Tag: Vivian Arend

Cover reveal: Rocky Mountain Rebel by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Uncategorized

Vicki Hansol made different choices than her less-than-reputable mom and sister, yet her fiery temper has left her branded with the same town-bad-girl label. When she desperately needs a change of scenery, her get-out-of-town-free ticket arrives—and requires she face down one of her deepest fears.
Easygoing Joel Coleman has nothing to complain about, but he’s never really done anything to brag about either. The youngest member of the Six Pack Ranch is looking to make some changes in his life that include stepping out from under his twin brother’s shadow.
So when the bold beauty with the smart mouth approaches him with a proposition, Joel is intrigued. Her request for him to teach her to ride soon takes on a whole new meaning. All that passion in his arms, his bed, in the barn…hell, anywhere he can get it? Bring it on.
But tangling the sheets leads to unanticipated complications, and by the time the dust settles, everything family means is going to be challenged.
Caution: Saddle up for some youthful vigor applied with great enthusiasm. Ropes, rails and raunchy sex—there’s more places to get dirty around the ranch than first meets the eye.

 Look what Vivian Arend posted on her blog… Mmm.

 But there is more Rocky mountain goodness coming today. Yes, that’s right. Today is Rocky Mountain Angel’s release day.

Rocky Mountain Angel

Six Pack Ranch, Book 4

Sometimes even Angels must learn to fly…
Allison Parker needs a convincing excuse to come home to Rocky Mountain House. A hopelessly romantic reason that won’t let her mother suspect the truth—that Allison has discovered Mom is keeping a terrible secret from the family.
Gabe Coleman is struggling with two of the roughest parts of ranching: dealing with his bull-headed mule of a father, and making enough to pay the bills. When his old friend Allison offers to help him develop his ideas for organic ranching—in trade for pretending to be her fiancé—it sounds like the perfect set-up.
Yet the deception leads them in an unexpected direction, where their shared daily hells are erased by nights of heavenly distraction. It’s not supposed to be real, but once the gates are opened, there’s no denying they’ve found in each other a little bit of Paradise.
To break free of the past and face the future, though, will take more than temporary pleasures. It’ll take putting their hearts on the line.
Warning: Tortured hero with a guardian-angel complex, grief-stricken heroine willing to sacrifice everything for family. Break out the tissues, this trip to the ranch is a heartbreaker on the way to the HEA.

 Worried that you haven’t the  Six Pack Ranch novels yet?
Don’t worry, my giveaway of Rocky Mountain Heat  is still ongoing

Giveaway: Rocky Mountain Heat by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Uncategorized1 Comment

Thanks to Vivian Arend’s generosity, I have one e-copy of Rocky Mountain Heat to giveway!

He’s the one who taught her to ride. Now all he wants is to ride her.
Blake Coleman is old enough to know that acting on impulse causes nothing but a heap of trouble. But when trouble’s a western-hat-wearing blonde with slim legs that go on forever, what’s a man to do? Wanting the sweet girl next door is just wrong. The responsible thing to do is keep his hands off.
Jaxi has other plans for Blake’s hands, and his heart. She may have once considered him a big brother, but that was a long time ago. She’s all grown up now and ready to convince him that she’s perfect for him. Except he can’t seem to see past the big “don’t touch” sign that’s apparently still hanging around her neck.
When Jaxi ends up living right under Blake’s nose, the undeniable heat between them slides off simmer and leaps up to barn-burning levels. However, a few of the younger six-pack Colemans have decided Jaxi’s brand of trouble is worth risking a few busted bones.
That is, if Blake’s finally ready to let go the reins and fight for what he wants…
Warning: Sexy cowboys seducing and being seduced in trucks, pool halls and barns. Droolworthy country charm, a little double-teaming, a few secrets and a whole lot of brothers to look forward to. Anyone wanna go for a ride?

To enter, just leave a comment with your e-mail in it, so that you can recieve your copy.
Edited: And it might be a good idea to mention when the Giveaway ends. The Giveaway ends next Friday. November 30th.

ARC review:Rocky Mountain Angel by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, reviews
The Particulars: Contemporary Romance, Samhain Publishing, available as e-book.
The Source: ARC from the authour
The Grade: B
The Blurb:

Allison Parker needs a convincing excuse to come home to Rocky Mountain House. A hopelessly romantic reason that won’t let her mother suspect the truth—that Allison has discovered Mom is keeping a terrible secret from the family.
Gabe Coleman is struggling with two of the roughest parts of ranching: dealing with his bull-headed mule of a father, and making enough to pay the bills. When his old friend Allison offers to help him develop his ideas for organic ranching—in trade for pretending to be her fiancé—it sounds like the perfect set-up.
Yet the deception leads them in an unexpected direction, where their shared daily hells are erased by nights of heavenly distraction. It’s not supposed to be real, but once the gates are opened, there’s no denying they’ve found in each other a little bit of Paradise.
To break free of the past and face the future, though, will take more than temporary pleasures. It’ll take putting their hearts on the line.
Warning: Tortured hero with a guardian-angel complex, grief-stricken heroine willing to sacrifice everything for family. Break out the tissues, this trip to the ranch is a heartbreaker on the way to the HEA.

The Review:
I have wanted to read this ever since Vivian Arend posted a snippet at her blog, so when she offered ARCs, I requested one. And I am glad I did.
This was a touching and heart warming story. I liked how Allison and Gabe let things take time, and didn’t rush anything. But while they took their time, they were always there for each other when they had had a rough day. And there was plenty of those.
But most of all, I loved how their relationship with their families were depicted. Both the good and bad sides. And it was touching to follow Allison’s struggle with her mother’s decline. Yet, the love she felt for her mother shone through.
Like all Vivian Arend’s books the setting play a big role. In this case it was evident the characters love for the outdoors are evident. But I also liked that it was that farming is hard, and that it often is a struggle to make ends meet. 
While I liked this book a lot, it had some issues that keeps me from give it an A. The biggest issue for me was that the spark between Allison and Gabe kept flickering. Sometimes I felt it, sometimes I didn’t. I also wished that some of Gabe’s decisions and struggles had been shown more clearly, instead of being mentioned off hand.

Cover Reveal: High Risk by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Uncategorized

This cover was revealed earlier this month, and I love it since it tells me what this books is: An erotic romance novel featuring Adrenaline junkies. ( Yes, I am tired of 50 shades of grey covers, that could be on any kind of book.)

ARC review: Silver Mine by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, Paranormal Romance, reviews

The Particulars: Paranormal Romance, Samhain Publishing, available as e-book.
The Source: ARC from the author
The Grade: A
The Blurb: Life in isolation is the safest place for Chase Johnson, a crossbreed who doesn’t know which form he’ll assume next-cougar or wolf. Once a year, his unelected position as spokesman for the Yukon outcasts forces him to visit civilization. This time he runs across someone unexpected. She’s not his mate, but she pushes all the right buttons.
It’s taken years for Shelley Bradley to gather the courage to return to her home pack. In spite of being the lowest of the low-a shifter who can’t shift-she’s determined to make a place for herself as the Whitehorse locals’ new vet-slash-doctor.

There’s definite electricity between her and Chase, but sex with fellow shifters and the inherent mind games got old a long time ago. Ignoring him seems best. When he shows up at her office with a wound that won’t heal, she’s stuck-yet drawn to solve this medical mystery.

As they journey deep into outcast territory in search of answers, their powerful sexual attraction crumbles her resistance. But time is of the essence. If a cure can’t be found before his human and cougar succumb to his injury, he-and others like him-will die.

Warning: Contains a silver-tongued, hairy-chested, lean-muscled Alpha who’s got what it takes to lead in the wilderness and in the bedroom. Yeah, I know…not really much of a deterrent, is it? Throw in continuing territorial wars and a domestic cat. Stir and enjoy the chaos.

The Review:
I jumped on the chance to read an ARC of Silver Mine when Vivian Arend posted about the opportunity on her blog. And I am glad I did. This book was Vivian Arend at her best.
This book took place in Whitehorse and in the wilderness in Yukon. I loved the tiny details in small town life. From how everyone knows everyone, to the layer of secrets that existed beneath the surface. But, I loved the descriptions of the wilderness more. It tugged at something within me, and made me long to walk along the path that led to Chase cabin.
When it comes to the characters, I loved how Chase and Shelley reflected each other. They were both outcasts, but it very different ways. Shelley’s wariness towards re-joining the Takihini pack made sense. Sometimes, I wanted to smack the old Takihini Alpha. This also affected their relationship. The attraction was there, but Shelley fought it. It was nice to meet the Takhini wolves again, but my favorite characters were the outcasts. They were grumpy, and had their bad sides, but all of them had a heart of gold.
But what made the book for me was how it showed that shifters isn’t perfect. When Chase got wounded he shrugged it off, but the tension and worry gradually increased when his wound didn’t heal. More, I liked how it was gradually revealed that the infection didn’t just affect him, but it threatended all shifters. And that it affected shifters differently. Some it affected mentally, and some it affected physically.   
I cannot say that there was anything glaring that I disliked with this books, just a few typos.

Review: Wolf Line by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, Paranormal Romance, reviews

Wolf LineThe Particulars:  Paranormal Romance, Samhain, available as e-book
The Source: Purchased at Books on board
The Grade: A

 The Blurb:

Jared’s not sure how his quiet morning coffee near the harbour ended with him on a cruise ship impersonating one of his pack mates. Well, it might have something to do with a woman, but who can blame him? The female of the species was made to love, and he’s more than willing to share his considerable skills in that area. Especially since he figures the chances of meeting his own one-and-only are slim.
Keri Smith is positive the last-minute recruit sneaking aboard the Arctic Wolf Cruise Lines tour is her mate. Ix-nay on confirming that, though, at least for the next ten days. She’s promised her best friend to be overall troubleshooter for the shifter-only cruise. Getting tangled up in mating lust would reduce her skills to nil. Avoidance of the sexy wolf for the duration of the cruise, followed by jumping his bones, seems the logical solution.
But when libidos are on the line, “logic” and “wolves” don’t go together. Throw in suspicions of wrongdoing, and these two virtual strangers will need a lot more than luck to find their way through to forever.

Warning: Really? You need to be warned about the hot nookie and sarcasm? Yeah, it’s in here. Also colourful cat shifters, lupine royalty, and wild adventures in cabins like you’ve never seen before.


The Review: 

I pre-ordered this one, but for a number of reasons I never got around to read it until now.   And I am glad I read it.

It was nice to re-visit the Granite Lake wolves, and get another insight into the world that Ms Arend has created.  Unlike the previous books, which took place in and around Haines (mostly), this book took place at a cruise ship.  Which has its problems.  I loved how the demands from the passengers and the unexpected problems affected Jared’s and Keri’s relationship.

At first glance, Keri and Jared felt like an odd couple but as the story went on, I started to see that they weren’t an odd couple. In fact, they match each other quite well.  I had a blast following them, from the bumpy start  to their HEA. 

One thing that I loved was the mix of romance and.  I especially liked how intergral the  mystery that was to the story.  ( Sometimes a mystery subplot feels tacked on to add length, but not this time.)  The search for the thief kept throwing wrenches into the relationship.  I loved how they thrusted each other, and worked out their problems. 

The only thing that I didn’t like was Jared’s secrets. Yes, I can understand the wish for him to live a quiet life, but  as his secrets was revealed, I couldn’t help wondering how the rest of the Granite Lake Pack will react when they finds out.

Arcs!

On By MikaelaIn Uncategorized

I rarely request ARCs, since I have so many books to read anyway. But thanks to a combination of several factors I have ARCs this month. And I thought I would blog about them.

First out is The Grass King’s Concubine by Kari Sperring.   I have been waiting for this book ever since I heard her read from it at Eurocon in 2010.  And I am savoring it, reading 50-100 pages a day.   ( And yes, I’ll review it. I want more books in this world, and she has hinted that hinges on this book.)

Next is Dragon Justice by Laura Anne Gilman.   This was a reward in the Miles to Go Kickstarter. And… I am still waiting for it. sigh. Hopefully it shows up tomorrow.

To compensate that I requested an ARC of Silver Mine by Vivian Arend.  I requested the Arc on a whim, not really expecting to get one. *g* So I was pleasantly surprised when a copy showed up in my e-mail account.

The result of this is that…I have requested more ARCs at Netgalley.   I can understand why  reviewers use Netgalley. The giddy feeling of reading an book early is very nice :).  I don’t plan on using Netgalley often, though.

Book recommendation: Silver Mine by Vivian Arend

On By MikaelaIn Book Recommendations, Paranormal Romance, reviews


 

Life in isolation is the safest place for Chase Johnson, a crossbreed who doesn’t know which form he’ll assume next—cougar or wolf. Once a year, his unelected position as spokesman for the Yukon outcasts forces him to visit civilization. This time he runs across someone unexpected. She’s not his mate, but she pushes all the right buttons.

It’s taken years for Shelley Bradley to gather the courage to return to her home pack. In spite of being the lowest of the low—a shifter who can’t shift—she’s determined to make a place for herself as the Whitehorse locals’ new vet-slash-doctor.

There’s definite electricity between her and Chase, but sex with fellow shifters and the inherent mind games got old a long time ago. Ignoring him seems best. When he shows up at her office with a wound that won’t heal, she’s stuck—yet drawn to solve this medical mystery.

As they journey deep into outcast territory in search of answers, their powerful sexual attraction crumbles her resistance. But time is of the essence. If a cure can’t be found before his human and cougar succumb to his injury, he—and others like him—will die.

I read the first one, and felt meh, but the blurb is intriguing and I liked the excerpt that Vivian Arend posted awhile ago. So I’ll buy it.