Tag: #romance

Book Review: You’ve Got Aliens by Fiona Roarke

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

I loved this story and characters! They are both entertaining, fun and quirky. YOU’VE GOT ALIENS (Alienn, Arkansas Book 1) by Fiona Roarke is a laugh out loud short romance read that I highly recommend. I just finished the first book in this new humorous alien vs. human romance series and I want the next one NOW!

Juliana Masters needs money and accepts a writing assignment from her old college professor. She is to go to nearby Alienn, Arkansas for travel publication, Finders, and find out if the alien sightings at the Big Bang Truck Stop are real.

The Fearless Leader of the Big Bang Truck Stop is Diesel Grey. The oldest of seven children, inherited the leadership of the Truck Stop last year from his father and takes his job very seriously. The Big Bang Truck Stop is located in a small town with fun alien ads everywhere on the surface, but a galactic refueling station and rest stop underneath. When Juliana shows up for an interview, he can’t believe how attracted he is to this human, but he has to be careful or all of their covers will be blown and humans will know that aliens have always been here among them.

Besides the cute premise for this story, you just have to love all the clever names, Big Bang Truck Stop, Alienn, Arkansas, Diesel, Axel, Cam, Wheeler, Gage, Jack and Valene. The romance was fun as both Diesel tried to hide his true heritage and Juliana wanted the truth for her article so that she could use the funds to discover her past. The romance was very sweet and the sex was behind closed doors.

The secondary characters were all as entertaining as the H/h. An elderly aunt who wants to raise funds for her retirement home with a wet t-shirt contest. A brother who is head of security and keeps mind zapping Juliana into forgetting what she has learned.

This is a fun story that you just have to read. You will be wanting the next in the series as much as I do. Please write quickly Ms. Roarke!

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

Book Review: Cowboy Pride by Anne McAllister

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

COWBOY PRIDE (Code of the West #5) by Anne McAllister is a second chance romance that is part of a contemporary cowboy romance series that can be easily read as a standalone. The strong, silent and brooding ranch foreman gets a second chance with his high school sweetheart and daughter of the ranch owner turned famous and talented artist after eleven years.

Widowed and pregnant, Brenna Jamison returns home to run her father’s Montana ranch while he is in a nursing home recovering from a stroke. When asked if she could tutor a talented artistic child, Tuck, she agrees, but doesn’t know what she will do if she runs into his uncle and guardian. He walked away from her once before and broke her heart.

Jed McCall cannot believe that Brenna is back home. He states he doesn’t want anything to do with her, but when Tuck tells him of the troubles she is having on the ranch he goes over to check it out. He gets rid of her unreliable hired cowboys and rounds up her old friends to help her get the round-up done for the year.

Without knowing of their pasts, Tuck decides that Jed needs to marry Brenna so the child welfare people don’t take him away from his uncle and Brenna needs a husband to help run the ranch and take care of the place while she is pregnant and give her the help she needs to bring her father home. They reluctantly agree to the idea for these reasons only, but they each have personal unstated hopes, too.

Brenna is a wonderful heroine. Talented, loving, caring and determined to find out why Jed walked away from her. She makes her life choices based on love and you are seriously involved with her finding love again. Jed is a good, caring protective, hardworking man, but he is not an outgoing or happy man. This hero had me sighing over how he took care of others and wanted to love, but he also made me want to shake him over how often he hurt others by not explaining why he walks away.

This is a quick read with minimal sex only in the final chapters of the book. I enjoyed the HEA for all the characters, but I was not satisfied with how long it took the author to get to Jed’s true motivation for what he did. The story otherwise was satisfying read.

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

Book Review: Stark September by C.D. Bradley

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

I have added to my book boyfriend list! Owen Stark is HOT, HOT, HOT!!!

What an amazing start to a new trilogy by new author, C.D. Bradley. Stark September has characters that could walk off the page, a story that keeps you reading and sex scenes that had me pulling out the fan. Owen Stark and Kira Riley are well matched and the cast of secondary characters are interesting and as well fleshed out as the H/h.

Captain Kira Riley has reached her dream of becoming a physician and now she owes the Army time for their investment in her. She knows all about the Army having grown up an Army brat until the age of 12 when her father in Special Forces was killed. She wants to pay back the Army and get out with no attachments or complications.

Owen Stark has other plans the minute he sees Kira as he accidently knocks her down. Stark is a Special Forces sergeant who has used the past decade to become a member of a band of brothers he can always count on as he heals from a personal tragedy. Both have secrets that they are afraid to share, not to mention that fraternization is against military regulations, but they just can’t stay away from each other.

As Kira and Stark’s relationship grows, you learn about Kira’s sexual assault and stalking while in college and that Stark dealt with his personal pain in the Special Forces, but also in a BDSM club and at home with a housemate named Paige. I feel the author did an excellent job of growing this relationship and revealing their differences and the problems that popped up because of those differences. The sex scenes were never gratuitous, but were perfectly suited to the growing romance and Kira’s sexual experimentation. Be warned that there is some BDSM and spanking in this book.

I cannot recommend this forbidden love story enough. There are two small problems for me though. First, Stark and Kira exchange one dog tag each. Although this is very romantic, it would never happen in the real military. Second, I wish the author would have wrapped up the suspense portion of this story in this book, while only leaving the romance open ended for the next book. Ms. Bradley’s writing is strong enough and her characters intriguing enough to carry me into her future books without the cliffhanger epilogue. That said, I still loved this book and am getting started on the next in this trilogy right away!

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

 

Book Review: A Teaspoon of Trouble by Shirley Jump

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

A TEASPOON OF TROUBLE by Shirley Jump is the first in The Bachelor Bake-Off series all set in Marietta, Montana and written by various authors. This is both a funny and heartbreaking contemporary romance that is an enjoyable read.

Carolyn Hanson left small town Marietta and her high school boyfriend in her rear view mirror after graduation for her dream of being a top chef in NYC. For ten years she is singularly focused and is about to realize her dream and be named the sous chef of a trendy Manhattan restaurant when she gets the call that her sister and husband where killed in a car crash. What she finds completely surprising is that her sister named her the guardian of her 4 year old niece, Emma and her puppy, Roscoe. She returns to her hometown hoping her parents will take Emma, but they are devastated with grief and barely functioning.

Matthew West has stayed and flourished in his home town of Marietta as a small animal veterinarian. When a beloved first responder is killed, the town proposes a Bachelor Bake-Off to raise funds to build a Boys & Girls club in his memory. Matthew enters to help, but he can barely boil water let alone bake. He is shocked when his old girlfriend walks into his clinic with a little girl and puppy in tow.

Carolyn and Matthew make a deal. They will swap their talents to help the other out for the time Carolyn is in town. Carolyn will teach Matthew how to bake and Matthew will teach Carolyn how to train Roscoe. When the old sparks start to fly, Matthew begins to hope that Carolyn will stay in Marietta to raise Emma and be a part of his life again.

I laughed as much as I teared up while reading this story. It is well balanced between fun with the dogs, Emma and learning to bake with the grief Carolyn and her family were dealing with, not always well. At first, Carolyn came across as self-centered, but when you learn more of her fears and grief, you begin to empathize with her and watch the growth of her and Emma’s relationship. I felt the author handled the scenes where the family dealt with their grief were realistically written. This second chance story leaves you with a HEA smile and is well worth your reading time.

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

Book Review: Midnight Exposure by Melinda Leigh

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Stars

I started this suspense series, Midnight Exposure (Midnight, #1) by Melinda Leigh, because I really enjoy her Scarlet Falls series. (Check them out!)

Jayne Sullivan makes her money as a photographer and occasionally for the big money as a tabloid photographer. She is sent to Maine in December to find and photograph the reclusive sculptor R.S. Morgan. She hates being deceitful, but she needs the money to help her brothers with the family bar in Philly and medical bills for her youngest brother. She is glad to be away from Philly at the moment also, to get away from a stalker who attacked her and has gone to prison, but he is out and had promised to come for her again.

At the address her editor gave her she meets Reed Kimball. Reed had moved to Maine with his son after the death of his wife. He was a homicide detective in his old life, but now acts as a handyman around town and has a secret in his barn turned work shed out behind his home. He hides his true identity from all, but the police chief in town. Jayne does not know the connection between Reed and R.S. Morgan and before she can find out she is abducted. She escapes on her own in a blizzard. Reed finds her and takes her to his home.

Both Reed and Jayne are hiding secrets and motives, but they can’t help but continually be attracted to each other. As the sexual tension increases, so does the threat to Jayne from an unknown source which could prove to be deadly.

This was a fast paced and exciting read in the first chapter and then again after a few. I just felt it bogged down for a while after the first chapter. I also had a problem with how long it took Reed to tell Jayne about his past. He was reclusive over something that he was proved innocent of doing and after a new scandal comes along, I think the media would have left him and his son alone. He did not even stay in the same town, he moved far away.

The Celtic druid facts were interesting and so was the reason for the killings. I do not understand why the other family member was involved though. I do not understand how he could believe a madman. It was a stretch for me. That said, I still like Ms. Leigh’s writing style and will continue on with this series. Not a bad book, but just not my favorite by this author.

Book Review: Brothers In Blue : Marc by Jeanne St. James

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

Another HOT book about a Bryson brother from Manning Grove!

BROTHERS IN BLUE: MARC (Brothers in Blue #2) by Jeanne St. James has the second Bryson brother having to train the new police recruit who just happens to be female. For an alpha male like Marc, who also happens to still believe there should not be any female officers, being made her FTO (field training officer) by his brother the chief seems like a sick joke.

Leah Grant is determined to be a police officer just like her deceased father. She has fought all the stereotypes and risen to the top of her training class to have no one, but Max offer her a job. Manning Grove is very small town to her old home of Philly, but she is determined to make it, even with the chauvinist beliefs of her FTO.

As Marc and Leah train and ride together, their chemistry starts to override their common sense. They try to keep their work life separate from their increasing attraction, but Marc wants her in his bed as much as Leah wants to prove she is as capable as any male officer. The taboo of trainer and trainee does not stop these two, but they do keep it out of work hours.

These two have explosive chemistry in bed and are so perfect for each other. There are explicit sex scenes that are well written and have a surprising appearance of nipple rings and other sex toys. I also loved that Leah stayed at Marc’s parents’ house when she moved to town so that we continue to be involved with the whole family from Max’s story in Book #1. This romance can be read as a standalone because of its own HEA, but the family ties and small town life carry over.

I love that Ms. St. James has made each of these books in this series unique so far. I appreciate that they are not both the same premise with new names inserted. I am looking forward to what happens with the last Bryson boy, if he ever comes home!

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