Tag: Paranormal Romance

Must read summer releases

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

This summer is packed full with books that I’m itching to read.

To begin with, there is Shield of Winter by Nalini Singh. Which was the reason I re-read the series now. Mmm.  ( I’ll admit that I’m crossing my fingers that my book store makes the same mistake they did last year. *cough*)

Then in July  Shaman Rises by C.E Murphy releases. *sob* I’m still struggling with the fact that it is the last Walker Paper novel.

Also in July the third book in Patricia Rice California Malcolms trilogy releases. I’m having my fingers crossed that she writes more, though. If not… well… I’ll nag her until she changes her mind. 🙂

And Wen Spencer’s next Elfhome novel releases in July! Perfect for some fun, fastpaced summer read.

Oh! Magic Breaks by Ilona Andrews is out  July too.  This book wraps up this series arc, although there will be more books. And Michelle Sagara’s Cast in Flames are out in July.

And in September, Ghost Layer by Robin D Owens is out.  The first book was so good.  But then all Robin’s books are really good. 🙂

So many books. So little time. 🙂 What books are you looking forward to read this summer?

 

 

Review: Biting Nixie by Mary Hughes

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

TheBitingNixie3x4.5_medium Particulars:Paranormal Romance, Samhain Publishing, available as e-book and in print

The Source: Freebie from Samhain

Grade: B

The Blurb: 

Nitro? Meet glycerin…

 Punk musician Nixie Schmeling is a hundred pounds of Attitude who spells authority a-n-c-h-o-r and thinks buying insurance is just one more step toward death. So she really feels played when she’s “volunteered” to run the town’s first annual fundraising festival. Especially when she finds out it’s to pay for a heavy-hitting, suit-wearing lawyer—who’s six-feet-plus of black-haired, blue-eyed sex on a stick.

Attorney Julian Emerson learned centuries ago that the only way to contain his dangerous nature is to stay buttoned up. He’s come from Boston to defend the town from a shady group of suits…and an even shadier gang of vampires. But his biggest problem is Nixie, who shreds his self-control.

Nixie doesn’t get why the faphead shyster doesn’t understand her. Julian wishes Nixie would speak a known language…like Sanskrit. Even if they manage to foil the bloodthirsty gang, what future is there for a tiny punk rocker and a blue-blooded skyscraper?

And that’s before Nixie finds out Julian’s a vampire…

The Review:

I have heard good things about Mary Hughes for a long time, but I never got around to buy this book, so when Samhain offered it for free earlier this year I jumped on it. While this isn’t a perfect book, I am really glad I finally read it.

I really liked the Meyers Corner, the setting of the book, it felt believable.  From the way everyone knew each other, even if they didn’t necessarily *like* each other, to the way their German background remained a part of their daily life.  I also liked that the way they fought for their independence from Chicago.

Even if Meyers Corner is a small town, a lot of things happened. I had a blast following Nixie and Julian as they tried to stop the bad guys.  The story was fast paced, and in between dodging bad guys she kept the festival from going haywire, dealt with her mother’s nagging to get a proper job.   I loved the fact that Nixie was snarky and kickass, but she also had enough common sense to know that she wasn’t invincible.

The supernatural element was gradually introduced, and I liked how the Vampires society was structured. It balanced the vampires need, while allowing them to stay under the radar.

While there was a lot of this I really liked with this book,  I struggled with the romance subplot. It was well written, and I was happy with their HEA, but I missed  following how Julian’s feelings and how he thought about having a human mate.

Haunted on Bourboun Street by Deanna Chase

On By MikaelaIn Paranormal Romance

hauntednewartThe Particulars: Paranormal Romance,  Selfpublished, available as e-book and in print

The Source: Freebie from Smashwords

The Grade: C+

The Blurb:

Jade loves her new apartment ̶ until a ghost joins her in the shower.

When empath Jade Calhoun moves into an apartment above a strip bar on Bourbon Street, she expects life to get interesting. What she doesn’t count on is making friends with an exotic dancer, attracting a powerful spirit, and having feelings for Kane, her sexy landlord.

Being an empath has never been easy on Jade’s relationships. It’s no wonder she keeps her gift a secret. But when the ghost moves from spooking Jade, to terrorizing Pyper, the dancer, it’s up to Jade to use her unique ability to save her. Except she’ll need Kane’s help—and he’s betrayed her with a secret of his own—to do it. Can she find a way to trust him and herself before Pyper is lost?

 

 

The Review:

This is the first Deanna Chase novel that I have read.  I am often a bit wary when it comes to selfpublished books, since they are often hit or miss for me.I was pleantly surprised by this one.

I liked Jade. It was interesting to follow her as she settled into her new apartment on Bourbon Street.  I liked her new neighbors and co-workers, they were an motley crew with secrets, but all of them felt genuine to me.  One thing I liked was how Ms Chase dealt with the prejudices regarding strip clubs.  Just because you work in a strip club, you don’t have to be criminal.

I liked Kane, he was kind, but he also had a strength that it felt like Jade needed, not that she was weak.  Their romance was a slow one, and I liked that both of them struggled with jealousy occassionally. The  search  for a way to exorcise the ghost made their relationship deepen.

But their relationship wasn’t the only thing affected by the ghost. As their search for ways to exorcise the ghost went on, more and more secrets was revealed. And as more secrets was revealed, the dangers increased.  But they stopped the ghost, finally, even if it cost them a lot.

The biggest problem I had with this book was very subjective. I liked it, but it lacked that something that turns a good book into a great book.  But I liked it enough to put the next book on my To Buy list.

 

Friday Bargains: Things that go bump in the night

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

The Reluctant Amazon by Sandy James is free right now.  I squeed, and downloaded it when I found out since I have meant to read this series ever since I first heard about it.

 

Right now we are seeing the effects of the loss of Agency pricing.  Several big publishers have discounted Fantasy and Science Fiction.

 

Harper Collins have discounted a lot of fantasy and Science Fiction e-books right now.  Among them is Snuff by Terry Pratchett, The First two Long Earth novels, the first two novels in Sean Russell’s the Swan’s War series.  Three Sheri S. Tepper novels… There are probably a lot more available

 

Del Rey also  offers a lot of books for 0.99, among them is Midnight by J.K Beck aka Julie Kenner,  The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch ( which I have featured before.)

 

For a longer list, with covers and links check out SF Signal’s round up.

Series Review: Princess of Hell by Eve Langlais

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

Note: Blurb and cover is for the first book in the series, purely to avoid spoilers.

LDCoverHi, I’m Muriel, the only white sheep in a sea of black ones, and a virgin to boot. I am determined to wait for love, but my dad, more commonly known as Lucifer, just wants me to stop being an embarrassment. I’m hoping the hunk that I met in my bar will turn out to be the one–just looking at him makes my insides melt like marshmallows over the coals of hell, but trusting is hard when it seems everyone I get close to ends up trying to kill me.

Not only am I dealing with an extreme case of lust, there’s a new threat in hell, one my dad says to ignore. Something easier said than done since it seems everywhere I turn demons are trying to kill me. But I’m okay with that, because one thing I’ve learned being a princess of hell is that sometimes I have to grab a demon by the horns and slap it around a bit.

A rebellion in hell, demon assassins and scorching kisses, could my life get any more interesting?

 

 

Continue reading “Series Review: Princess of Hell by Eve Langlais” →

Review: A Demon and His Witch by Eve Langlais

On By MikaelaIn Uncategorized
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The Blurb:

Burning alive is nothing compared to the heat of his touch.

Roasted at the stake as a witch, while her lover watches, Ysabel sells her soul to the devil in return for revenge. A fair trade until her ex-boyfriend escapes the bowels of Hell and she’s forced to team up with a demon to fetch the jerk back.

Remy’s seen a lot of things during his long tenure in Lucifer’s guard, but nothing can prepare him for the witch with the acerbic tongue–and voluptuous figure. Her mouth says ‘Screw you’, but her body screams ‘Take me’. What’s a poor demon to do when his heart makes things even more complicated by goading him to make her his, forever?

Before he can decide if his demonizing days are done though, he needs to catch the bad guys, save the girl and then find a way to convince her to love him and not kill him.

Welcome to Hell where you’re screwed if you do and damned if don’t. And just so you know, Lucifer’s got a special spot reserved for you…

The Review:

I read and liked Lucifer’s Daughter recently, so when this was offered for free at Allromance, I snapped it up. After reading it, I am glad I did. Even if this book was far from perfect, it was a fun romp.

Continue reading “Review: A Demon and His Witch by Eve Langlais” →

ARC Review: Diamond Dust by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, Paranormal Romance, reviews

16118795The Particulars: Paranormal Romance, Samhain Publishing, available as e-book

The Grade: B

The Source: ARC from the Author

The Blurb:

She can’t shift, but she can shake their world.

Caroline Bradley is having one hell of a week. Her wolf lover has sniffed out his mate, making her an instant free agent. Not only that, Takhini territory has been overrun with aggressive bear-shifters electing a clan leader, and the wolf pack is feeling the effects—pushing her diplomatic skills to the limit.

Tyler Harrison is a grizzly on a mission. If he’s going to win the majority of the bears’ votes, he needs one final thing: a female companion. The only woman in town with influence over wolves, humans, and more bears than he’d like to admit, is Caroline.

Despite the sexual pull between them, though, Tyler’s not seeking a permanent relationship. And Caroline isn’t looking to be anyone else’s political pawn. But she should have remembered that when shifters are involved, changes happen in the blink of an eye.

Warning: Billionaire bear hero plus kick-ass human heroine equals a sexually volatile power struggle. Get ready for what might be the naughtiest game of tag that’s ever been played in the great outdoors.

 

The Review:

I love Vivian Arend’s Takhini Wolves novels, and I am really glad that I requested this ARC.

It was interesting to revisit Whitehorse, and see how the Takhini pack prepared for the Bears Convent. It was interesting to get to know the Bears, and see how they handled the politics.

This was Tyler and Caroline’s story, and I really enjoyed it. I loved the fact that bears doesn’t have insta-mates like the wolves does, and that have resulted in a tradition of arranged marriages. It was interesting to watch Caroline deal with the bears and their traditions. She is used to manipulating shifters, and got a spine. She needed it to deal with Tyler. Tyler was a bit arrogant, at times bordering on jerk. But he was also tender and protective toward Caroline.

It wasn’t a smooth romance. I loved to see how their world met and clashed in the beginning. Caroline is independent and used to deciding her own life. Tyler is used to giving orders. But I felt that they was a good match, and that they can bring change to the Bear society.

I really liked the other subplot that followed  the beginning of Evan’s romance with his mate. I think I know who his mate is, but I am not telling.

I had a bit trouble feeling that the romance built towards a HEA. Paradoxically, the source of that was  the interlude in the beginning was their wedding. Which removed a bit part of the feeling that they were building toward their HEA.

 

Friday Bargains: Mostly Paranormal Romance

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations

I have heard good things about Jessica Sims Midnight Liason’s  series, so when I heard that she had self published a novella I got intrested.   Single Wolf Female is 0.99 right now, and I have no idea how long it lasts.
Vivian Arend’s Diamond Dust is one of Samhain’s featured titles, which means you get an additional 30 % off with  the Coupon “SCHOOLDAYS”

( The other books is Delilah Devlin’s latest,   a book by Jayne Rylon and Mari Carr,  an historical romance by Edie Harris, an UF by RG Alexander,  an MM by Daisy Harris, and a horror novel by Kristoffer Rufty. All of them are new or upcoming, so it shouldn’t be hard to find them on Samhain’s webpage.)

Edit: And I just saw  on twitter that The Iron King by Julie Kagawa is free at Itunes UK. Not sure about the US.

Now for a couple of print deals:

Amazon have really good prices on pre-orders and recent releases right now.  I think that both Archangels Legion by Nalini Singh and Guardian Demon by Meljean Brook is just 4.99 right now, or thereabouts.  I think it is a side effect of Overstock and Amazon’s price war, and I have no idea how long it lasts.

ARC Review: Haunted Wolves by Moira Rogers

On By MikaelaIn Paranormal Romance
The Particulars: Paranormal Romance, Samhain Publishing, available as e-book
The Source: Review copy from the author
The Grade: B+
The Blurb:
Lorelei Adams has lost many things–her humanity, her life, even her son. She’s always fought through her exhaustion, always stayed strong for her pack, but now there are new alphas to take care of the others. Unfortunately, time to rest means time to think about her own pain.

Colin Knox knows about exhaustion. He’s acted as judge, jury and executioner to rogue wolves for over a decade, but never lingered long enough to help the survivors pick up the pieces–until now. Lorelei rouses his instincts, both protective and carnal. She’s willing, but only to indulge in physical distraction. Colin wants more, to be the hero who slays her monsters.

Especially when it becomes clear that malicious magic is loose in their sanctuary. The danger draws them together until it’s impossible to separate lust from affection, good intentions from rationalizations. Darkness is stirring at Green Pines. If they can’t fight it together, they could lose everything they have left.

The Review:
I loved Haunted Sanctuary, so when Haunted Wolves release approached I e-mailed and requested an review copy. And Bree graciously sent me one :).
This is a poignant tale, with a theme of taking the steps to heal past scars. And the most poignant part was Lorelei’s and Colin’s romance. I loved it. From the first step to acknowledging the spark, to acting on it, to starting to build a relationship. Both Lorelei and Colin had their scars, and I really appreciated how they started to trust each other, and help each other heal the worst of the scars.
The plot was well crafted, and filled with unexpected twists. I loved how everything was connected, and how even the most tiniest thing could turn out to be pivotal. I especially liked how the setting and the plot was interconnected. Things happening at the farm propelled the plot forward, as did old prejudices in the town.
The biggest problem I had was that all the other emotions in the book occassionally overshadowed the spark between Lorelei and Colin. But it was an wonderful romance, and I look forward to read the next book in the series.