Book Review, Giveaway: You May Kiss the Bridesmaid (First Comes Love #6) by Camilla Isley

You May Kiss the Bridesmaid
(First Comes Love #6) 
by Camilla Isley

Amazon  / Kobo / B&N / Apple / GP/

 

Archibald Hill is handsome, single, and he’s going to his best friend’s wedding ready to make a conquest or two. After all, everyone knows weddings are the perfect setting to get lucky.

Summer Knowles used to have a life—friends, family, a sister who’d do anything for her—until she blew it all away with a terrible mistake. Now, attending her twin’s wedding as the party’s undesirable number one seems like more than she can handle. So, when a tall stranger with smoldering ice-blue eyes offers her a therapy of seven nights of no-strings-attached fun, she might even ignore that he has a beard and accept.

Problem is, Summer has never been good at keeping sex and feelings separated…

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The only thing this bunch would be interested in seeing stripping is a mummy. And only so that they could properly analyze it and date the corpse to the right Pharaonic era.

 

Not a fan of raisins, uh? … They’re the worst invention ever made Why would someone in their right mind take nice grapes and turn them into shriveled down dead droppings set free into the world to ruin all the best foods?

 

The moment our eyes lock, time ripples. It stops, while simultaneously moving faster.

 

My Review:

 

As with every single Camilla Isley book I’ve read, this was a fun and entertaining read, I adore her clever wit and wry humor.   Her writing is crisp, engaging, and easy to fall into. I enjoyed the amusing storylines as much as I did the characters; they were a feisty and smart bunch with snappy banter and undeniable chemistry while indulging in a secret and red-hot fling during a destination wedding in wine country.

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About the Author

Camilla is an engineer turned writer after she quit her job to follow her husband on an adventure abroad.

She’s a cat lover, coffee addict, and shoe hoarder. Besides writing, she loves reading—duh!—cooking, watching bad TV, and going to the movies—popcorn, please. She’s a bit of a foodie, nothing too serious. A keen traveler, Camilla knows mosquitoes play a role in the ecosystem, and she doesn’t want to starve all those frog princes out there, but she could really live without them.

Social Media Links

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/camilla-isley

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14135080.Camilla_Isley

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/camillaisley

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/camillaisley/

Twitter https://twitter.com/camillaisley

Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/camillaisley/

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Giveaway

Giveaway to Win 3 x ecopies of the boxset of the first three books in the series – First Comes Love (Open INT)

*Terms and Conditions –  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will be passed to the giveaway organizer and used only for the fulfillment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data.  I am not responsible for dispatch or delivery of the prize.

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Book Review: The Butterfly Room by Lucinda Riley

TBR - BT banner

The Butterfly Room, an all-new not-to-be-missed sweeping family saga from #1 International bestselling author Lucinda Riley, is available now! 

The Butterfly Room_300dpi (1)

“Lucinda Riley once again has written a masterful saga.”– People Magazine

Full of her trademark mix of unforgettable characters and heart-breaking secrets, The Butterfly Room is a spellbinding, second-chance-at-love story from #1 International bestseller Lucinda Riley.

Posy Montague is approaching her seventieth birthday. Still living in her beautiful family home, Admiral House, set in the glorious Suffolk countryside where she spent her own idyllic childhood catching butterflies with her beloved father and raised her own children, Posy knows she must make an agonizing decision. Despite the memories of the households, and the exquisite garden she has spent twenty-five years creating, the house is crumbling around her, and Posy knows the time has come to sell it.

Then a face appears from the past – Freddie, her first love, who abandoned her and left her heartbroken fifty years ago. Already struggling to cope with her son Sam’s inept business dealings, and the sudden reappearance of her younger son Nick after ten years in Australia, Posy is reluctant to trust in Freddie’s renewed affection. And unbeknown to Posy, Freddie – and Admiral House – have a devastating secret to reveal…

TBR out now

Download your copy today!

Amazon: http://mybook.to/thebutterflyroom
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2Ai5lPe
Amazon Worldwide: https://amzn.to/2X6xMs8
Nook: https://bit.ly/2M3dI3s
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2XAdVk9

Add THE BUTTERFLY ROOM to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3er9LC1

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

As you know, men generally tend to be much more basic than women; for the most part, less emotionally complex. They call a spade a spade, whereas women are more likely to say it’s a metal digging implement used in the garden.

 

Evie decided seeing Marie was a bit like eating at McDonald’s; you looked forward to it, but then felt sick halfway through.

 

It suddenly struck me that I hadn’t really thought the future through; and now here I was in it,

 

She’s very young for an old person.

 

… the dress—a shimmering cream 1930s vintage piece that covered the lumps and bumps that age had brought, and didn’t make her look like a ship in full sail.

My Review:

 

 

This epic saga was beautifully written with enticingly mysterious and cleverly intertwining storylines that were threaded with a few heavy secrets and shattering tragedies that this grievously wily author used to taunt and tease me while brutally dangling them rather barbarously out of my reach. I was invested and immersed in the complexities of the characters’ overlapping and oddly compelling family dynamics after being bewitched and pleasantly enthralled by Posy’s early childhood history and interactions with her beloved father. But there was something not quite right about her household and I had numerous suspicions and licentious theories, many of which were incorrect, but I wasn’t too far afield as the long-held secrets had been scandalous in their time as well as heartbreaking. This was my first experience reading this master-storyteller and where have I been, she has written thirty books already?

 

The writing was of extraordinary quality with densely detailed and evocative elements and scenes laced together with vibrantly painted and richly textured descriptions as well as insightful and emotive observations. It was maddeningly paced and kept me a bit on edge, like waiting for a massive heart attack as the various glossy threads were weaving into a tighter design. It was divine and despite all the mystery, angst, and tragedy, the final chapter left me with a light and contented feeling with an ending that pleased me and placed a restful smile on my face.

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Excerpt

‘Daddy?’ I asked at breakfast the next day, dipping my toast soldiers carefully into my egg. ‘It’s so hot today, can we go to the beach? We haven’t been in such a long time.’

I saw Daddy give Maman a look, but she was reading her letters over her cup of café au lait and didn’t seem to notice. Maman always got lots of letters from France, all written on very thin paper, even thinner than a butterfly wing, which suited Maman, because everything about her was so delicate and slender.

‘Daddy? The beach,’ I prompted.

‘My darling, I’m afraid the beach isn’t suitable for playing at the moment. It’s covered in barbed wire and mines. Do you remember when I explained to you about what happened in Southwold last month?’

‘Yes, Daddy.’ I looked down at my egg and shuddered, remembering how Daisy had carried me to the Anderson shelter (which I’d thought was called that because it was our surname – it had confused me a great deal when Mabel had said her family had an Anderson shelter too, as her surname was Price). It had sounded as if the sky was alive with thunder and lightning, but rather than God sending it, Daddy said it was Hitler. Inside the shelter, we had all huddled close, and Daddy had said we should pretend to be a hedgehog family, and I should curl up like a little hoglet. Maman had got quite cross about him calling me a hoglet, but that’s what I’d pretended to be, burrowed under the earth, with the humans warring above us. Eventually, the terrible sounds had stopped. Daddy had said we could all go back to bed, but I was sad to have to go to my human bed alone, rather than staying all together in our burrow.

The next morning, I had found Daisy crying in the kitchen, but she wouldn’t say what was the matter. The milk cart didn’t come that day, and then Maman had said I wouldn’t be going to school because it wasn’t there anymore.

‘But how can it not be there, Maman?’

‘A bomb fell on it, chérie,’ she’d said, blowing out cigarette smoke.

Maman was smoking now too, and I sometimes worried that she would set her letters on fire because she held them so close to her face when she was reading.

‘But what about our beach hut?’ I asked Daddy. I loved our little hut – it was painted a butter yellow, and stood at the very end of the row so if you looked the right way, you could pretend that you were the only people on the beach for miles, but if you turned the other way, you weren’t too far from the nice ice cream man by the pier. Daddy and I always made the most elaborate sandcastles, with turrets and moats, big enough for all the little crabs to live in if they decided to come close enough. Maman never wanted to come to the beach; she said it was ‘too sandy’, which I thought was rather like saying the ocean was too wet. 

Meet Lucinda

Kirjailija Lucinda Riley ||| Author Lucinda Riley

Lucinda Riley was born in Ireland, and after an early career as an actress in film, theatre, and television, wrote her first book aged twenty-four. Her books have been translated into thirty-seven languages and sold twenty million copies worldwide. She is a No.1 Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller.

Lucinda is currently writing The Seven Sisters series, which tells the story of adopted sisters and is based allegorically on the mythology of the famous star constellation. It has become a global phenomenon, with each book in the series being a No.1 bestseller across the world. The series is currently in development with a major Hollywood production company. 

Connect with Lucinda

Facebook: https://bit.ly/3hcFFU5
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2WxLIdX
Instagram: https://bit.ly/3jeMQwR
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3eGtEET
Bookbub: https://bit.ly/3eIpUTa
Website: https://bit.ly/2Ba6mcH 

Connect with
Blue Box Press
https://theblueboxpress.com/

Book Review: She’s Got the Guns (The Suite #45 Series Book 1) by M.O. Mack

She’s Got the Guns
(The Suite #45 Series – # 1)
by M.O. Mack 

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU /

B&N / Apple / Kobo

 

She’s Got the Guns, the debut Thriller-Suspense from Author M.O. Mack…

What could possibly be worse than being beaten, broke, and on the run from a dangerous criminal? What if that criminal is your ex and works for the FBI?

Oh, and then there’s the tiny matter of landing a job. Not so easy for a girl on the run.

Which is why when Emily Rockford gets a gig, answering the phone for a “pest control” company, she thinks her luck is turning.

Until…she discovers the business is a cover.

For hitmen. A big, dangerous, deadly group of them.

It’s just about the last place Emily wants to be, but as she’s about to find out, once you’re in, you’re in. There is no out. There is no quitting.

Will she embrace the dangerous world she’s stumbled onto? Or will she find a way to outrun them all?

My Rating:

 

Favorite Quotes:

 

Mr. Sampson, the man who’d hired her, said they performed “discreet pest control” for the sort of people who didn’t want their neighbors knowing they had roach issues. “It’s a status thing,” he’d said… She glanced at the machine, noting a giant cockroach skittering across the yellow Formica counter off to the side of the room. It stopped, turned in her direction as if warning her off, and then disappeared down the rust-stained sink at the end. She lifted a brow. Pest control, huh? Well, if that was really Mr. Sampson’s business, he sucked at it.

 

Ubering to a gunfight. What could possibly go wrong with this plan?

 

“So how will the jobs come in?” Was there a Craigslist for criminals? she wondered.

 

They’ve all experienced some sort of personal loss, and when you’ve spent a significant part of your adult life being trained to protect and kill, it’s a skill they’ve chosen not to waste. Also, the money is really good.

 

My Review:

 

Aspiring authors should take note – this is the way to launch a new name and ignite a new series. I hit my groove with this cleverly penned tale – it was as snarky and amusing as it was tautly edgy and intriguing. I gleefully inhaled this book in an afternoon; it was a fun read although there were deathly serious issues at hand. The characters were uniquely compelling and tickled my curiosity while the storylines kept me itchy for more. A battered wife on the run takes an odd job from the want ads and after sitting in a filthy office for a week by herself realizes she has been employed by an enigmatic assassin who is full-on about “the rules” and instructs her not to ask questions as, “It’s considered rude in our line of work.” I adored this witty and humorous missive and can’t wait for the next installment.

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Obviously, M.O. Mack is a cover. Don’t bother looking for the author’s true identity. He/she must remain secret due to the sensitive information written in his/her stories…

Okay, most of all that is total rubbish! M.O. is a full-time author from the great state of Arizona, who loves making stuff up and hates a slow story. The faster the better! Most days, M.O. tries to avoid the news (too violent) so it doesn’t interfere with writing funny, but quasi-violent stories.

 

Book Review: The Shore House (Dewberry Beach #1) by Heidi Hostetter

The Shore House
(Dewberry Beach #1)
by Heidi Hostetter

 

When the Bennett family arrive at the shore house to spend the summer together, they bring more baggage than just suitcases…

When Kaye Bennett, matriarch of the Bennett family, summons her adult children to the shore house, she anticipates a vacation full of nostalgia. It’s a chance to relive the carefree joy of summers past: basking in the hot sun, cooling off in the surf, and enjoying long, relaxing evenings watching fireflies on the deck. But when Kaye’s son and daughter arrive, late and uncooperative, it becomes clear the family desperately need to reconnect.

Kaye and her daughter Stacy have been quietly at odds for years and resentment has grown around words unsaid. Faced with spending the summer months in such close quarters, Kaye is determined to remind Stacy of happier times and why she once loved their beautiful beachside home.

But both Kaye and Stacy are holding something back. And only when a heart-stopping accident on the beach puts what Stacy most loves at risk are the two women finally able to set free the secrets in their shared past.

Will opening up to each other about what’s in their hearts allow the Bennett family to finally heal? A story of love, forgiveness, and the power of family bonds, The Shore House is a heartfelt summer read, perfect for fans of Elin Hilderbrand, Pamela Kelley, and Nancy Thayer.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

… the master bedroom was directly above the kitchen, which was where Brad and Iona chose to settle their differences. Chase slept through it, oddly enough, but Kaye did not. She listened, like a Cold War spy, straining to hear and not at all proud of her curiosity.

 

My Review:

 

I giggle-snorted, smirked, and thoroughly reveled in this cleverly penned tale from start to finish. I was quickly drawn into the characters’ tangible vortex of complicated family dynamics and was dazzled by Ms. Hostetter’s effortless, crisp, wily, wryly humorous, and cunningly insightful writing. Her word voodoo was so strong I could smell the sea, hear the waves, and feel the sunburn. I want to know all about her curiously compelling yet deeply flawed characters; they intrigued me and left me with a taste for more.   This was my first time wading into Ms. Hostetter’s pool but I am feeling the intense desire to splash further into her listings with a cannonball dive.

Heidi Hostetter grew up in New Jersey and spent summers at her grandparents’ house on the shore. Every magical thing was there, from sparklers and fireflies at night to whole days spent swimming in the ocean and exploring tide pools. She and her family have recently moved back to the DC-area and live in a one-hundred-year-old house that’s definitely haunted.

When she’s not writing – or reading – you can probably find her digging in her garden, ripping back a knitting project, or burning dinner. Her writing partner, a labradoodle named Emmett shares her office, keeping a careful watch for errant squirrels and neighborhood shenanigans.

Book Review: THE BITTER AND SWEET OF CHERRY SEASON by Molly Fader

THE BITTER AND SWEET OF CHERRY SEASON
 by Molly Fader

 

For fans of Robyn Carr, commercial women’s fiction about three generations of women who come together at the family orchard to face secrets from the past and learn to believe in the power of hope and forgiveness.

 

In cherry season, anything is possible…

Everything Hope knows about the Orchard House is from her late-mother’s stories. So when she arrives at the Northern Michigan family estate late one night with a terrible secret and her ten-year-old daughter in tow, she’s not sure if she’ll be welcomed or turned away with a shotgun by the aunt she has never met.

Hope’s aunt, Peg, has lived in the Orchard House all her life, though the property has seen better days. She agrees to take Hope in if, in exchange, Hope helps with the cherry harvest—not exactly Hope’s specialty, but she’s out of options. As Hope works the orchard alongside her aunt, daughter, and a kind man she finds increasingly difficult to ignore, a new life begins to blossom. But the mistakes of the past are never far behind, and soon the women will find themselves fighting harder than ever for their family roots and for each other.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Hank had been able to throw around compliments and kindness like he had them coming out his ears. But Peg was always so stingy with hers, like she only had a tiny, meager supply to get her through life and she meant to take some with her to her grave.

 

Tink was glaring at her like she would start a fire in her hair, if she could.

 

She did not like this one bit. She liked all her emotions separate. Her anger with her anger. Her guilt with her guilt. Nothing touching.

 

It was like when your ears pop, and everything goes from distant and removed to loud and present. Life, right there in the kitchen.

 

My Review:

 

This was superbly written and exceptionally well-crafted. How have I never read this talented wordsmith before? I was consumed by this maddeningly paced and striking tale and well and truly sucked into a compelling vortex of tautly held family secrets that were tucked away on a fruit farm in rural Michigan. The original storylines were shrewdly constructed and sneakily emotive with stealthy and unexpected hits of the feels. This underhanded author was wily and cunning in ruthlessly plucking, squeezing, and pulling on my overworked coronary muscle. This sly she-devil was also guilty of stinging my eyes and putting hot rocks in my throat more than once. The nerve! I was stunned and loved it; her word voodoo is strong! I most do further research on this phenomenon by amassing and perusing all her clever words.

 

Molly Fader is the author of The McAvoy Sisters Book of Secrets. She is also the award-winning author of more than forty romance novels under the pennames Molly O’Keefe and M. O’Keefe. She grew up outside of Chicago and now lives in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter, @mollyokwrites.

Book Review: The Subway Girl by Lisa Becker 

The Subway Girl
by Lisa Becker 

 

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU

A hopeless romantic.
A cynical web show producer.
An unscrupulous cameraman.
A sleazy businessman.
An aspiring actress.
A womanizing best friend.
A scheming ex-girlfriend.
A commitment-phobic roommate.
An unlucky-in-love buddy.These lives intersect when an average guy is awed by a gorgeous mystery woman on a New York subway and vows to meet her.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

“Three G-er?” asked Diego. “You know. Like Luke here,” Ryan said. “Get in. Get off. Get out.”

 

There’s the telephone. The telegraph. And the tell Edna.

 

I also cut the crotch out of his favorite Tom Ford suit. Figured since he couldn’t keep it in his pants, I would make sure he wouldn’t be able to keep it in his pants.

 

“Sometimes, I wonder just how well I really know you,” Ryan said. “I’m an enigma.” Luke shrugged. “That is true,” said Ryan. Diego quietly chuckled to himself. Luke scowled. “I said enigma, not enema.”

 

Okay, here’s the plan. We’re gonna spend five minutes sharing our feelings like a bunch of teenage girls, and then we’re gonna go do a bunch of manly shit like chop down a tree with a crosscut saw…

 

My parents have been married so long that Mom finishes most of Dad’s sentences. She also starts most of them and fills in the middle, too.

 

“If he ever hurts you,” she said, gesturing to her brother, “tell me, so I can kick him in the balls.” Ryan winced and shook his head. “No worry,” said Angie. Ryan sagged in relief. “I’ll cut them off well before you would ever get the chance.”

 

My Review:

 

This was smirk-worthy good fun with lots of clever humor, witty banter, amusing scenarios, vile villains, and a few side orders of sensual steam that had me breathing funny. The characters were endearing and likable although Angie’s professional choices weren’t admirable in the least. I vastly enjoyed the levity provided by banter and exchanges of Ryan, Luke, and Diego and look forward to more of their interactions in subsequent installments.

 

About the Author

Lisa Becker is an award-winning romance writer who spends her time like she spends her money – on books and margaritas. As Lisa’s grandmother used to say, “For every chair, there’s a tush.” Lisa is now happily married to a wonderful man she met online and lives in Manhattan Beach, California with him and their two daughters. So, if it happened for her, there’s hope for anyone! You can share your love stories with her at www.lisawbecker.com.

Author: StarfishLinks, and Clutch

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Book Review: After All (Romancing Manhattan #3) by Kristen Proby

After All (Romancing Manhattan #3) by Kristen Proby

The last sizzling novel in Kristen Proby’s Romancing Manhattan series finds a widower falling deeply in love again with a woman who has scars of her own.

After All by USA Today, New York Times, & Wall Street Journal bestseller, Kristen Proby, is now live

When Carter Shaw’s wife died five years ago, he was left to pick up the pieces not only of his own broken heart but also that of his devastated eight-year-old daughter, Gabby—leaving him with no time for anything else, let alone dating. But recently, Carter has noticed women again and soon even begins dating. No one has stuck around for long, mostly thanks to one very angry Gabby.

Nora Hayes has worked as Carter’s assistant for years. Recently divorced herself, Nora spends many hours at the office and helping Carter with his daughter whom she adores. Despite loving her job and being wrapped up in the Shaw family, Nora’s never given her handsome, kind workaholic boss a second thought, especially in the romance department.

But then the snowstorm of the century hits, and Nora finds herself stranded at work with Carter overnight. And suddenly, she sees Carter in a whole new, sexy light. The sadness that’s lived in his eyes for so long has now been replaced with pure, unadulterated lust—and Nora isn’t quite sure what to do about it. For after the pain of her divorce, she never thought she would give love a second chance.

Carter and Nora have always believed in never combining business with pleasure. But how can they possibly deny the all-consuming chemistry between them…?

Download Today!

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2NSaSzu

Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/AfterAllKP

Apple Books: https://apple.co/2YWqxUN

Nook: https://bit.ly/3eW60VE

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2NRigLy

Google Play: https://bit.ly/2ZCTDYu

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3eWQ2ux

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

  I have hard copies of everything, in case the power goes out or there’s a zombie apocalypse. Prepared is an understatement for what I am.   “I beg your pardon,” Mary demands just as Sienna snickers beside me. “You can beg for it, but I’m not going to give it,” I reply,   That man is hotter than July in Hades.   I don’t think anything in the world compares to the venom a twelve-year-old can spew in your face. Maybe I should call my own mother and apologize for once being twelve myself.   I’ve never loved anyone else the way I do you, Nora. You will never know a day when you’re unloved by me, because your soul is so tangled in mine, there will never be a time that I’d let you go.

  

My Review:

  Oh, swoon, I adore Kristen Proby, her characters are always an entertaining mix of smart and sassy as well as being a bit frayed and endearingly flawed. I was besotted with this couple, they were swoon and smirk-worthy with a sweet and steamy yet well functioning boss/employee relationship.   The painfully handsome single-dad boss was lost without his plucky assistant – during and after hours.   Written in my favorite dual POV, the engaging storylines were fresh, amusing, and relatable as well as hitting all the feels between the sizzle, clever banter, and the heavier and more volatile family issues. I had not read the previous installments in this enticing series and didn’t need to, although I am definitely feeling the pull to delve into them as well.  

About Kristen:

Kristen was born and raised in a small resort town in her beloved Montana. In her mid-twenties, she decided to stretch her wings and move to the Pacific Northwest, where she made her home for more than a dozen years. During that time, Kristen wrote many romance novels and joined organizations such as RWA and other small writing groups. She spent countless hours in workshops and more mornings than she can count up before the dawn so she could write before going to work. She submitted many manuscripts to agents and editors alike but was always told no. In the summer of 2012, the self-publishing scene was new and thriving, and Kristen had one goal: to publish just one book. It was something she longed to cross off of her bucket list. Not only did she publish one book, but she’s also since published close to thirty titles, many of which have hit the USA Today, New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists. She continues to self publish, best known for her With Me In Seattle and Boudreaux series and is also proud to work with William Morrow, a division of HarperCollins, with the Fusion Series. Kristen and her husband, John, make their home in her hometown of Whitefish, Montana with their two pugs and two cats.

Connect with Kristen:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BooksByKristenProby/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Handbagjunkie Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristenproby/ BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kristen-proby Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2kBRdpj Amazon: http://amzn.to/2BD4vfq Website: https://www.kristenprobyauthor.com/ Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/kristenproby/newsletter-sign-up

Book Review: Wild Wedding Hookup by Jamie K. Schmidt

 

Wild Wedding Hookup
by Jamie K. Schmidt 

Amazon | B-A-M | B & N/ Apple / GP

 

A South Beach bachelor party stirs up a scorching affair in USA TODAY bestselling author Jamie K. Schmidt’s Wild Wedding Hookup!

Concierge Mikelina Presley works for a luxurious resort club in sunny South Beach, Florida. She’s thrilled to land a two-week booking for a bachelor party at one of the resort’s most expensive villas—not least because the fiery chemistry between her and best man Bastian Ainsworth is deliciously tempting.

When the groom-to-be suddenly disappears, Mikelina and Bastian team up to find him, bringing them closer together. Their irresistible desire for each other is dangerously distracting, but the stakes are high for both of them: if they don’t bring back the runaway bachelor, Bastian’s little sister will have her heartbroken. And Mikelina’s resort stands to lose out on the group’s lucrative booking—which would be devastating for her career.

As the search takes them all over South Beach’s sexiest hideaways, their racy fling becomes something much deeper and Mikelina finds herself falling for Bastian. But she hasn’t told him everything about her past, and a shameful secret weighs heavy on her mind… Can their passionate affair survive the truth?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I wish I was a delicate little flower that glistened when she perspired. Instead, I sweat like a warthog.

 

But to be honest, spontaneity gives me hives. I’d rather plan out my spontaneity.

 

Did you just quote Star Wars back at me? That’s like nerd foreplay. First Doctor Who and then this.

 

My Review:

 

Oh snap, ignore the cheesy title as clutch the pearls, this sexy sizzler was so deliciously steamy I was gasping for breath and desperately grasping for any and all liquid libations to rehydrate. I adored this lovely couple as they were well matched and had excellent chemistry, snappy banter, and superhuman stamina – especially for people who hadn’t been in any type of relationship for over a year. The storylines were fresh, interesting, and amusingly entertaining while the characters were uniquely engaging as well as alluring. This was my first exposure to the smooth and evocatively salacious word skills of Jamie K. Schmidt and she is naughty good as well as good and naughty.

 

About the Author

USA Today bestselling author, Jamie K. Schmidt, writes erotic contemporary love stories and paranormal romances. Her steamy, romantic comedy Life’s a Beach reached #65 on USA Today, #2 on Barnes & Noble and #9 on Amazon. Her Club Inferno series from Random House’s Loveswept line has hit both the Amazon and Barnes & Noble top one hundred lists and the first book in the series, Heat put her on the USA Today bestseller list. Her dragon paranormal romance series from Entangled Publishing, has been called “fun and quirky” and “endearing.” Partnered with New York Times bestselling author and former porn actress, Jenna Jameson, Jamie’s hardcover debut, SPICE, continues Jenna’s FATE trilogy.

Connect with Jamie

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Book Review: THE LAST WIFE by Karen Hamilton

THE LAST WIFE
by Karen Hamilton

Amazon  B&N/ GP/ Apple

HarlequinBooks-A-Million

In Karen Hamilton’s shocking thriller, THE LAST WIFE (Graydon House, July 7, $17.99) Marie Langham is distraught when her childhood friend, Nina, is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Before Nina passes away, she asks Marie to look out for her family—her son, daughter, and husband, Stuart. Marie would do anything for Nina, so of course, she agrees.

Following Nina’s death, Marie gradually finds herself drawn into her friend’s life—her family, her large house in the countryside. But when Camilla, a mutual friend from their old art-college days, suddenly reappears, Marie begins to suspect that she has a hidden agenda. Then, Marie discovers that Nina had long suppressed secrets about a holiday in Ibiza the women took ten years previously when Marie’s then-boyfriend went missing after a tragic accident and was later found dead.

Marie used to envy Nina’s beautiful life, but now the cards are up in the air and she begins to realize that nothing is what it seemed. As long-buried secrets start surfacing, Marie must figure out what’s true and who she can trust before the consequences of Nina’s dark secrets destroy her.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

People think that envy is a bad thing, but in my opinion, envy is a positive emotion. It has always been the best indicator for me to realize what’s wrong with my life. People say, “Follow your dreams,” yet I’d say, “Follow what makes you sick with envy.”

 

…surely everyone fibs? It’s not just me. Lies make life palatable. It’s simply unavoidable at times. I do it to protect myself and others. Surely, it’s not a bad thing to tell people what they want to hear? Sometimes, there’s no choice.

 

It’s amazing how many noises can sound like police sirens if you have a guilty conscience.

 

I’ve never known a murderer before. I wouldn’t admit this to just anyone, but it’s really quite morbidly exciting!

My Review:

 

This heralds my first experience reading this wily author and I am ever so impressed, her clever storylines were cunningly paced, well nuanced, and laced with brain-tickling intrigue while taut with tension. Her compelling characters were deliciously twisty, uniquely tainted, and curiously torqued. Written from the first-person POV of Marie, who was obviously emotionally and a bit mentally unstable as well as a compulsive liar, obsessively driven, paranoid, and riddled with anxiety, just to name a few of her most pesky symptoms.   The insightfully written and profoundly shrewd use of inner musings and observations detailing Marie’s obsessive and deceptive traits and compulsions were spot on and brilliantly crafted. I was riveted to my Kindle and thoroughly entertained while I immersed myself in Marie’s troubled yet compelling gray matter and devious schemes. It was divinely twisty.

About the Author

Author Website

Twitter: @KJHAuthor

Instagram: @karenhamiltonauthor

Facebook: @KarenHamiltonWriter

Goodreads

Karen Hamilton spent her childhood in Angola, Zimbabwe, Belgium, and Italy and worked as a flight attendant for many years. Karen is a recent graduate of the Faber Academy and, having now put down roots in Hampshire to raise her young family with her husband, she satisfies her wanderlust by exploring the world through her writing. She is also the author of the international bestseller The Perfect Girlfriend.

Book Review: The Village Shop for Lonely Hearts (Riverside Lane, #1) by Alison Sherlock

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The Village Shop for Lonely Hearts
(Riverside Lane, #1)
by Alison Sherlock

 

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA / 
B&N  / Google Play

A feel-good story of new beginnings set in a gorgeous country village, perfect for fans of Katie Fforde and Milly Johnson.


After losing her job in New York, Amber Green isn’t looking forward to visiting her godmother in the sleepy village of Cranbridge. With its empty lanes and rundown shops, it’s hardly a place to mend her lonely heart.

But when Amber discovers that Cranbridge Stores, owned by her godmother Cathy and son Josh, is under threat of financial ruin, she realizes that her skills as a window dresser might just be able to help save the struggling shop.

When disaster strikes, Amber and Josh must unite to save both the shop and the village from flooding.

Can Cranbridge Stores become the heart of the village once more?

And as the village begins to come back to life, perhaps Amber will discover a reason to stay…

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

‘Love may be blind, but it’s marriage that’s the real eye-opener,’ she told him, glancing behind her as the shouting became even louder.

 

A facelift? The shop needed a full makeover, complete with major heart surgery.

 

‘It’s going to look worse before it looks better,’ she told Grandma Tilly. ‘Then perhaps I think you’re at rock bottom now, my dear,’ said Tilly, with a wink.

 

‘I don’t know what’s in it,’ Molly told them, making a face. ‘It’s pretty disgusting, but after a couple of glasses you lose all feeling in your tongue so you don’t care!’ … ‘That punch could strip paint off the walls. Although the wallpaper in here appears to be doing that all by itself.’

 

I didn’t even have time for a nightcap last night. I think my body’s gone into toxic shock.

My Review:

 

This was a wryly amusing, sweet, and insightfully written story filled with a full complement of likable, hard-working, and well-meaning characters who were struggling with lives that didn’t turn out as planned while residing in a small rural village that had seen better days.   The writing and storylines were easy to follow, engaging, and held my interest with humorous banter, family issues, and a slow-burn romance that did not progress beyond igniting the pilot light until the very last chapter. I admired the characters’ creativity, initiative, and innovations in attempting to save their business and community.

About the Author

Alison Sherlock is the author of the bestselling Willow Tree Hall books. Alison enjoyed reading and writing stories from an early age and gave up office life to follow her dream. Her new series for Boldwood is set in a fictional Cotswold Village and the first title will be published in July 2020.

Social Media Links –

Twitter https://twitter.com/AlisonSherlock

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/alison.sherlock.73

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/alison-sherlock

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