Review of The Rogue by Claire Delacroix (re-released)

The Rogue

Claire Delacroix

Kindle Edition AISN: B004SC7Q

BN ID: 2940011332326

File Size: 489 KB

Five years ago Ysabella gave her love to Merlyn of Ravensmuir, she knew the rumors, she heard the whispers but he somehow just moved her, it didn’t take long for him to show his true colors, his true nature so Ysabella left Ravensmuir and left “The Rogue”. Merlyn has always had to live down the reputation set by his father, he wants to be known as an honorable man, but it’s hard to do especially when your own wife doesn’t believe you. Well it’s been five long years without her, and now he needs her, he still has deep feelings for her and it’s now or never because someone wants to silence “The Rogue” forever.

You know there are so many great contemporary romances out there that I sometimes forget just how passionate historical romance can be, and this author is the Queen of historical romance as far as I’m concerned. It takes a certain kind of magic to describe to a media savvy world the interior of a 12^th Century keep, to make her readers use their imagination when picturing characters of that era and no one does it better than Ms. Delacroix. So it’s very fortunate we are that her Ravensmuir series is being re-released for the Kindle right now with the cover that shows Merlyn as the rogue he truly is. She takes us to her imaginary castle in a real Scotland at a long ago time, she gives us a history text book worthy plot, with Oscar worthy characters. The first thing you’ll notice is the antiquated dialogue that fits right in with the times and which shows off effectively her history background. She introduces us to her historically accurate men, women and children she showcases the hard life, the cruelty but she shows us that even in the mean old middle ages love still not only survives but conquers all. Her hero and heroine are head butting, one moment and cleaving to each other the next, does it work, you bet it does. Her romance is of second chances, my favorite, it’s sweet while at the same time heady and innocence mixed with potent sexuality. The love scenes are daydream like and impressionistic and then she’ll hit us up side the head with in your face earthy, visceral action, but she shades it with innuendo and adult language and it won’t offend any true romance lover.

If you’ve forgotten the allure of historical romance or if you just want to fall in love again with the old fashioned kind of knight and lady then come back to Ravensmuir, come back to Scotland, come back to “The Rogue” and come back to Clair Delacroix. You’ll be glad you did.

Buy the book here as a nook book or here as a kindle edition
The print book is also available used here
Visit the author’s website here

Review of The Midwife's Confession by Diane Chamberlain

The Midwife’s Confession

Diane Chamberlain

Mira – Publish Date April 2011

432 pages – ISBN 13: 9780778329862

In the blink of an eye a friend they thought they knew takes her own life and so Tara and Emerson embark on a journey to find out why. What they don’t realize is that in their mission for information about Noelle and her suicide only leads them to more questions. They find that happiness was just a mask she wore to hide a darkest of secrets that will change every life it’s touched when they learn “The Midwife’s Confession”.

Diane Chamberlain has given us a storyline that could be taken from the front pages of any news paper or from the headlines from any CNN or CNBC report, with one exception, she gives it that human touch and in doing so will take her readers on an excruciating trip down endless dark hallways of a troubled woman’s mind. She tells it in the first person from the voices of several of her main protagonists and she does this with dialogue that’s easy to read and will take her audience into the hearts and minds of her characters, characters who will become friends as you entwine yourselves into their lives. Her readers will be in awe of the intimacy she gives us into her characters especially Tara and Emerson along with their daughters Jenny and Grace and as we her readers get closer to solving the puzzle of this mystery she throws us a curve ball with Anna and Haley. Her co-stars of this drama are equally important to the telling of the story and couldn’t be done without them. At the heart of this tale we find a love story, the love between friends, the love of children and the love of a spouse, but she fills the pages with twists and turns to get us there and at the end we will let go a breath we didn’t know we’d been holding.

If you love a great mystery, a story of family drama, a drama in general and just really the telling of an incredible story by an amazing artist, mixed with angst filled scenes and nail biting edge of your seat drama, let this be your choice. You won’t be sorry you did. Put this on the top of your next “Must Read” list.

Buy the book here.

Visit the author’s website here

Interview with James Kaufman author of The Collectibles

Starting April 4th please join us on the General Fiction book club at B&N.com for the month long discussion of The Collectibles with the author James J Kaufman. It's not too late here is a link to the book club, buy the book here

Interview with James J. Kaufman

Jim first of all I want to tell you how much I appreciate you’re willingness to be with us for the discussion of your wonderful novel The Collectibles in April at the General Fiction Book club atB&N.com

Debbie - Is Joe based on you, do you have Collectibles too?

Jim - In creating Joe, I have drawn upon my life experiences with several characters, observing their behavior patterns and idiosyncrasies, and assessing their character, core values, and decision making process. Joe was an orphan. Joe’s attitudes toward others were also shaped by his being raised in the rural Adirondacks by his Uncle Howard and Aunt Lettie, the discipline of the Navy (and particularly life at sea in a nuclear sub), and of course Ashley’s influence and love. Clearly, I drew upon my personal, business and professional experiences, together with my love of the mountain wilderness in shaping Joe’s character, outlook and approach.

Yes, I have Collectibles.

You are a wonderful storyteller and I just wondered if you’ll be writing another novel

Thank you. I am writing another novel. I hesitate to talk about it until it is finished. I hope you understand.

I also saw that you’re working on a screenplay for The Collectibles, is the process of writing a screen play similar to writing a novel, are you hoping for the large or small screen?

I have learned that there are many similarities but several important differences. The screenplay depends heavily upon each scene as it will be seen and heard. The scenes in The Collectibles are so clear in my head. I can see the movie now. My challenge is to bring that clarity to the reader of the screenplay. I confess that I dream about seeing this story on both screens.

When in school I was always told when attempting an assignment “write what you know”, from looking at your bio on your website it looks like you followed that lesson too. Did the fact that you knew what you were writing about make the novel go smoother or do you think now that your first novel is under your belt that it would be easier to write something outside of your area of expertise?

The former. Having experienced so much of whom and what is written about in The Collectibles made the writing more accurate, but not necessarily smoother. That part came with endless re-writes. I would rather not write about something outside my area of expertise or my experiences and feelings.

I can’t imagine how difficult a job it must be to be a Judge, deciding at times life altering outcomes. To me it seems like the hardest job in the world but it also seems like one where you can really make a difference in someone’s life with compassion and knowing who can rise to the occasion. So I guess in a round about way I’m asking if this question comes close to reality.

It can, and in my case it did. One of the proudest moments in my judicial career occurred during the nomination process at a routine pre-election caucus. I was nominated as a candidate for judge – as I had been 4 and 8 years before, and there were several “seconds” of the nomination. Then, to everyone’s surprise, a man unknown to the caucus came forward from the back of the room and asked if he could say a few words. During his remarks he talked about how Judge Kaufman had sent him to jail and that the discussions that I had with him prior, during and after sentencing, as well as communications with him while he was in jail, changed his life. There were many opportunities during my years on the bench to deal with serious social problems, many involving battered women, alcoholics, men in difficulty and troubled young people. I tried to deal with these issues in depth, with sensitivity and hopefully some creativity.

I see you have partnered with the not-for-profit Imaging the World- can you tell us a little about them and why you decided to support this particular foundation.

At Imaging the World (ITW) we believe that all people deserve the health advantages of modern tools for diagnostic disease. What I particularly like is that ITW directly saves lives by providing diagnostic imaging to rural communities around the world who would otherwise not have access. For example, in Uganda, where 25% of pregnant mothers die upon childbirth, ITW has been able to train community members to capture medical images through portable ultrasound and transmit them to a network of volunteer imaging specialist for early diagnosis and treatment recommendations – and in the process, save lives. I am proud to be a member of ITW’s board and Vice President of Business and Strategy.

The one thing that stood out to me after I finished your novel was that I wanted to be a better person and “help the other fella”, do you get that reaction often?

Actually, I am delighted to say, all the time, and by men as well as women. Several readers have written to me and in one form or another said the book changed their lives. It is very humbling and heartening.

What do you enjoy doing in your off time.

I have so many compelling and competing interests and hobbies. My first thought in off time is to spend time with my wife, with whom I am still hopelessly in love after 44 years of marriage. Then of course, my children (now adults) and my grandchildren. I love travel, fast cars, racing motorcycles, scuba diving, mountain bike riding, boating, photography, music, art, woodworking, and of course, reading and writing. I love the mountains and I love the beach. Spending time with friends (including my Collectibles) during any of these pursuits or otherwise is always relaxing and pleasurable.

Thank you so much for allowing the interview and now I can’t wait to get started on the discussion, which will start Monday April 4, 2011.

To find out more about the author go to his website here

Review of Flying Blind by Deborah Cooke

Flying Blind book one of The Dragon Diaries
Deborah Cooke
Penguin Group – Publish date June 2011
272 Pages – ISBN 13: 9780451233882

Zoe Sorensson is well aware of magic and myth so well aware in fact that she’s part of it. Zoe is the prophesied Wyvern, the only female Pyr, a dragon shape shifting species created to protect the earth. But being aware and becoming the Wyvern seems to be escaping this otherwise typical 15 year old, you see these so called powers of the Wyvern and the Pyr appear with the onset of puberty, something that seems to be taking it’s own sweet time for Zoe. Her father Erick the Pyr’s leader decides it’s time for Zoe to attend Pyr boot camp, a week long session run by the older Pyr to help the younger generation come of age and into their gifts. When she arrives things really take on a very different face as there’s dissention among the guys she’s known all her life plus a newcomer. Have they become complacent, is there something evil here or is it just teenaged hormones and angst at work. Zoe will have to work it all out if she wants to stop “Flying Blind”.

Deborah Cooke fans who love her paranormal romance Pyr series, with her yummy dragon heros always coming to the earth’s and human rescue will adore this new spin off staring the children of the Pyr we know and love, in this new Dragon Diaries YA series, Deborah will not only keep her adult fans but will gain quite a following from her target audience as well. She introduces us to her cast of youngsters with dialogue that will fit right in with the social media savvy teen and yet will appeal to her older audience as we experience the coming of age of her new and exciting Pyr generation, characters that we her Pyr series followers have met as wee ones. She gives us wonderful picturesque and descriptive narrative that takes us into her amazing and imaginative paranormal world. She does this with a plot that’s definitely outside the ordinary box and yet makes believers of her readers. Her characters will wow us in their enormity and their normality as she tells us their story in glowing Technicolor quality. Her heroine Zoe is likeable and an enigma at the same time and will worm her way into the hearts of readers as we can’t turn pages fast enough to learn what happens next. Her other characters are equally magical and majestic both in their human and dragon forms along with a cast of others who will keep us enthralled as well.

So whether your young or just young at heart you will equally enjoy this brand new series by Ms. Cooke. Come join me in experiencing her newest foray into the world of the Pyr from the younger point of view in this new coming of age for dragons tales. It’s entertaining, it’s exciting and it’s adventurous and it will fill the gap for her adult fans and bring new younger fans to the table as well.

Thanks Ms. Cooke for an out of this world novel and the start to a wonderful new series.

Visit Deborah Cooke's website here visit her Dragon Diaries webpage here

Review of It Happened on Maple Street by Tara Taylor Quinn and Timothy Lee Barney

It Happened on Maple Street

Tara Taylor Quinn & Timothy Lee Barney

HCI Books – True Vows series

271 pages ISBN 13: 9780757315596

Once upon a time in a city in Ohio there was a princess who knew what she wanted to be when she grew up, a writer for Harlequin and knew that she had in her future her own Harlequin hero. Real life unfortunately sometimes mirrors romance novels especially the one’s where the heroine has to get through some tough times before she gets her Happy Ever After and go through several toads before she gets her prince. Once upon a time in a small town in Ohio there lived a prince who didn’t know he was a prince until he met the princess and he and the princess lived happily until life intervened and their youth got in the way of communicating their true feelings.
Meet Tara and Tim both totally in love with each other at the ripe old age of 18, an age that’s hard enough to figure out who you are without the added pressure of figuring out the supposed love of your life add that to complicated emotions and conflicting feelings and it doesn’t matter that “It Happened on Maple Street”.

Tara Taylor Quinn tells us her own heart wrenching story in It Happened on Maple Street, she tells it with an honesty that had to be frightening to let us into her sanctum and see inside her heart and soul. She and Tim tell the story in their own voices which makes the tale so much more personal for me and I know it will for you too. She tells us the painful truths about her past for the first time ever on the pages of this book and she does it with the grace we’ve come to expect from Tara Taylor Quinn mixed with the vulnerability and uncertainty of Tara Gumser. It’s a story of love, loss, pain and redemption, it’s a coming of age story that combines raging hormones and frenzied emotions with culpability and consequence. And finally and happily it’s a story about how true love is without bounds, without bonds and is limitless and timeless, it proves that true love does conquer all. The romance is real as real as the characters, it’s hard to read but when you consider that it was harder to live you’ll give in and read it from cover to cover. The love scenes are sometimes innocent and sometimes very sensual and will bring to mind our own confusion at that time of our lives. There are also scenes that are carnal without love and those are criminal and beastly and unfathomable but also imperative to the story and must be read.

I have been a fan of Tara Taylor Quinn for years, I recall her Ivory Nation and Chapman Files series and wondered how she got so in tuned with her characters, now I have my answer, you have to know pain to write it well and she does. But she also gets strength and hope and I get that too because she also lives that. This is an intense novel, should not be taken lightly and should be read by any aged woman from teenaged on. Yes I’ve been a fan of Tara Taylor Quinn for years and now I’m also a fan of Tara Gumser and a big fan of Tim Barney.
Ms. Taylor/Gumser, thank you from the bottom of my heart for putting your very soul into this amazing, frightening and very “True Vows” novel. Please visit Tara’s website here.

Now a word about True Vows brought to you by HCI books the publishers of The Chicken Soup books is a series of true love stories authored by some of our favorite authors, see their website here.

Review of The Goddess Test by Aimée Carter

The Goddess Test

Aimée Carter

Harlequin Publish Date April 2011

304 pages ISBN 3: 9780373210268

After years of watching her mother fight Cancer, Cancer wins and so Kate and Diana Winters make the last journey they will ever take together, back to the place where Diana was born, Eden Michigan. But Kate is on a sojourn of her own only she doesn’t know it, for what seems like a small Midwestern community is much, much more. And what seems to be a silly high school prank is the catalyst that will determine Kate’s future, a future that she could never have imagined and the outcome is more than just a passing grade if she can’t pass “The Goddess Test”.

Aimée Carter has brought us a lesson with a twist in The Goddess Test, with her plot straight out of Mythology 101 but not like you’ve ever experienced it before, by bringing us a coming of age tale like none you’ve read before and a romance that is unlike any other. She keeps our interest in finding out what happens next with her mix of whimsy and reality. She accomplishes this with dialogue that is polite English combined with US slang and a narrative that keeps her readers wanting more, more of her descriptive and imaginative words and more of her magical and mystical places. Her characters are wonderfully created and portrayed in this drama and each one is perfect for his or her role. Her heroine Kate is an exceptional character, a loving daughter, a caring friend and capable of so much more. Her hero Henry is an enigma that each reader will turn pages to find out his true colors. Her co-starring characters are wonderful in their roles as the author leads us on her merry chase to the end. This is a love story, a romance and a drama. The romance between Henry and Kate is as tragic as it is sweet, as outlandish as it is believable and will keep her audience enthralled through out the whole novel. There are no love scenes that would offend any reader.

Even though Harlequin puts this in their YA category I think it’s a disservice to the novel because it’s much more than a teen read and would leave any aged reader wishing time along for the sequel of Goddess Interrupted to come out. It’s a whimsical, magical and wonderful story told by an equally wonderful storyteller and this reader can not wait for the next installment to find out what happens next to Kate, Henry and the rest of the cast.

Ms. Carter, you really have something here and I can only see wonderful things for you in the future and will look forward from here on out to whatever you decide to put on paper.

Review of My One and Only by Kristan Higgins

My One and Only

Kristan Higgins

Harlequin - Publish date 3-29-2011

ISBN 13: 9780373775576

348 pages

Harper James just received some good (troubling) news, her sister Willa is getting married (again), not just that but she’s marrying Harper’s ex-husband Nick’s brother. Nick the one man it’s taken her years to get over (or not). There’s only one thing to say to that, let the games begin.

Ms. Higgins has put out some of the most memorable novels I’ve ever read, but she’s even outdone herself with this, it’s the best romance I’ve read in years, maybe ever. It’s truly a romance for adults, with adult humor and maturity in the plot, narrative and characters. Her storyline is my all time favorite that of second chances, but it’s the merry chase she sends us on that is the icing on the cake, let me tell you the ways. Her dialogue is sophisticated humor mixed in with barroom bawdiness, it will wow you with the full spectrum of emotions where one minute you’ll bolt out a full belly laugh followed by wiping dry your eyes, sometimes from happiness and sometimes from sadness but always with that unique sense of reality that Ms. Higgins puts in her writing. Her characters deserve better descriptions than I could ever give and wait until you meet Coco, she’s a star in her own solar system. Her hero Nick is my new crush as he will be yours too with his down home, boy next-door charm and his New York sophistication. Her heroine Harper defies all of your former favorite heroines, because, believe me the mold broke after her. To get to know her is to be hit over the head with a baseball bat with her quick wit, her sass and the ever-popular know-it-all attitude. The other characters are the most fitting for their roles that I have seen and you will get to be intimate with each and every one. The romance, ah the romance, it’s poignant, it’s funny, it’s heartbreaking and it’s exciting, and it’s so obvious that these two are really deserving of that all elusive Happy Ever After, the question is can they get it and more importantly can they keep it. The love scenes and there are some are muted in their descriptiveness but not in their intensity or their sensuality and you’ll appreciate the mature way she handles them.

So be prepared to be awed, to be stunned, to be delighted and to read the best romance of the year, maybe the decade, oh heck the millennia. I only found one thing disappointing in this novel, that it ended.

Ms. Higgins thank you for the most enjoyable read I’ve experienced for a long time.

Review of the Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen

The Peach Keeper

Sarah Addison Allen

Bantam Books Publish Date March 22, 2011

ISBN 978-0-553-80722-6

288 pages

The renovation of an Iconic home in Walls of Water North Carolina reveals more than flaking paint and sagging porches, there’s secrets buried deep both on the grounds and in the hearts of two lifetime residents. When a body is discovered it forms a bond between Willa Jackson and Paxton Osgood as they try to learn the cryptic and sometimes mystic reasons why. They also embark on a journey of self discovery that leads them to an uncertain, fulfilling and sometimes scary future.

Sarah Addison Allen has this remarkable childlike imagination that features whimsy and magic right along side of realism. She gives us a plot that could be any small town USA or we could have parted the mist and revealed Brigadoon. It has mystery, it has romance, it has drama, you’ll laugh and you’ll cry and run the gamut of emotions. She will deliver this tale with her classic fanciful, descriptive and prose like narrative that fit her characters and scenes to a tee. Her characters will all stand out from her stars Willa and Paxton down to the bit part you only meet once, they are all over the top while being very realistic, someone from a fairy tale and yet a neighbor next door. Her main protagonists Willa and Paxton are two very different people on the outside and yet are both yearning without knowing how to fill that void on the inside. Her co-stars of Colin and Sebastian are excellent choices for these women and stand out among the other characters as well. There are romances in this novel as well as mystery, drama and a little bit of fairy dust, and the romances are very well told and will give her readers a fuzzy warm feeling when the read is over. The love scenes are well disguised with adult only innuendos so that no one reading this would have an occasion to blush or feel uncomfortable with the scenes.

If you’re a fan of Ms. Allen then you will absolutely love this book because it has her unique style that you'll recognize as unmistakably hers. If you’ve never had the pleasure of reading her, now is a great opportunity to do just that, believe me you won’t be sorry that you did.
Ms Allen kudos to you for another unforgettable tale!

Review of Work of Heart by Cindi Myers

Work of Heart

Cindi Myers

Health Communications Inc.

253 pages Pub date February 2011

ISBN-13: 978-0757315589

Nina Barry doesn’t mind suffering for her art because she believes in herself and after graduating college she stays in New York to pursue her career. She has many friends but no one special that is until she lays eyes on Danny de Zayas, the only trouble is he’s taken. Danny de Zayas loves being an entrepreneur and after he graduates college that’s exactly what he intends to do, life however has other plans for him. Those plans include a different career path than he envisioned and a different woman too because the first time he sees Nina Barry he sees possibilities that he only dreamed of before. Nina and Danny have love on their side, but sometimes love isn’t enough. Will they make it, you’ll have to read the novel yourself to find out. But believe me you’ll enjoy the ride.

Cindi Myers has a way of telling a story that makes her readers part of it by making them feel like they’re right there during conversations, arguments and hardships and that’s really what a reader wants, to feel an ownership of the story. She brings us a true love story between real life people and that makes us even more intimate with the players in this tale. She uses clear and descriptive dialogue that flows easily throughout the novel so her audience can easily experience all the different senses right along with her cast of characters. Her hero and heroine are extra special to the readers because this is their real romance on paper and they are so worthy of their Happy Ever After although fate and circumstance makes us and them work really hard to get there. Her love scenes are shaded just enough that no reader will be put off by them and yet extremely sensual in their reality.

It’s a true feel good, heartwarming love story. One that any lover of a great romance will appreciate with the added bonus of it being an actual memoir as well. Buy it, read it, share it with others and you like me will be left with the knowledge that true love is not only possible but is out there for real. Visit Cindi at her website here

A few words about the real stars of our story, Nina and Danny. They are real people, check out their website From The Hip.

Now I’d like to talk about the publisher, many of you won’t recognize the name but I know you all have a Chicken Soup book , or a health book or even a self help book on your shelves by HCI books. And if you don’t have one of their books now’s the time to invest in them. This is a new enterprising venture for them, they have teamed up with several well known and loved romance authors to tell real love stories, tales of love, loss and triumph tales of real true love. So sit back with a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, slip out of your shoes and into someone’s “True Vows”. Check out their website here.

Review of Eve by Iris Johansen

Eve

Iris Johansen

St. Martin’s Press

416 pages Pub date April 2011

ISBN-13: 9780312651206

In the beginning there was “Eve” come read the first in the brand new trilogy that will finally answer all our questions.

Eve Duncan after all the efforts not to, turned out to be more like her mother than she liked when at 16 she turned up pregnant, but Bonnie soon became the apple of her eye and the sun in her morning, one day 7 years later the sun stopped rising when Bonnie was kidnapped and murdered, but her body has never been recovered. Eve became a forensic sculptor to bring other lost children home, and in the same moment of her greatest tragedy met the man who stands beside her always, Joe Quinn. But Eve has one constant dream, a dream that has often come with a price between Joe and she and that dream is to bring Bonnie home. In Eve we will relive her early years and finally be introduced to the boy who broke through that tough untouchable exterior to find the hidden Eve and fathered Bonnie. We will in fact get as close as we ever have to finding out who killed Bonnie and if Eve and Joe survive the answer they may not survive the perpetrator.

Ms. Johansen amazing teller of tales has really outdone herself this time as she reveals secrets that her characters have kept for decades. She will do it with the storyline that have kept fans coming back year after year and have garnered new fans at every episode, the real story of what happened to Bonnie Duncan. She will do it with her trademark to the point narrative that works so well with her very direct and in your face characters. Some of these characters will be new to us and some will be like family or old friends but all of them play an intricate part of this story. Is this a love story, yes, but it might be a stretch to call it a romance even though there are love scenes involved, but they only exist in the periphery, but periphery or not they will still steam the lenses of your glasses, so keep out of reach of children and on the top shelf of the bookcase. Wherever you want to file it one thing for certain is that this is a thriller from the nail biting beginning to the edge of your seat ending.

Whether you’re the biggest Eve Duncan and Joe Quinn fan or a first time visitor to their world, you will not be sorry you made the trip. And for fans of the series this is a must read.

Here's a link to her website

http://www.irisjohansen.com/

Pre-order it here: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Eve/Iris-Johansen/e/9780312651206?cm_re=RecentlyViewed_Carousel-_-Product1-_-9780312651206_Image

Review of Treachery In Death by JD Robb

Treachery In Death

J D Robb

Penguin Group

375 pages

Treachery In Death is the 32^nd in the IN DEATH series

The year 2060 is turning out just like 2059 with chaos and crime, but this time the crimes are more heinous because the perpetrators are supposed to be the good guys. Because of a accidental rendezvous that could have been fatal, Peabody overhears bad cops on the take and not just any bad cop but the daughter of a former commander with a spotless and impeccable record. Now Eve and her team not only must but want to take these bad apples off the tree but they have to be very careful while doing it, because knowing and proving are two very different animals and these animals like killing.

How does after 31 episodes in the same series the author keep things fresh? Well it’s a mystery to me I’m just glad it’s not a mystery to Ms. Robb or I should say Ms. Roberts. Here she is again with a riveting, tense drama incorporated with a sensual and lusty romance, which hasn’t gotten stale either I might add. In this installment we find the plot right out of any big city Police Department files. We also find her by now very familiar narrative, that in your face brashness by Eve coupled with the Celtic sexy undertones of Roarke and the other characters who have their own way of speaking that keeps her fans coming back for more. Ah and let’s talk about her characters who by now we know as well as any neighbor or co-worker and they also have stayed fresh as we continue to learn more about them and what makes them tick. The romance is an ongoing Happy Ever After between Eve and Roarke along with the side couples of Peabody and McNabb and countless others that we get to keep an eye on with each novel. The love scenes are hot, sweaty, sensual and sexy.

So do yourself a favor and see what the gang is up to now you wont’ be sorry you did. Oh and if you happen to live off-planet and haven’t ever read this series, don’t worry it does well on it’s own. But when it’s finished go back to the beginning, find out why Roarke carries a button in his pocket and how Peabody and McNabb got together find out from the beginning.

Review of Darkfire Kiss by Deborah Cooke

Darkfire Kiss

Deborah Cooke

Penguin Group- publish date May 2011

416 pages

ISBN-13: 9870451233493

The one thing that Rafferty Powell longs for is his firestorm, but when it comes it comes with an ancient omen, darkfire, an omen of change. The question is will that change be for the better or the worse. Melissa Smith is used to disappointments but she’s vowed to rise once again like the phoenix from the ashes, only it’s not a phoenix that she sees but dragons, honest to God fire breathing dragons and as she’s taking photos she tells herself what any self respecting journalist thinks, a picture is worth a thousand words. But she and Rafferty have much to do because with the darkfire comes the uncertainty of not only their future but the future of the entire planet.

Deborah Cooke can tell a story, let’s say a story about fire breathing, shape-shifting dragon people and have her audience not only believe her but want one for themselves. Okay that was me talking. She gives us story lines that comes straight from Marvel comics or from the pages of an Arthurian legend , but then she takes it one step further, she gives them heart and soul and makes it a romance to boot. Now if her story line is over the top how could you possible describe the characters, well that’s the easy part, they’re Awesome, Stupendous, and best of all handsome devils, uh I mean dragons. The main characters in this episode of the life and times of the Pyr. Rafferty and Melissa make a perfect pair and unlike some of the previous firestorms we’ve witnessed they don’t try to avoid or negate it, in fact they jump in with both feet and darn the consequences and consequences there are. The romance is almost painful to watch because these two really deserve their Happy Ever After and there’s so much against them, but when fate prevails you’ll be cheering along with the others while drying your tears of joy. The love scenes are, well they’re as hot as the fire the dragons breathe, it’s lusty and sexy and earthy and yeah you’ll need to lower the thermostat to get through it.

If this is your first dragon experience, have no fear this reads pretty well on it’s own, but then do yourself a huge favor and get the rest, find out where they came from and in the process you’ll find out where they’re going as well. Don’t wait until it comes out in May, pre-order it now. You won’t be sorry.

Here's a link to Deborah's Website http://www.deborahcooke.com/

Review of Hidden Away by Maya Banks

Hidden Away

Maya Banks

Berkley Sensation

336 pages

Hidden Away is the 3^rd in the KGI series

Sarah Daniels is on the run, she was a witness to murder and not knowing who to trust she leaves the country and hope’s that she’s “Hidden Away”.
Garrett Kelly is recovering from a bullet he took for his beloved sister-in-law, but when the CIA tells him who they want him to track down, he wants the job. There’s only one problem, Sarah Daniels is a complication that Garrett doesn’t need, she seems innocent enough but Garrett has doubts so he just needs to keep a close eye on her, which isn’t a chore since she’s beautiful and Garrett finds himself instantly attracted to her.

Maya Banks continues her saga of the Kelly family with Hidden Away where her plot is full of action, suspense and nail biting drama, full of good guys and bad guys and those in between. She tells us her story with the sharp tongued dialogue you’d expect from counter intelligence operators, spies and traitors. Her character development is very in depth that even as a first time reader of her series you’d be able to pretty much pick up the gist of the background. Her hero and heroine of this installment are exactly what you’d expect and yet I was pleased to get to know them. And don’t expect their Happy Ever After to be a piece of cake, it’s not and you will feel every injury and every insult with them as they traverse the pages of the novel. The romance is intense and yet I still could feel the chivalry of Garrett and the unsurety of Sarah to believe. The love scenes are spicy and hot and rated a definite R, so don’t let your pre-teens near it.

If you’re the kind of romance lover who yearns for the over the top in characters and story line then you’ll love this, If you like non-stop action combined with intense drama this is for you. If you like the writing of Roxanne St. Claire or Jo Davis then you’ll love this one too.