Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Entangled Historical Romance Q&A and Sale

Historical Sale Blitz

Hopefully summer frees up a little bit of time for reading. And with Book #1 of these three series on sale for just 99¢, it's time to start a new series (or 3).

To celebrate the sale, authors Robyn DeHart, Ally Broadfield, and Harmony Williams are spending the week with us! To start, we asked them a bit about the characters in their series.

What do you love about the hero & heroine in the first book in the series?

Ally Broadfield (author of the How To series): How stubborn they are. They're a classic enemies to lovers couple, but both of them fought hard against the pull of attraction.

Harmony Williams (author of The Ladies of Passion series): I love the banter between them. Rose can be stubborn but Warren is not willing to back away from the obvious chemistry between them.

Robyn DeHart (Author of The Brotherhood of the Sword series): How stubborn they are. They're a classic enemies to lovers couple, but both of them fought hard against the pull of attraction.

What characters have been your favorite to write? Why?

Ally: Thornbrook and Louisa from How to Bewilder a Lord. They were both secondary characters in How to Bewitch an Earl, and I had no intention of anything ever happening between them. Luckily they had other ideas.

Harmony: Mary's go-getter, brazen, "I'll fix this" attitude is a huge amount of fun to write. She is fearless, even if she is sometimes out of her depth.

Robyn: I love Evie from Undercover With the Earl. She was so fun. I kind of imagined her as Mary, the middle Bennett sister from P&P only with more personality. ;-)



Start the How To series, by Ally Broadfield, with How to Beguile a Duke.

Start the Ladies of Passion series, by Harmony Williams, with How to Play the Game of Love.

Start the Brotherhood of the Sword series by Robyn DeHart, with Undercover with the Earl.

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Waiting on Wednesday: Duke of Desire by Elizabeth Hoyt


Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine which spotlights eagerly anticipated upcoming releases!

Elizabeth Hoyt's Maiden Lane series is one of my absolute favorite series. Her characters are always unique and their stories captivating. I was re-reading some of my favorite bits of Duke of Sin last night (because I can't resist Val) and falling into Ms. Hoyt's writing once again made me incredibly eager for the next Maiden Lane book, Duke of Desire.

Duke of Desire Cover Title: Duke of Desire
Series: Maiden Lane, Book 12
Author: Elizabeth Hoyt
Genre: Historical Romance
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Release Date: October 17, 2017
Elizabeth Hoyt Reading Order

Book Description (from Amazon):

A LADY OF LIGHT
Refined, kind, and intelligent, Lady Iris Jordan finds herself the unlikely target of a diabolical kidnapping. Her captors are the notoriously evil Lords of Chaos. When one of the masked - and nude! - Lords spirits her away to his carriage, she shoots him...only to find she may have been a trifle hasty.

A DUKE IN DEEPEST DARKNESS
Cynical, scarred, and brooding, Raphael de Chartres, the Duke of Dyemore, has made it his personal mission to infiltrate the Lords of Chaos and destroy them. Rescuing Lady Jordan was never in his plans. But now with the Lords out to kill them both, he has but one choice: marry the lady in order to keep her safe.

CAUGHT IN A WEB OF DANGER...AND DESIRE
Much to Raphael's irritation, Iris insists on being the sort of duchess who involves herself in his life-and bed. Soon he's drawn both to her quick wit and her fiery passion. But when Iris discovers that Raphael's past may be even more dangerous than the present, she falters. Is their love strong enough to withstand not only the Lords of Chaos but also Raphael's own demons?

Friday, May 26, 2017

Review: House Rules by Cathryn Fox

House Rules by Cathryn Fox
Series: Dossier, Book 2
Publisher: Entangled: Scorched
Genre: Erotic Contemporary Romance House Rules Cover
ISBN: 9781546708414
Release Date: June 5, 2017
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N

The last thing I expected to find in my dossier was sexy stockings, a plane voucher to London and an invitation to dance at a gentleman’s club. I’m a quiet museum curator for God’s sake. No way, no how am I going to slide down a pole for a bunch of over privileged, narcissistic men—until I see Sean Fraser, my childhood crush, enter the establishment. Since I’m no longer that overweight teen with braces and mousey hair, there is no way he’ll recognize me. Hmmm… Maybe I’ll give him a fake name—and a private dance. That ought to make him finally notice me, right?

What the hell is Kennedy Lane doing sliding down a pole in a private Gentlemen’s club? I'm not sure, and while I know she's hands off, I want her. I’ve always wanted her. She might have been too young for me back in the day. Now, not so much. Hands off leads to hands on after a private dance, and while Kennedy spends the weekend pretending to be someone she isn’t, I know full well who she is. And I’m not quite ready to let her hang up her stockings when the show is over.

Two years ago, Kennedy and her friends put their names in a hat, each friend having to give the person they picked a trip where their most explicit fantasies could be explored. That’s how quiet museum curator Kennedy Lane finds herself in London with a bag of lingerie and an invitation to dance at a gentleman’s club. She has no intention of doing so, until she sees her best friend’s brother, Sean, going into the club. As a teenager, Kennedy was in love with Sean, but not only did he not feel the same back then, he doesn’t even recognize her as an adult. If she’s going to brave dancing on a pole in public, then Kennedy figures she might as well go all-in. She’ll give Sean a fake name and seize the opportunity she’s always wanted: a no-holds-barred erotic adventure with the man of her dreams. Little does she know that Sean knows exactly who she is, and there’s no way he’ll let things end after just one night.

House Rules is deliciously dirty. I’m a sucker for a good “heroine is in love with her best friend’s brother” story, and Cathryn Fox makes this familiar trope feel fresh with her fun and naughty spin on it.

Kennedy is a good girl taking a walk on the wild side. I loved watching her embrace her sexuality and go for what she wants with Sean. She was in love with him as a teenager, and now that he’s finally noticed her, those old feelings are starting to resurface. I was rooting for Kennedy to get her dream guy, because Sean was definitely worth swooning over. Sean is dominant, dirty, and hot as hell. But what really captured my interest was how he was pretty gone over Kennedy. The three year age gap when they were teenagers meant he had to pretend not to see her as anything more than his sister’s friend. But as an adult, Sean makes up for lost time. He and Kennedy are scorching in the bedroom, but there are also some incredibly sweet moments in between all the raunchy ones that balance out the story.

House Rules is the second Dossier story, but it can be easily read as a standalone. The premise of the series is fun and I liked Kennedy and Sean so much that I’m definitely looking forward to more Dossier tales. If you’re looking for fast-paced, well-written erotic romance, House Rules is definitely a good bet.


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Waiting on Wednesday: The Sumage Solution by G. L. Carriger


Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine which spotlights eagerly anticipated upcoming releases!

I absolutely adore Gail Carriger's work - her books are always funny, imaginative, and entertaining. I can't wait to see what she has in store for readers with her new San Andreas Shifters series, written as G. L. Carriger. Sexy, humorous times with a hot werewolf and a mage who can't do magic? I'm in :)

Secrets in Death Cover Title: The Sumage Solution
Series: San Andreas Shifters, Book 1
Author: G. L. Carriger
Genre: Male/Male Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Gail Carriger, LLC
Release Date: July 18, 2017
Gail Carriger/G. L. Carriger Reading Order

Book Description (from Amazon):

Can a gentle werewolf heal the heart of a smart-mouthed mage?

NYT bestseller Gail Carriger, writing as G. L. Carriger, presents an offbeat gay romance in which a sexy werewolf with a white knight complex meets a bad boy mage with an attitude problem. Sparks (and other things) fly.

Max fails everything - magic, relationships, life. So he works for DURPS (the DMV for supernatural creatures) as a sumage, cleaning up other mages' messes. The job sucks and he's in no mood to cope with redneck biker werewolves. Unfortunately, there's something oddly appealing about the huge, muscled Beta visiting his office for processing.

Bryan AKA Biff (yeah, he knows) is gay but he's not out. There's a good chance Max might be reason enough to leave the closet, if he can only get the man to go on a date. Everyone knows werewolves hate mages, but Bryan is determined to prove everyone wrong, even the mage in question.

Delicate Sensibilities?
This story contains M/M sexitimes and horrible puns. If you get offended easily, then you probably will. The San Andreas Shifter stories contain blue language, dirty deeds, and outright admiration for the San Francisco Bay Area. Not for the faint of heart (mouth/tongue/etc.).

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Review: Kiss of the Irish by Lauren Hawkeye

Kiss of the Irish by Lauren Hawkeye
Series: Foreign Fling, Book 1
Publisher: Entangled: Brazen
Genre: Contemporary Romance Kiss of the Irish Cover
ISBN: 9781545552940
Release Date: May 15, 2017
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N

If Sarah Mercer had ever been asked to describe herself in one word, it would be sensible. After all, she had a steady job. Made prudent decisions. Was in what she though was a logical relationship. But when her fiancรฉ dumps her for an exotic dancer, Sarah decides it's time to change…everything! The first thing on her agenda? To get out of town and take a three month trip to Ireland. She'd always been captivated by the Emerald Isle. And she'd heard that there was nothing like an Irishman with a sexy accent and eyes as devastatingly green as the country's rolling hills to make a girl feel better.

But maybe she shouldn't have hooked up with her new landlord on the first night in town. Cian Murphy wasn't supposed to be her type. His arms and chest were tattooed, and he had piercings everywhere. Still, he made her feel beautiful, sexy…alive for the first time in years. Falling for the Irish hottie was as natural as breathing. But figuring out what she'd do when it came time to leave? Not so easy…

With its hot Irish hero and welcoming small town, Kiss of the Irish is the kind of story that makes you want to pack your backs and hop on a plane to Ireland posthaste. Between the idyllic environment and the engaging characters, there’s no way I could resist this book.

My favorite thing about Kiss of the Irish is the characters. Sarah has always made safe choices, done what she was told to do, and has basically been so beaten down by the people who should have loved her that she has a hard time believing in herself. Despite all of this, there’s still spark and backbone in her. When her jerk of a fiancรฉ dumps her, Sarah leaves Boston for an extended vacation in Ceanmore, Ireland. It’s there she meets her oh-so-hot new landlord, Cian, who is a completely drool-worthy hero. He’s a smart businessman who has a bit of a wild streak, not to mention some sexy ink and piercings. But what I loved best about Cian was how genuinely kind he is. He’s got a heart of gold and while he definitely has the hots for Sarah from the start, he puts her needs first. Her self-confidence has taken a severe hit when she first comes to Ceanmore, and he helps her build herself back up. Sarah comes into her own over the course of this story, and I loved watching her grow as a character. The romance between her and Cian is equally lovely to watch unfold. They’ve got crackling good chemistry and their love story is a good mix of sweet and sensual.

Kiss of the Irish is the first book in Lauren Hawkeye’s Foreign Fling series, and by the time I finished Saran and Cian’s story, I wanted the next book. I’ve got my fingers crossed Cian’s sister, Ainsley, and her best friend, Nell, get books, because those two were utterly delightful. Their kindness and humor rounded out the story and they were as important as Cian was in bringing Sarah out of her shell. All in all, Kiss of the Irish was an utterly delightful read and I cannot wait to read more of Ms. Hawkeye’s work!


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Monday, May 8, 2017

Review: The Girl Who Knew Too Much by Amanda Quick

The Girl Who Knew Too Much by Amanda Quick
Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Historical Romantic Suspense
ISBN: 9780399174476
Release Date: May 9, 2017
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N

When Hollywood moguls and stars want privacy, they head to an idyllic small town on the coast, where the exclusive Burning Cove Hotel caters to their every need. It’s where reporter Irene Glasson finds herself staring down at a beautiful actress at the bottom of a pool…

The dead woman had a red-hot secret about up-and-coming leading man Nick Tremayne, a scoop that Irene couldn’t resist—especially since she’s just a rookie at a third-rate gossip rag. But now Irene’s investigation into the drowning threatens to tear down the wall of illusion that is so deftly built around the famous actor, and there are powerful men willing to do anything to protect their investment.

Seeking the truth, Irene finds herself drawn to a master of deception. Oliver Ward was once a world-famous magician—until he was mysteriously injured during his last performance. Now the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, he can’t let scandal threaten his livelihood, even if it means trusting Irene, a woman who seems to have appeared in Los Angeles out of nowhere four months ago…

With Oliver’s help, Irene soon learns that the glamorous paradise of Burning Cove hides dark and dangerous secrets. And that the past—always just out of sight—could drag them both under…

Secrets and murder pair excellently with '30s Hollywood glam in The Girl Who Knew Too Much. I’m a longtime Amanda Quick fan, and the setting of this story is what drew me in first. I loved seeing her delve into the world of 1930s Hollywood; the mix of glamour and dirty, dangerous secrets was incredibly appealing. Add in the setting of a gorgeous hotel marred by murder, a former magician hero whose career-ending injury hasn’t robbed him of all his tricks, and a reporter heroine with a few things to hide of her own, and I was hooked.

Irene knows as much about creating a new persona as any silver screen star. She had to run fast and far from a past that even now threatens to shake her world. I liked Irene. She’s a smart reporter with an eye for detail, she’s loyal to those who deserve it, and she’s good at thinking on her feet. She may have come to Burning Cove Hotel to get the scoop on an up-and-coming star, but when she finds a dead body in the hotel spa, her agenda quickly changes. Her partner in crime-solving is none other than the hotelier himself, Oliver Ward. Oliver was once a famous magician (and I may or may not have geeked out over the tricks of his trade), but during one of his performances something went horribly wrong, seriously injuring Oliver and ending his career. He’s made a new life for himself as the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, and he has no intention of letting a murderer hide on his property. He and Irene make a great team. They click, to put it simply, and they have an easy chemistry that makes their slide into love appealing to read about.

The Girl Who Knew Too Much has a bit of a slow burn mystery, mostly because there are a lot of players in the game and a number of secrets. It takes time to get to know everyone, but the various characters and personalities added a lot to the world. And things definitely heat up when the mystery deepens and the danger becomes more prominent. While I can’t say much without spoiling the story, I will say that I loved seeing how Ms. Quick put all those puzzle pieces she laid out together. The world of 1930s Hollywood, the shine and the grime of the entertainment industry, made The Girl Who Knew Too Much incredibly interesting and I hope Ms. Quick returns to this era again.


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Waiting on Wednesday: Secrets in Death by J.D. Robb


Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine which spotlights eagerly anticipated upcoming releases!

Whenever I'm asked what my favorite series is, there's no hesitation - the answer is always J.D. Robb's In Death series. Eve and Roarke never fail to entertain me, so it's no surprise that this week's Waiting on Wednesday pick, Secrets in Death, is one of the books I'm most eager to read this year.

Secrets in Death Cover Title: Secrets in Death
Series: In Death, Book 45
Author: J.D. Robb
Genre: Futuristic/Mystery/Suspense
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Release Date: September 5, 2017

Book Description (from Amazon):

The chic Manhattan nightspot Du Vin is not the kind of place Eve Dallas would usually patronize, and it’s not the kind of bar where a lot of blood gets spilled. But that’s exactly what happens one cold February evening.

The mortally wounded woman is Larinda Mars, a self-described “social information reporter,” or as most people would call it, a professional gossip. As it turns out, she was keeping the most shocking stories quiet, for profitable use in her side business as a blackmailer. Setting her sights on rich, prominent marks, she’d find out what they most wanted to keep hidden and then bleed them dry. Now someone’s done the same to her, literally―with a knife to the brachial artery.

Eve didn’t like Larinda Mars. But she likes murder even less. To find justice for this victim, she’ll have to plunge into the dirty little secrets of all the people Larinda Mars victimized herself. But along the way, she may be exposed to some information she really didn’t want to know…