deal with her grief and that of her two children as they go on after the loss of Thom, Nell’s husband. She takes over running Thom’s weekly local paper, the Pelican Bay Crier in Mississippi by herself now instead of as a couple. Nell gets a call that human bones have been found in the park and they appear to be about 50 years old. This discovery leads Nell and her coworkers at the paper to go on a search to identify the bones and to find out why they were buried there.

While Nell and her coworkers try to discover the mystery surrounding the bones, Nell is dealing with the backlash from a local family trying to get her to quit prosecuting the drunk who caused the accident that killed her husband. The paper is covering the race for mayor and also trying to unravel a past scheme to steal the valuable property of poor black residents through property tax fraud. The author weaves this web of several storylines, past and present, into an amazing story.

I really want this book to be the start of a series and I checked online and it seems there will be a second book featuring Nell in June of 2017. Nell is such a strong female lead with her own problems to conquer and a wonderful cast of secondary characters. I felt this book was especially poignant considering the current state of affairs in our country. I did not want this book to end!

Book Review: Liz: The Montana McKennas by Jan Scarbrough

LRH Liz

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

LIZ: THE MONTANA McKENNAS (The Montana Ranchers #7) by Jan Scarbrough is a wonderful read to wrap up the blended McKenna family series of romances. I enjoyed reading James’ children and stepchildren’s romances and was very happy Ms. Scarbrough has also written a HEA for his widow.

Liz McKenna has watched her children and stepchildren fall in love and start to live their own lives after the death of her beloved husband James eighteen months ago. She has taken up hobbies, moved into a smaller cabin, and run the dude ranch for the season, but she still has a deep feeling of unhappiness.

Liz’s daughter-in-law, Stephanie’s ebook “Under Montana Skies” is semi-autobiographical about everyone’s lives on the ranch since James death and has become a best seller. Her agent wants the best screenwriter/producer in Hollywood to turn it into a movie or cable TV series. The girls conspire to get Charles Kingston to read the book and visit the ranch.

Charles “Chaz” Kingston has become fed up with the Hollywood lifestyle. His ex-wife is trying to get their daughter on her reality TV show and his younger brother has committed suicide after his divorce and declining career. He wants a change and the offer of two weeks in Montana on a closed for the season dude ranch sounds perfect. What is he is not expecting is the beautiful and down to earth widow who runs the ranch.

I loved Liz and Chaz! A mature romance always has so much extra baggage, both mentally and externally, that can complicate the story and Ms. Scarbrough added just the right amount of both. As in the other books in this series, it is short and yet not short on romance. I truly enjoy all of these books for a quick, but heartfelt romance read. The sex is behind closed doors, but the affection is not. Another wonderful addition to the series.

Written for and posted first on The Romance Reviews.com.

Book Review: Beloved Beast by Karyn Gerrard

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RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

WOW! My preconceived notions for this book where blown away. I went looking for a book with a different twist and this was definitely it. BELOVED BEAST (The Ravenswood Chronicles, #2) by Karyn Gerrard is a mix of gothic horror, historical WWII romantic suspense and historical WWII spy novel. Even though this is the second book in the series, it can easily be read as a standalone with all the information the author has seamlessly peppered throughout this book.

The debauched Viscount Ravenswood Lucas Madden died from a carriage race accident in 1895 only to be revived in a Mary Shelley like experiment. Unlike Shelley’s beast, Lucas has become a man with heightened senses, strength and possible immortality, but he has also become outwardly disfigured, and cool to the touch with a strange gray cast to his skin. He hides his face as much as possible and explains away his strange coloring as ‘photophobia vitium’.

Working with his nephew in the emerging MI-6, with his new identity as Luke Newman, he helps relocate returning spies from the war zones in Europe. He is assigned the safety of Gillian Browning, who seduced a German business man for information on the Enigma machine, returned to England, and is suddenly in danger from a German spy.

As the two return to Luke’s former home in the country to wait for transport to Canada, Luke cannot believe that Gillian brings warmth back into is body and life. He never believed he would find love again after the death of his wife. Gillian wants the truth about Luke’s past and no longer wants her time with him to be limited, but the threat to their lives is catching up to them.

I could not put this book down. The concept made it unique and yet it also read as a traditional historical romantic suspense. There is explicit sex, because the beast has a heightened libido and yet it never felt gratuitous. The plot was well paced and the characters where all fully fleshed out and believable, well as far as you can believe in a reanimated man. I really enjoyed this book and I will definitely be looking for the next in the series!

Thanks very much to Kensington Books and Net Galley for allowing me to read an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Loved it!