Early Review: The Queen by Tiffany Reisz

Title: The Queen
Series: The Original Sinners #8
Author: Tiffany Reisz
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Publisher: MIRA
Pub Date: October 27, 2015
Rating: 4 Stars

Our thoughts...

Every book in The Original Sinners series has a different feel and approach while staying true to the characters and story. Each book has its own unique flare while the sum of the series remains cohesive. All four book in The White Years take place in the past and present. The first three books tended to visit both fairly equally, whereas The Queen is centered mostly in the past with the present only coming into play in the beginning and the end, which caused a bit of a challenge for my old-woman brain. When the story moved back to the present at the end of the book I found myself needing to reread a bit of the beginning to help reset the scene.

Cover Reveal: Licked by Brooke Blaine

Licked by Brooke Blaine

Date of Publication: November 11, 2015

Blurb

As the owner of Licked, an eclectic ice creamery and bar, Ryleigh Phillips doesn't have time for that love stuff. Serving up Nibble My Nuts sundaes and Drunken Sailor boozy shakes are as close to an orgasmic affair as she's had in months thanks to her expanding empire—until the night of her ten-year high school reunion.

When Ryleigh's crush, gorgeous ex-football god Cameron Mathis, comes streaking into her life (literally—streaking), she begins to wonder if she really can have it all.

Wouldn't it just figure that the moment you think life is perfect is when it falls spectacularly apart?
Enter Hunter Morgan, the contractor in charge of Licked's renovations. Devastatingly handsome, and a smartass to boot, he's got his eyes on Ryleigh from the moment he finds her passed out on his couch (yeah, that's a long story). There's just one tiny complication—he happens to be Cameron's best friend.

When the lines between relationships and friendships blur, and it's impossible to choose between two delicious flavors, what's a girl to do? Taste a sample of each? Or go out and get LICKED?

Review: Beautiful Redemption by Jamie McGuire

Title: Beautiful Redemption
Author: Jamie McGuire 
Genre: New Adult
Pub Date: January 27, 2015
Rating: 5 Stars

Real ~ Fun ~ Gooey

  

I had no idea I was going to like this story as much as I did. I haven’t read a Jamie McGuire book in years.  A wonderful reading friend sent me a signed paperback of Beautiful Redemption and it’s sat on my shelf for months.  I’ve been in the mood to read a paperback, so I picked the book up, and I wasn’t able to put it down. 

Review: The Bourbon Kings by J.R. Ward

Title: The Bourbon Kings
Series: The Bourbon Kings #1
Author: J.R. Ward
Genre: Contemporary Romance Suspense
Publisher: Penguin
Pub Date: July 28, 2015
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Previously posted on No BS Book Reviews

Our thoughts...

  

Sluggish ~ Grandiose ~ Foundational

This book is like “The Little Engine That Could.” The first fifty pages are rough and disjointed, randomly flashing back at unnatural but convenient times. There is a lot of eluding and not enough happening. The story tries to find its footing but just can’t gain any momentum. It takes Ward about 100 pages to find her flow and really start to take the story/stories somewhere worthwhile. The shift in writing quality makes me wonder if she took a writing break. Everything after the first 100 pages is different in flow, personality, and quality of storytelling and manages to turn a turbulent beginning into a fine finish.

Release Day Blitz & Excerpt: Betrayal by Aleatha Romig

One week. No future. No past. No more.

Alexandria Collins has one week to live carefree—no ghosts of her past or pressures of her future haunting her. Reinventing herself as "Charli," she is knocked off her feet by a sexy, mysterious man who brings her pleasure like she never imagined.  With her heart at stake, she forgets that decisions made in the dark of night reappear in the bright light of day.

"Some of my tastes are unique. They aren’t for everyone. I understand that.”

Lennox "Nox" Demetri is wealthy, confident, and decisive—he knows what he wants. From the first time he sees Charli at an exclusive resort, he knows he wants her. Although he is usually the one to make the rules, together they agree on one:  

One week. No more.

When betrayal comes from those closest to Alexandria, she must decide how far she is willing to go to survive. Choices are not always easy, especially when they involve the heart, body, and soul. After all, Infidelity is a business, and some rules are meant to be broken.

"Is it really cheating if you're doing it to yourself?"

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Aleatha Romig comes a sexy, new dominant hero who knows what he wants, and a strong-willed heroine who has plans of her own. With classic Aleatha Romig twists, turns, deceptions, and devotions, this new epic dark romance will have readers swooning one minute and screaming the next. Have you been Aleatha'd?

BETRAYAL is a full-length novel and the first of five in the INFIDELITY series.

Review: Redemption Lane by Rachel Blaufeld

Title: Redemption Lane
Author: Rachel Blaufeld
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Rachel Blaufeld Publishing
Pub Date: February 19, 2015
Rating: 4 Stars

Our thoughts...

Recovery~Truth~Redemption   

I would like to start with pointing out how beautiful this cover is!  One look at it and you want to just snuggle up on the couch and not stop reading. 

Cover Reveal: Christmas In The City by Various Authors

DNF Review: Amber to Ashes by Gail McHugh

Title: Amber to Ashes
Author: Gail McHugh
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Publisher: Atria Books
Pub Date: June 2015
Rating: DNF

Previously posted on No BS Book Reviews

Our thoughts...

  

Laborious ~ Forced ~ Lacking

I know a lot of people who love this book. A lot. I, on the other hand, suffered.

 

Review: A Vanishing Glow by Alexis Radcliff

Title: A Vanishing Glow
Author: Alexis Radcliff
Genre: Steampunk Fantasy
Publisher: Alexis Radcliff
Pub Date: September 15, 2015
Rating: 4 Stars

Our thoughts...

  

What a wild and crazy world I just left. It was my first adventure with a Steampunk Fantasy and let’s just say the world that the author created was on point. 

Review: Love To Hate You by Isabelle Richards

Title: Love to Hate you
Author: Isabelle Richards
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Isabelle Richards
Pub Date: October 7, 2015
Rating: 3.5 Stars

Our thoughts...

Delusion~Drama~Adoration    

I’m going to start this review by saying how much I loved the first book in this series.  There was so much love, hate, and angst that it pulled you right in and you didn’t want to let go.  I was hooked and by the ending I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the next book.   I really do love this author and her stories.