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Book Review: The Lost Daughter by Gill Paul

The Lost Daughter

by Gill Paul

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU  

B&N / HarperCollins

Paperback: 496 pages
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (August 27, 2019)

If you loved I Am Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon you won’t want to miss this novel about her sister, Grand Duchess Maria. What really happened to this lost Romanov daughter? A new novel perfect for anyone curious about Anastasia, Maria, and the other lost Romanov daughters, by the author of The Secret Wife.

1918: Pretty, vivacious Grand Duchess Maria Romanov, the nineteen-year-old daughter of the fallen Tsar Nicholas II, lives with her family in suffocating isolation, a far cry from their once-glittering royal household. Her days are a combination of endless boredom and paralyzing fear; her only respite are clandestine flirtations with a few of the guards imprisoning the family—never realizing her innocent actions could mean the difference between life and death

1973: When Val Doyle hears her father’s end-of-life confession, “I didn’t want to kill her,” she’s stunned. So, she begins a search for the truth—about his words and her past. The clues she discovers are baffling—a jewel-encrusted box that won’t open and a camera with its film intact. What she finds out pulls Val into one of the world’s greatest mysteries—what truly happened to the Grand Duchess Maria?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The minutes crawled interminably, so slow she suspected the clock had been tampered with in order to torture them.

That evening, she explained to Nicole that a judge had decided she did not have to visit her daddy anymore. “OK.” Nicole nodded, quite happy with this. “Will I get a new daddy now? What do we have to do? Should we apply somewhere?”

If you can help someone without harming anyone else, then why on earth wouldn’t you do it?

My Review:

 

This was my first experience of being immersed in Gill Paul’s epic storytelling and I am beyond impressed. The Lost Daughter was beautifully written, lushly descriptive, and heartbreakingly realistic.   Her emotive writing was taut with tension and pulled me right inside her characters’ various storylines. I felt my chest tighten as if I were fleeing with them and racing for escape while in danger of capture. The book spanned 90 years with an intriguing and enthralling fusion of fact and fiction. The story hit all the feels and I was enthralled, educated, and horrified yet highly entertained by Ms. Paul’s absorbing and well-crafted tale.

I was provided with a review copy of this sweeping tale by TLC Book Tours and HarperCollins. 

About the Author

Gill Paul is an author of historical fiction, specializing in relatively recent history. She has written two novels about the last Russian royal family: The Secret Wife, published in 2016, which tells the story of cavalry officer Dmitri Malama and Grand Duchess Tatiana, the second daughter of Russia’s last tsar; and The Lost Daughter, published in October 2018, that tells of the attachment Grand Duchess Maria formed with a guard in the house in Ekaterinburg where the family was held from April to July 1918.

Gill’s other novels include Another Woman’s Husband, about links you may not have been aware of between Wallis Simpson, later Duchess of Windsor, and Diana, Princess of Wales; Women and Children First, about a young steward who works on the Titanic; The Affair, set in Rome in 1961–62 as Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton fall in love while making Cleopatra; and No Place for a Lady, about two Victorian sisters who travel out to the Crimean War of 1854–56 and face challenges beyond anything they could have imagined.

Find out more about Gill at her website, and connect with her on Twitter and Instagram.

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Book Review: Always the One (A Beloved Duet #2) by Kelly Collins

 Always the One 

(A Beloved Duet #2)

by Kelly Collins

 

Amazon  US / UK / AU / CA 

She watched him walk away. Now he’s back. Will he stay to fulfill her dreams?

Physical therapist and karaoke queen Aidy Smith would love to be in a relationship, but in the small town of Beloved, Colorado, it seems all the best ones are taken. The truth is, even if there were single men to choose from, the only one Aidy wants is the one who left years ago. When Jace Johnson comes back to town, Aidy’s heart comes to life again. But how long will he stay?

Jace Johnson had a tough life. He lost his parents when he was thirteen, but with the love of his devoted aunt and a talent for football he thrived. As a fullback for the New Jersey Knights, he has just about everything he could want until a car accident injures his daughter Maddie. Now he finds himself back in Beloved seeking the help of Aunt Sharon’s physical therapist who to his surprise, turns out to be Aidy Smith, his high school tutor. Without her help, he would have never graduated. Can she be the answer to his prayers again?

Football is all Jace knows. Beloved is where Aidy belongs. Will he give it all up for a second chance at love?

Find out in Always the One…

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I’m going to be a cat lady for the rest of my life… It’s going to be me and Clawsome until I’m old and gray.

 

He was my client’s pool guy. I mean hello, he used pool metaphors for foreplay talk… I don’t have it in me to go into the dirty details but just think. He talked nonstop about his hose and how he liked certain strokes better than others, and if I wanted to jump into the deep end with him, he knew rescue breathing.

 

And the word fetish is a special word and shouldn’t be used more than once in a lifetime. You’ve used your quota.

 

I named our son Jack Russell. Who names their son after a breed of dog known to be stubborn?

 

My Review:

 

This was a sweet and fun small-town second chance romance with a lively bit of sizzle and snap. I always enjoy Kelly Collin’s uniquely appealing characters and amusing and witty observations and insights. Aidy fantasized taking a run at her oblivious high school crush ten years later – but was startled out of her secret stalking efforts when he returned to his hometown of Beloved to visit his aunt and carried in a small child from his car ~ needle scratch. Aidy was a quirky karaoke queen/physical therapist/town gossip.   Jace had been her first crush and the man she seemed to measure men against.

 

Jace was stunned to notice that Aidy was no longer the nerdy nondescript classmate who used to tutor him after school. Not only was she gorgeous, but she was also kind and patient with his family, and kind of perfect, so perfect he developed a yellow tinge and made me want to smack him with my kindle – repeatedly. Luckily for Jace, Aidy was more forgiving and less vindictive than I am. 😉

ABOUT KELLY COLLINS  

 

  Goodreads  / Website  / Amazon /

International bestselling author of over 30 novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping the love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.

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Book Review: The Last Widow by Karin Slaughter

The Last Widow

by Karin Slaughter

 

Amazon  US / UK / CA / AU / 

B&N / HarperCollins

 Hardcover: 464 pages
Publisher: William Morrow (August 20, 2019)

New York Times bestselling author Karin Slaughter brings back Will Trent and Sara Lintonin this superb and timely thriller full of devious twists, disturbing secrets, and shocking surprises you won’t see coming

A mysterious kidnapping on a hot summer night, a scientist from the Centers for Disease Control is grabbed by unknown assailants in a shopping center parking lot. The authorities are desperate to save the doctor who’s been vanished into thin air.

A devastating explosion

One month later, the serenity of a sunny Sunday afternoon is shattered by the boom of a ground-shaking blast—followed by another, seconds later.  One of Atlanta’s busiest and most important neighborhoods has been bombed—the location of Emory University, two major hospitals, the FBI headquarters, and the CDC.

A diabolical enemy

Medical examiner Sara Linton and her partner Will Trent, an investigator with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, rush to the scene—and into the heart of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to destroy thousands of innocent lives. When the assailants abduct Sara, Will goes undercover to save her and prevent a massacre—putting his own life on the line for the woman and the country he loves.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Money. That was the real obstacle… She would never forget the look on Jeffrey’s face the first time he’d seen the balance in her trading account. Sara had actually heard the squeaking groan of his testicles retracting into his body. It had taken a hell of a lot of suction to get them back out again.

 

Sara had explained the science behind these mood changes. During the stages of pregnancy and breastfeeding and childhood, a woman’s brain was flooded with hormones that altered the gray matter in the regions involved in social processes, heightening the mother’s empathy and bonding them closely to their child. Which was a damn good thing, because if another human being treated you the way a toddler did—threw food in your face, questioned your every move, unraveled all of the aluminum foil off the roll, yelled at the silverware, made you clean shit off their ass, peed in your bed, peed in your car, peed on you while you were cleaning up their pee, demanded that you repeat everything at least sixteen times and then screeched at you for talking too much—then you would probably kill them.

 

Tinder was a no-go. The guys who didn’t look married looked like they should be chained to a bench outside of a courtroom. She’d tried Match.com but not one of the losers that she was even remotely attracted to could pass a background check. Which said more about the type of men Faith was attracted to than internet dating sites.

 

Her parenting skills fell somewhere between Charlotte’s Web and Lord of the Flies. Jeremy still teased her about the note she’d once left in his lunch box: The bread is stale. This is what happens when you don’t close the bag.

 

Don’t mess with the US Government. They won two wars and can print their own money.

 

Dash was a stupid man’s idea of how a smart man sounded.

My Review:

 

This book was gripping and all-consuming yet it took me twice as long to read, as I had to put it down, take deep breaths, and walk away from it now and then. Not because it was bad, but because it was diabolically brilliant and absorbing, I was sucked right into this complex and fiendish vortex and helplessly engrossed in the chaos. The plot was complex and skillfully crafted while the writing was ingeniously textured and scorched my brain matter while it squeezed my heart and lungs.

This contemptible and monstrous scenario could very well happen, which was intensely disturbing to me as it was heinously realistic.   The ever-escalating and highly disturbing climate of arrogance, hate, manipulation, and perversion of information being generated from our current national embarrassments at the top does seem to be empowering the most twisted of the vile and disenfranchised. Karin Slaughter is devilishly clever and a masterful wordsmith. She scared me silly.

I was provided with a review copy of this enthralling thriller by HarperCollins and TLC Book Tours.

About Karin Slaughter

Karin Slaughter is one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed storytellers. Published in 120 countries with more than 35 million copies sold across the globe, her eighteen novels include the Grant County and Will Trent books, as well as the Edgar-nominated Cop Town and the instant New York Times bestselling novels Pretty Girls and The Good Daughter. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, Karin Slaughter lives in Atlanta. Her standalone novels The Good Daughter and Cop Town are in development for film and television.

Find out more about Karin at her website and connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

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Book Review: Handle With Care by Helena Hunting

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“Lincoln and Wren had me flipping through the pages frantically, begging for more. Their chemistry was explosive, their love story both hilarious and tender.”- L.J. Shen, USA Today bestselling author

Handle With Care, an all-new romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Helena Hunting is available now!

 

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Handle With Care

by Helena Hunting 

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2VGJ83p

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/2VXTyvK

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

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HE WANTS TO LOSE CONTROL.

Between his parents’ messed up marriage and his narcissistic younger brother, Lincoln Moorehead has spent the majority of his life avoiding his family. After the death of his father, Lincoln finds himself in the middle of the drama. To top it all off, he’s been named CEO of Moorehead Media, much to his brother’s chagrin. But Lincoln’s bad attitude softens when he meets the no-nonsense, gorgeous woman who has been given the task of transforming him from the gruff, wilderness guy to a suave businessman

SHE’S TRYING TO HOLD IT TOGETHER.

Wren Sterling has been working double-time to keep the indiscretions at Moorehead Media at bay, so when she’s presented with a new contract, with new responsibilities and additional incentives, she agrees. Working with the reclusive oldest son of a ridiculously entitled family is worth the hassle if it means she’s that much closer to pursuing her own dreams. What Wren doesn’t expect is to find herself attracted to him, or for it to be mutual. And she certainly doesn’t expect to fall for Lincoln. But when a shocking new Moorehead scandal comes to light, she’s forced to choose between her own family and the broody, cynical CEO.

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Do not sass me, Lincoln Alexander Moorehead. And do not call me G-mom in front of the goddamn staff. How am I going to keep my battle-ax reputation with you shouting nicknames that make me sound like a second-rate rap star?

 

I don’t know what kind of karmic bomb your parents managed to set off when they created your brother.

 

I’m startled out of my thoughts when my brother jumps up and shouts a bunch of profane nonsense, hands flailing like he’s trying to swim on land, or approximate the chicken dance while on an LSD trip… He keeps jabbing his finger at me, as if he’s engaged in a finger sword fight.

 

Gwendolyn’s expression is slightly pinched— which is saying something because most of her face usually doesn’t move.

 

Dear sweet baby Jesus riding a unicorn.

 

He wasn’t faithful to my mother, and maybe I can understand that, since she has the warmth of a corpse…

 

My Review:

 

I am stunned and truthfully mortified to report that this was my first Helena Hunting experience… where have I been? The woman is a prolific and clever wordsmith and has a backlist a mile long – I am so ashamed of myself ~ hangs head… But now that I am in the know I plan to make amends for my slothful and inattentive ways and greedily latch on to as many of her skillful arrangements of words as possible. I am totally enamored with her wit, observantly descriptive writing style, and irreverent humor.

 

Handle With Care was written in my favorite dual POV with sparkling levity, titillating family scandals, smoldering sensual scenes, vile yet quirky villains that I loved to despise, and a plethora of enticing and intriguing primary and secondary characters. I adored every well-placed word and smirked my way through this absorbing and refreshingly entertaining tale. Sigh, I enjoyed these characters so much I am more than a bit reluctant to let them go, but at least I now have a new favorite author to fangirl.

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Excerpt:

“You have a suit fitting tomorrow morning.”

“Tomorrow morning? I have lots of suits; I’ll make one of those work.”

“Are they like the ones you wore to the funeral?” I ask.

“Yeah, why?”

“Well, they may have fit you five years ago, but they certainly don’t fit you now. I’ll text you the details and add them to your personal calendar.”

“You can’t do that without my cell number.” His smugness would be grating if I wasn’t two steps ahead of him.

I flash a fake smile. “I already have all of your personal details, Lincoln. Right down to your shoe size. And you can’t be late like you were this morning, so it might be a good idea to avoid the scotch tonight so you’re less bear and more human. You’ll need to use these things called manners. I can email you a refresher on what those are, should you need it.”

“Sarcasm is a weapon of the weak.”

My ears are on fire as he heads for the door. Jerk. I was being witty, not sarcastic. “Thanks so much for offering to help clean up the mess you made.” I turn to address the crinkled papers scattered on the floor.

It’s common courtesy to offer assistance if you’re the one who made the damn mess. Even Armstrong, who is the most epic of douches, has some manners. Usually he’ll try to look up a skirt or down a shirt while he’s being polite, but it’s better than this.

I turn to retrieve the papers when two things happen, a power surge ramps up the box fans—it happens at least twice a day, and at the same time Lincoln pulls the door open again. The simultaneous actions create a vortex of air inside my office, and my skirt flutters into the air. Like I’m Marilyn Monroe and I’ve stepped onto one of those subway grates. The fabric rises quickly, and a breeze hits me right between the legs, which is the exact moment I remember that I’m not wearing panties. Because they were covered in the coffee Armstrong spilled in my lap.

I drop the papers and battle the fabric back down. It’s fruitless, though, the wind tunnel whirls through the room like Dorothy’s freaking tornado, and the back of my dress goes up. I meet Lincoln’s gaze from across the small room. All it takes is a second of eye contact before those ridiculously blue eyes pull me in, and weird, inappropriate things start happening to my body. It’s irritating as hell. I don’t even like this guy, but my body seems as if it hasn’t gotten the same memo as the rest of me. Even more aggravating is the realization that based on his expression, he totally caught an eyeful of cooch.

Lincoln stands frozen at the door, eyes wide and fixed on my crotch, mouth hanging open.

“Close the damn door!” My voice is siren high. And loud.

“Right. Yes. I’m going. Now.” He steps out of my office, pulling the door closed behind him.

My dress settles around my knees. “Dammit.” I drop into my chair, which is probably what I should’ve done as soon as the wind tunnel started, but clearly I’d been too panicked to think straight.

On the upside, I went to see my waxer last week, so he’s seen my girl bits when they’re looking their finest.

On the downside, my project for the next six months has seen my naked girl bits.

 

About the Author:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of PUCKED, Helena Hunting lives on the outskirts of Toronto with her incredibly tolerant family and two moderately intolerant cats. She writes contemporary romance ranging from new adult angst to romantic sports comedy.

 

Connect with Helena:
Instagram: http://instagram.com/helenahunting Twitter: https://twitter.com/HelenaHunting
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/Zt1xm5
Facebook Fan group: http://bit.ly/340v5tQ
Website: http://www.helenahunting.com/
Never miss an update! Subscribe to Helena’s mailing list:
http://bit.ly/2MlRKq6

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Book Reviews: Let Your Hair Down (Almost Royal Book 3) by Rachel Lacey

Let Your Hair Down 

(Almost Royal Book 3)

by Rachel Lacey

Amazon  US / UK / AU / CA 

 BN ~ iBooks ~ Kobo ~ GP

THE ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIME

Ruby Keller is going rogue, or at least that’s the hashtag she’s using to document her vacation: #RubyGoesRogue. Illness kept her confined to her bedroom for much of her childhood, and as a result, she’s always played it safe, hiding behind her laptop and overanalyzing every decision. When a friend’s wedding takes her to London, she decides to push herself out of her comfort zone and take an uncharted adventure on her own…no laptop, no itinerary, and no one to get in her way. A chance run-in with a handsome British stranger was definitely not on the agenda…

Flynn Bowen travels the globe for his family’s chain of upscale hotels and resorts. He’s struggled to find his place within the business, so when his parents allow him to oversee the construction of a new location in Dubai, he’s determined not to let them down. When he meets Ruby, he’s enchanted by her passion and bravery, not to mention the chemistry between them. If circumstances were different, he could fall for this vivacious American beauty, but fate has only given them one magical day together. Can they find a way to grab their chance at love, or will geography—and their own inhibitions—tear them apart?

 

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I think you look like a woman who waited around for her letter from Hogwarts once upon a time, but I would hate to make a snap judgment.

 

Ruby was a gem in every sense of the word.

 

I’ve learned is that life can be short and fragile, and when you find something great, you should grab ahold of it, even if it’s not what you were expecting. And I definitely wasn’t expecting you, but here we are.

 

She was stabbing at her salad like it had personally offended her. Her expression betrayed nothing, but she was uncharacteristically quiet, which seemed somehow harder to take than if she’d just started yelling at him.

 

 My Review:

 

I have enjoyed this pleasurable series of supportive, animal-loving, and spunky friends and am sad to see it end. This installment featured a major turn-about for Ruby. The cautious and highly organized Ruby left her spreadsheets and laptop at home and set off for her friend’s wedding in London with a mission to go off on her own and experience an unplanned, unscheduled, no reservations made, grand adventure. She was off to a good start with a sexy new acquaintance she met at the wedding acting as her London tour guide then he became a good slice more before they wistfully parted with no hope of seeing each other again.

 

But of course, that couldn’t be as then there would be no story. Ruby and Flynn’s tale was a sweet and gentle low-conflict tale with a bit of sightseeing, illness, and a bit of steamy goodness, then a devastating disappointment for Ruby until Flynn finally pulled his cranium from his colon and gave us our HEA. As we all know, I must have my HEA or I will be stamping my little foot in pique and turning the air blue with invectives. Thank ALL our lucky stars that I didn’t need to pull my boots on. 😉

 

 

About the Author

Rachel Lacey is a contemporary romance author and semi-reformed travel junkie. She’s been climbed by a monkey on a mountain in Japan, gone scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef, and camped out overnight in New York City for a chance to be an extra in a movie. These days, the majority of her adventures take place on the pages of the books she writes. She lives in warm and sunny North Carolina with her husband, son, and a variety of rescue pets.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads 

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Book Review: Balls Up (Ball Games #8) by Andie M. Long

Balls Up

(Ball Games #8)

by Andie M. Long

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU  

 

Will this double wedding go without a hitch?

It’s the final visit to the Turner family and time for Camille and Dylan, plus Miranda and Vic to tie the knot.

But no one anticipated grandma’s interference. She did give birth to Dora after all…

Plans are changed, and a surprise appearance from three bridesmaids looks like being a complete ‘cat-astophe’.

Will the family get their happy-ever-afters, or is it going to be a complete balls up?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Now anyone who knew my other half, knew that at the best of times she lived up to her surname of Cross; but post-birth, whoa! It was like being in a live performance of The Exorcist.

 

She began pulling her top down a little showing some crinkly cleavage, “is it getting hot in here? I think we need a fireman, and oh look,” she waved a guy over. “I think this one wants us to look at his pole.” She’d organised a bloody stripper. My seventy-year-old gran.

 

My Review:

 

Andie M. Long closes out her irreverently humorous Balls series with one final misadventure with those crazy Turners. This time the entire clan was beyond stressed with pregnancies and a double wedding in the works. Oddly enough, Cam’s flamboyant and meddlesome grandmother was causing the most trouble with her bizarre add-ons and upstaging of the brides’ plans, while an exhausted Dora kept the fire department busy with her inattentive attempts at cooking.   I hope we haven’t seen the last of the Turners, they are a ridiculously outrageous family, one I wouldn’t want to live anywhere near, but I’ve enjoyed watching them from afar.

 

I picked up two new slang words for my Brit word list with whip-round – a collection of money made by a group of people that is then given to a particular person or used to buy a present for them, and narky – being cranky or irritable. I’d get narky if no one bothered to do a whip-round for my birthday – hint, hint.

 

About The Author

After twenty+ years of thinking about it, at the age of forty, I decided it was time to finally WRITE THE BOOK or forget about it. I studied two Open University Courses in Creative Writing and finally wrote my first novel. I’ve now written a ton of novels and have the ideas for so many more!

I live in Sheffield with my son and long-suffering partner. We now have a beautiful fur-baby called Bella. When not being a partner, mother, employee (I also work for the NHS) or writer I can usually be found on Facebook or Pinterest.
I’ll be signing in Newcastle 2017 and York 2018.

Stalk Andie Here:

 

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Book Review: Happy-Go-Lucky by L.H. Cosway

Happy-Go-Lucky

by L.H. Cosway

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU 

 

Every workplace has that one person you don’t want to mess with. 

At James & Peterson Investigations, that would be Cameron Grant: sullen, grouchy, intimidating, oh yeah, and sexy as hell. He can make your soul wither with a single disapproving glare. And he never, ever socializes with his co-workers.

This is why Maisie Wilkins, happy-go-lucky ray of sunshine, can’t fathom why Cameron finally decided to show up at their annual office Christmas party. Every year he received an invite, and every year he failed to attend. But not this year.

Curious as to why he’s there, Maisie can’t resist sitting next to Cameron. Before she knows it, she’s had one too many drinks and is drunkenly hailing a cab back to his place. Office party flings are not something she normally does, but despite his intimidating character, Cameron has a charm she can’t resist. Or maybe it was just those five gin and tonics blurring her judgment.

Whatever the reason, Maisie now has to navigate the awkward, tension-filled waters of sharing an office with someone she’s slept with.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I found it weird to think of him having parents, siblings. I was used to imagining him as some sort of perfect-looking vampire who slept in a coffin and consumed only blood. Then again, it was hard to explain the whole daylight thing.

 

Any mention of a man and she got a very specific look in her eye, like a mother in a period drama with a spinster daughter she was eager to marry off.

 

“You know, you might be right. I probably should stop bringing donuts to the office. They say sugar can have an adverse effect on testosterone levels. Oh,” I smacked my hand to mouth like I’d just come to some dramatic realisation. “That might be why you’re all standing around here gossiping and bitching about me like a bunch of old ladies.”

 

I was falling for this man, drowning in the sea of him and there was no swimming back to the surface… With Cameron, it was like there were more feelings inside of me than my body was capable of holding.

 

And when he asked me what my favourite spice was, I said Sporty. I think that’s where the date started to go downhill…

 

He smiled at me, the sort of rare smile that made you believe you were hearing angels sing.

 

My Review:

 

This was a fun and wryly amusing read featuring an office romance where opposites attract and create a beautiful result where the whole is greater than the parts. Cameron was exacting in his work while tetchy and uncaring of how other people regarded him, while Maisie was an optimist who bent over backward in her constant efforts and concern in pleasing others.   I adored their storylines, blossoming romance, and quirky office dynamics.

 

Ms. Cosway’s engaging writing was entertaining, well balanced, insightfully observant, and loaded with clever wit and stealthy levity as well as a few delectable scenes of sizzling sensuality. She also had me Googling ASMR, something I’d never taken note of before, which led to falling into a YouTube wormhole while experimenting with various video mavens until I shook myself loose. Funny how that happens…

About the author:

L.H. Cosway lives in Dublin, Ireland. Her inspiration to write comes from music. Her favorite things in life include writing stories, vintage clothing, dark cabaret music, food, musical comedy, and of course, books. She thinks that imperfect people are the most interesting kind. They tell the best stories. L.H. is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

Social Media Links:FB: www.facebook.com/LHCosway

Twitter: www.twitter.com/LHCosway

Instagram: www.instagram.com/l.h.cosway

Website: www.lhcoswayauthor.com

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lhcosway13/

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Book Review: Already Gone by Kristen Proby and K.L. Grayson

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Already Gone by Kristen Proby and K.L. Grayson

Release Date: August 27, 2019

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Download your copy today!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2YXGs20

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

Apple Books: http://bit.ly/KLKPAGAB

Nook: http://bit.ly/AGKLGKPK

Kobo: http://bit.ly/AGKLGKPKobo

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/AGKLGKPGR

Already Gone Landing Page: https://www.kristenprobyauthor.com/already-gone

 

Already Gone, an all-new standalone contemporary romance by New York Times bestselling author Kristen Proby and USA Today bestselling author K.L. Grayson

Falling in love is easy…

New Hope, South Carolina is my home. It’s where I grew up, got into trouble, and fell in love for the first time. Scarlett Kincaid was more than the girl next door, she was my best friend until she decided that small-town life wasn’t for her. One minute she was here, and the next she was gone.

The girl I used to fish with down at the creek is now the biggest name in country music. She headlines world tours, has won four Grammys, and I haven’t seen her since. Until today when she sped through town in her fancy car. One look at her big brown eyes was all it took to stir up a whole slew of emotions. Emotions I’d long ago buried and sure as hell don’t have time for.

It’s the aftermath that’s hard…

There are two things in my life that matter. My music, and my dad. Twelve years ago, I packed a bag and chased my dream. Leaving New Hope and escaping the gossip mill was the easiest decision I ever made. I never planned to return, but my father needs me, and he always comes first. So, I did what I had to do. I cut my tour short and came home, despite having a sister who hates me, and a community that doesn’t trust me.

And then there’s Tucker Andrews.

When he propped an arm on the roof of my car, pulled down his sunglasses and flashed his police badge, I nearly swallowed my tongue. Gone is the lanky boy who used to throw rocks at me and pull my pigtails. Tucker is now a six-foot package of brawny, sexy man wrapped in more muscle than I have hit singles. Did I mention he’s a cop and a single dad?

My goal was to help Dad and get back to my life. But what am I supposed to do when the life that used to strangle me suddenly fits like a glove and makes me dream of things I never thought I’d have? What happens when the boy I walked away from years ago becomes one of the most important people in my life? I don’t have room for a man much less love.

Right?

Because it’s impossible to hold onto someone who’s already gone.

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My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

It took me until twenty to ditch the scrawny nerd appearance and start to look more like my dad and less like… well, my mom.

 

My Review:

 

These two clever wordsmiths tossed in all my favorite tropes with this delectably steamy small-town, second chance, friends-to-lovers romance. The storylines were engaging; the characters were endearing yet amusingly flawed; and the writing was well balanced between angst, conflict, romance, and humor. And written in my favorite dual POV. I was practically levitating with glee. Both authors have impressive backlists yet are relatively new to me – I really need to sharpen my focus and pay better attention.

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Excerpt:

New Hope, South Carolina.

Population 6,129.

I know every soul represented in that number. Not a single one of them drives the shiny red Mercedes that just went speeding by.

Seventy-five in a forty-five.

I flick on my lights and press on the gas, sending my cruiser flying past the city limit sign and the godawful billboard that sits directly behind it; the one declaring New Hope home to country music superstar, Scarlett Kincaid.

It wouldn’t be a big deal if this were actually her home. It’s not. Scarlett may have been born here, but her fancy boots haven’t landed on this soil in over a decade.

All it took was one call from a hotshot music executive to send her packing before the ink was dry on her high school diploma. Scarlett flew from this town fast enough to leave our heads spinning. Before any of us could process what had happened, little Scarlett Kincaid—the same girl who used to build forts with me in my living room while my mama made us mac ‘n’ cheese—had a hit single sitting at number one on the Billboard charts.

She went from homecoming queen and most likely to marry a rich spouse in our senior yearbook, to the queen of country music.

The country loves her. Hell, the whole world loves her.

New Hope…not so much. And it’s high time that fucking sign comes down.

But first, I have to deal with this speed demon in the sexy red car.

I sound the sirens, and the car pulls to the side of the road and waits while I walk to the driver’s side window. It’s still up, the heavy tint preventing me from seeing inside. With a hand on my holster—because you never know what you’re going to walk up on—I knock on the window.

The dark glass lowers.

My first thought: this woman is absolutely gorgeous. Long, dark hair. Pouty lips. And a tiny pink dress. Her eyes are covered by oversized aviators, but I’m sure they’re as pretty as the rest of her.

My second thought: what crazy excuse is she going to come up with to try and get out of this ticket? It never ceases to amaze me the things women are willing to do to keep from getting into trouble. I’ve been offered everything from a blowjob to a pay-off to marriage.

“Do you know why I pulled you over today, ma’am?”

“Tucker?” The woman smiles, then pushes her sunglasses to the top of her head. And that’s when I see the brown eyes I’ve spent more than a decade trying to forget. “Tucker Andrews, is that you?”

I step back and square my shoulders. “You can call me Officer Andrews. Do you know why I pulled you over today, ma’am?”

“Tucker.” The woman laughs and shakes her head. “It’s me, Scarlett.”

At the mention of her name, I’m met with an onslaught of flashbacks. Running hand and hand through the neighborhood with her, laughing and playing, only to have her ignore me the second we got to school. The popular crowd versus the nerds who desperately tried to fit in. She the former, me the latter, and the pain it caused every time she acted as though she didn’t know my name. For years, I pretended it didn’t bother me because I knew that when I got home, Scarlett would meet me at the fence, and the awkwardness from the day would dissipate as though it never happened.

But it did. Day after day after day. I was a glutton for punishment. There was nothing in the world I loved more than Scarlett Kincaid, and it didn’t matter how badly she hurt me, I was always willing to forgive her.

Her smile and laugh might’ve gotten to me in middle school and high school, but I refuse to let it affect me now.

“I know who you are.”

Her smile falters.

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, she’s 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/
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Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/kristenproby/newsletter-sign-up

About K.L. Grayson

K.L. Grayson resides in a small town outside of St. Louis, MO. She is entertained

daily by her extraordinary husband, who will forever inspire every good quality she

writes in a man. Her entire life rests in the palms of six dirty little hands, and when the

day is over and those pint-sized cherubs have been washed and tucked into bed, you can find her typing away furiously on her computer. She has a love for alpha-males,

brownies, reading, tattoos, sunglasses, and happy endings…and not particularly in that

order.

Connect with K.L. Grayson

Facebook: http://bit.ly/KLGraysonFB

Instagram: http://bit.ly/KLGraysonIG

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Website: www.klgrayson.com

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Book Review: Kiss Me Not by Emma Hart

KMN-BANNER-LIVE

What do you do when you’re the reigning kissing booth champion but the only person you want to kiss is your best friend’s brother?

Kiss Me Not, an all-new hilarious brother’s best friend romance from New York Times bestselling author Emma Hart is available now!

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Kiss Me Not

by Emma Hart

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2wq22jD

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/2VZW8QH

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

Nook: http://bit.ly/2QFpPWh

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2JMUDng

 

Let me make this clear right here, right now: I, Halley Dawson, do not care that Preston Wright is kissing other women.

Not a lick. Not at all. Nuh-uh-freakin’-uh.

I do care that he’s doing it six feet away from me behind a gaudy velvet curtain—making him my competition in this year’s kissing contest.

Why do I care, you ask? Because I’ve had an unfortunate crush on the insufferable idiot since I was sixteen years old, but I also know it’s never going to happen.

He’s the Creek Falls bachelor to die for, and I’m the Creek Falls raccoon lady who puts peanut butter sandwiches out for them every night.

I’m not going to let him break my four-year-long reign—no matter how many times he breaks the rules and slides the curtain across to do the one thing he’s not allowed to:

Kiss me.

 

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I was woefully single to the point that the only date I had was with the raccoons who lived in the woods behind my house.

 

“Bite me, Preston.” “That can be arranged… should you want it to be literal, it can be arranged.” He gave me a wolfish smile. “There’s no shame in a little nibble, Halley.” He punctuated that with a wink. Why was my mouth dry? What was happening?

 

“You do, don’t you? … You have an entire emergency kit.” “You never know when you’re going to get stranded in the dark, in a place with no cell signal, and no civilization for miles. Also, there might be zombies.”

 

“Wow. You are a hard woman to please.” “Not really. Wine, yoga pants, raccoons, books… I’m fairly simple.”

 

 My Review:

 

Emma Hart is relatively new to me; this is only my third time picking up one her riotously funny tales and I am kicking myself for not discovering this clever minx years ago. Kiss Me Not is the start of a new series and I am all in for whatever Ms. Hart wants to throw down – unless she starts writing zombie stories – those would probably be a no-go. Penned in my favorite dual POV, her writing sparkled and zinged with witty and irreverent banter, a trio of feisty and sassy friends, and smirk-a-minute levity at a lively and snappy pace. I adored it!

Excerpt:

“I never answered your question.”

“What question?” I darted my eyes to the side.

“Just now. You asked me if I wanted to kiss you.”

I did, didn’t I? Right. “Oh,” was all I said.

Slowly, he moved his hand to my chin and gently lifted it. Still, I didn’t look at him, keeping my eyes firmly trained on the front of the tent, even though I was facing him.

“Halley.”

“Yeah?”

“I want to kiss you.”

My eyes darted to his.

“I thought that’d do it.” His lips twitched, and he lowered his head until I had to fight the urge to close my eyes in anticipation of the kiss that was coming.

I swallowed, my lips parting.

Preston moved closer.

And he kissed my cheek.

I jerked out of whatever trance I’d just been in. “What the hell?”

He jumped off the stage, grinning. “I guess we’ll have to wait until tomorrow to break the stalemate, won’t we?”

“Oh, hell no!” I jumped off, stalking him to his side of the stage. “You just stood there in front of me and told me you want to kiss me, then kiss my cheek? The hell was that?”

His eyebrows shot up, amusement flashing in his eyes. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you wanted to kiss me, too.”

“Irrelevant,” I shot back. “But you’re a special kind of asshole to tell a girl you wanna kiss her and then not do it.” I turned around, then stopped. “You know what? When I beat you tomorrow, you can kiss my ass.”

“You’re way too mad about this.”

“I’m not mad!” My voice raised a few octaves. “I couldn’t care if you want to kiss me or not. I most certainly don’t want to kiss you.”

“Why are you shouting at me?”

“I’m not—” I was shouting at him. “Whatever,” I said in a normal voice. “Make sure you take that money to the bank. Tell Tish I sent you.”

I left him on his side of the curtain and went to get my purse. He could get fucked. After all that where I think I was so damn nervous I broke a sweat, he didn’t even kiss me.

I wasn’t lying with what I said.

He could kiss my ass.

I’d even wear my good panties and bend over for him.

 

About Emma Hart

Emma Hart is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels and has been translated into several different languages.

​She is a mother, wife, lover of wine, Pink Goddess, and valiant rescuer of wild baby hedgehogs.

​Emma prides herself on her realistic, snarky smut, with comebacks that would make a PMS-ing teenage girl proud.

​Yes, really. She’s that sarcastic.

EmmaHart

Connect with Emma

Facebook: http://bit.ly/2KVY9Lz

BookBub: http://bit.ly/2Dr0atq

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2Dq42ez

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Website: https://www.emmahart.org/home

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Book Review: The Oysterville Sewing Circle by Susan Wiggs

The Oysterville Sewing Circle

by Susan Wiggs

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU

 B&N / HarperCollins

 384 pages
William Morrow; First Edition edition (August 13, 2019)

“Stitched together with love, this is a story just waiting for your favorite reading chair. With her signature style and skill, Susan Wiggs delivers an intricate patchwork of old wounds and new beginnings, romance and the healing power of friendship, wrapped in a lovely little community that’s hiding a few secrets of its own.”
— Lisa Wingate, New York Times Bestselling author of Before We Were Yours

The #1 New York Times bestselling author brings us her most ambitious and provocative work yet—a searing and timely novel that explores the most volatile issue of our time—domestic violence.

At the break of dawn, Caroline Shelby rolls into Oysterville, Washington, a tiny hamlet at the edge of the raging Pacific.

She’s come home.

Home to a place she thought she’d left forever, home of her heart and memories, but not her future. Ten years ago, Caroline launched a career in the glamorous fashion world of Manhattan. But her success in New York imploded on a wave of scandal and tragedy, forcing her to flee to the only safe place she knows.

And in the backseat of Caroline’s car are two children who were orphaned in a single chilling moment—five-year-old Addie and six-year-old Flick. She’s now their legal guardian—a role she’s not sure she’s ready for.

But the Oysterville she left behind has changed. Her siblings have their own complicated lives and her aging parents are hoping to pass on their thriving seafood restaurant to the next generation. And there’s Will Jensen, a decorated Navy SEAL who’s also returned home after being wounded overseas. Will and Caroline were forever friends as children, with the promise of something more . . . until he fell in love with Sierra, Caroline’s best friend, and the most beautiful girl in town. With her modeling jobs drying up, Sierra, too, is on the cusp of reinventing herself.

Caroline returns to her favorite place: the sewing shop owned by Mrs. Lindy Bloom, the woman who inspired her and taught her to sew. There she discovers that even in an idyllic beach town, there are women living with the deepest of secrets. Thus begins the Oysterville Sewing Circle—where women can join forces to support each other through the troubles they keep hidden.

Yet just as Caroline regains her creativity and fighting spirit, and the children begin to heal from their loss, an unexpected challenge tests her courage and her heart. This time, though, Caroline is not going to run away. She’s going to stand and fight for everything—and everyone—she loves.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Since she had left home right out of high school, she had dutifully visited a few times at Christmas… That seemed to satisfy the family and also preserved her status as the official black sheep. Every family needed a pet, her brother Jackson used to joke.

 

I’ve had my heart broken so many times, it’s all scar tissue…

 

“Turns out my ‘perfect’ husband pulled the oldest trick in the book. He took up with an associate at the law firm, plotted a slick exit, and brought my life to a screeching halt. She’s awful, too— one of those phony Christians who claimed she was ‘saving herself for marriage.’” “I guess you should have asked whose marriage,”

 

His eyes were as blue as her favorite color of gumball… As a general rule, she didn’t like boys. With two younger brothers, she was well aware of their shortcomings. Boys were noisy, and they smelled like hamsters, and they had an incomprehensible habit of wearing the same dirty shirt day in and day out until someone made them change.

  

My Review:

 

This was a slowly evolving, relatable, and thoughtfully written story in which every woman from most any culture will find something that resonates for her. While predominantly fitting the genre of women’s fiction, it could also be considered a second chance and small-town romance. The realistic storylines were easy to follow, highly assessable, relevant, and cast with a wide variety of unique and endearing yet flawed characters. The writing was engaging and easy to follow yet slyly emotive and stung my eye sockets several times. Susan Wiggs has earned a permanent spot on my list of favorite authors.

I was provided with a review copy of this stealthily emotive book by TLC Book Tours and HarperCollins. 

About Susan Wiggs

Susan Wiggs’s life is all about family, friends…and fiction. She lives at the water’s edge on an island in Puget Sound, and in good weather, she commutes to her writers’ group in a 21-foot motorboat. She’s been featured in the national media, including NPR, PRI, and USA Today, has given programs for the US Embassies in Buenos Aires and Montevideo, and is a popular speaker locally, nationally, internationally, and on the high seas.

From the very start, her writings have illuminated the everyday dramas of ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances. Her books celebrate the power of love, the timeless bonds of family and the fascinating nuances of human nature. Today, she is an international best-selling, award-winning author, with millions of copies of her books in print in numerous countries and languages. According to Publishers Weekly, Wiggs writes with “refreshingly honest emotion,” and the Salem Statesman Journal adds that she is “one of our best observers of stories of the heart [who] knows how to capture emotion on virtually every page of every book.” Booklist characterizes her books as “real and true and unforgettable.”

Her novels have appeared in the #1 spot on the New York Times Bestseller List, and have captured readers’ hearts around the globe with translations into more than 20 languages and 30 countries. She is a three-time winner of the RITA Award,. Her recent novel, The Apple Orchard, is currently being made into a film, and The Lakeshore Chronicles has been optioned for adaptation into a series.

The author is a former teacher, a Harvard graduate, an avid hiker, an amateur photographer, a good skier, and terrible golfer, yet her favorite form of exercise is curling up with a good book. She lives on an island in Puget Sound, where she divides her time between sleeping and waking.

Visit her website at www.SusanWiggs.com, and connect with Susan on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.