What I Read Last Week

Hey there!

Hope you all had a nice weekend.  Mine was...interesting. Let me explain.  My youngest joined a tumbling class at a dance studio about 6 months ago.  The studio is right next to her Taekwondo studio so it's convenient.  Anyway, never in a million years would I have imagined a tumbling class going to a dance competition but yet, there I was on Saturday doing dance make-up (OMG you should have seen me, I had no effin clue what I was doing!) and getting her to the comp in Pasadena.  They did really well and got 1st platinum in their category but what a day!  I was exhausted by the time we got home and just the thought of doing another one this next Saturday (which we have to do!) is making me shudder.  lol  Of course my little one loved it. :)  Here she is when we first got to the competition and then with one of her best friends with the trophy.  There are about 15 girls in the group and I wish I could have taken pictures and video but they didn't allow it and I was being good so I conformed. :)  Hopefully I'll be able to this next weekend.

I have no idea why this pic looks so distorted.  It doesn't look that way in my photo editor so IDK.  Whatever. lol

Yesterday was just a cleaning and recovery day with a nasty ass migraine.  I've still got it and am home today.  Staring at this screen isn't doing me any favors but I needed to get this done.  I also completely skimped on the post last week so I can't do that again! lol

On to what I read:

I started off the week with Tessa Dare's Any Duchess Will Do.  I absolutely loved this book.  It had a man agreeing to his mother's scheme to turn anyone he picks from Spindle Cove into a duchess - his duchess.  He doesn't want to get married so picks the serving girl, Pauline, from the Bull and Blossom. She only agrees to go with him for a week and only cuz he's paying her $1,000.00 pounds to screw up and thwart his mother's plans.  They didn't plan on falling in love.  The book was lovely and I'm truly loving this series.  I'll post my review for this one this week. 4.75 out of 5

My next read was a very short book called Claiming Lauren by Emily Ryan-Davis.  The book showed us a wife of 5 years who lived in the states while her hubby lived in Europe.  The marriage was in name only.  She had been having an internet relationship with a guy for 2 years and she was finally going to go meet him and get her BDSM on for the first time.  The hubby shows up after she gets home and suddenly wants a relationship.  There was more to the relationship with the hubby that I can't say without spoilers but the book was odd.  We never got any back story as to why the marriage was in name only - why the hubby had virtually ignored his wife for 5 years - how they came to be married in the first place.  The sex was well written but the lack of any depth to the story really turned me off of this one. 2 out of 5

Next up was The Temporary Wife by Jeannie Moon.  The story is about a couple who dies and leaves their daughter to the wife's best friend to keep her away from the wife's parents who weren't parents at all and are mean and vindictive.  The parent's try to get their granddaughter away from the best friend but their son steps in to help the best friend out - just temporarily.  The story was very cute and I enjoyed the book.  I'll post my review for this one this week as well. 3.5 out of 5

It Had To Be You by Jill Shalvis is the next book in the Lucky Harbor series and it was really good.  The story is about a girl who's down and out and is helped by a vacationing copy who is in Lucky Harbor for some quiet time.  He doesn't exactly get it. I'll post my review for this story next week.  4 out of 5

Next up was Remembering Love by Nadine Christian which is a story about a woman who finds out that her parents lived on a remote island and that her father killed her mother and then himself when she was 5.  The girl goes back to try and find answers and meets up with her childhood friend.  I really liked a lot about this story but there were some issues I had with it as well. 3.5 out of 5 (read for Book Binge)

Masks by Evangaline Anderson is the story about a girl who's twin asks her to take her place with a client cuz she hurt her ankle.  Chloe had no idea that her twin is a dominatrix and fails miserably at the job.  The "client" ends up taking over and Chloe has the best night of her life - until she finds out some truths about the client and her sister.  This was a very cute story and pretty hot as well.  Anderson always is good at the erotic, that's for sure.  3 out of 5

Last for the week was Knight Errant by KD Sarge.  This is a sci-fi/space opera about a 15/16 year old brother of a spaceship captain.  He is all about pleasing his sister but this means hiding the fact that he's gay as well as other things.  She wants him to go to college - he doesn't want to.  She wants him to be the captain of his own ship - he doesn't want to.  He tells her none of this...until he meets Rafe Ballard who is a joy-boy, and falls in love with him.  Taro has to come clean about a lot of things, but not before he and Rafe get into a boat load of trouble.  I've had this one for quite a while and for some reason never read it.  It was really good and I definitely recommend it. 4.5 out of 5

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
*crickets*

Happy Reading!

Saturday Song

This is the song of the week because this is the song that my youngest "danced" to in todays dance competition in Pasadena.  Thalia singing Mujer Latina.  Enjoy!

 

Who Forgets Their Blogiversary???

Apparently I do. *sigh*

Is it Blog-a or Blog-i?  I have no idea!

I can’t effin believe that I forgot my own blog anniversary. It was last month (4/16) and it wasn't a small one either. It’s been 5 freakin years! Holy shit how did all of that time go by? It seems like yesterday that I was talking to Christine about starting a blog and telling her I didn’t have a clue what to do. I was scared out of my mind to hit the “publish” button. lol Did I ever envision myself blogging for 5 years?  Never! :)

I have to say that after all of these years I still love blogging. I don’t blog as much personal stuff as I used to but I still enjoy writing the reviews because I love talking books with others book lovers - it’s a perfect outlet for me. 

Over the years I have met such wonderful people, bloggers, authors, publishers and I’ve even gotten to meet quite a few of them in person which is extra-awesome. Your support is what keeps me going so I just want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone out there who reads the blog – you’re the best! 

 

 Here's to another wonderful 5 years of books and blogging! :)

Review: Down London Road by Samantha Young

It has always been up to Johanna to care for her family, particularly her younger brother, Cole. With an absent father and a useless mother, she’s been making decisions based on what’s best for Cole for as long as she can remember. She even determines what men to date by how much they can provide for her brother and her, not on whatever sparks may—or may not—fly.

But with Cameron MacCabe, the attraction is undeniable. The sexy new bartender at work gives her butterflies every time she looks at him. And for once, Jo is tempted to put her needs first. Cam is just as obsessed with getting to know Jo, but her walls are too solid to let him get close enough to even try.

Then Cam moves into the flat below Jo’s, and their blistering connection becomes impossible to ignore. Especially since Cam is determined to uncover all of Jo’s secrets …even if it means taking apart her defenses piece by piece.

Johanna is the breadwinner in the family. She works hard for to keep her and her brother afloat and to make sure Cole, who is 14 years old, gets everything he needs to flourish and prosper. Unfortunately she also has to take care of her mother who is a drunk who lives with them. Jo does have two jobs but another way she keeps the veil of security over the family is by dating rich men. Her friends don’t like that she does this but she cares about the men she dates. No, she doesn’t love them, but for the security she’ll do what needs to be done. Malcolm is her current boyfriend. He is kind and generous and though he’s 14 years older than her it’s all ok.

When Malcolm takes her to an art showing for one of his friends – an ex-girlfriend – Jo meets Cam. Cam is hot, hot, hot, and so freakin judgmental about Jo it’s almost mind-boggling. He thinks he’s got her pegged and he’s not very nice to her at all – that doesn’t stop him from lusting after her. Jo knows who she is – even though she doesn’t show that person to everyone.

When Cam gets a job at the same bar that Jo works at sparks fly. Cam passes judgment and Jo seems to surprise him at every turn and prove him wrong. Then there’s the sexual tension that’s thick enough to cut with a knife. Both of them feel it but they both have significant others and aren’t touching each other. When Cam happens to move into the same building as Jo and her family things heat up in a million different ways and neither Jo nor Cam can deny their attraction any longer.

I have to say that this book was a huge surprise to me. It sounded good so I agreed to read and review it but hadn’t read the first book in the series so I was a little leery to dig into this one after I’d received it. I admit I put off reading for a bit and now am kicking myself. I actually pulled up the book on my ereader one night (at about 11pm) with the thought that I’d read the first couple of pages and then put it down. HA! I ended up staying up for another 2 hours and reading half the book because I couldn’t find a good place to put it down!

Jo was the one that immediately caught my attention and I could see her insecurities almost from the beginning. She was so embroiled in the past and the things that her parents said to her that she had herself believing she wasn’t worth anything. My heart went out to her and I just wanted to give her a great big hug. Then Cam happened along and the sexual tension in the story skyrocketed. I mean, it really hit the roof. Cam and Jo were explosive and they hadn’t even touched each other. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happened next.

Once Jo and Cam are together there are issues – as there are in any relationship. Yes, Jo’s insecurities played a huge part of that but Cam dealt with them well. There was once instance where I felt he was just an idiot but other than that I thought he was a man with a good head on his shoulders.

Ms. Young has written a wonderful love story here. I loved reading about Jo and Cam and frankly didn’t want their story to end. The book is also about family and friends – and what happens when those friends turn into your family. I loved almost every word of this book and can’t wait to read what Ms. Young will give us next.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Samantha Young

Review: Gone with the Wolf by Kristin Miller

CEO and alpha werewolf Drake Wilder has given up the search for his one true love. When he discovers that she’s a secretary in his company, Drake’s primal instincts kick into overdrive.

What he wouldn’t give to have her fingers rake over his body instead of the keyboard…

Free-spirited bartender Emelia Hudson wants nothing more than to make her Seattle-based bar succeed. But when profits decline, she slips into a dress suit and secures a nine-to-five. After learning that her bar has become property of Wilder Financial, Emelia is determined to get some answers.

Two can play the ruthless business game. If only her attraction to the boss wasn’t so intense…

When Drake’s twin brother senses that Drake has found his match—and now inherits their father’s billion dollar estate—he hatches a plan to take Emelia out. Drake vows to protect her at all costs, but he might have to pay with his own life.

Emelia Hudson wants to get back at a businessman who thinks he bought the building that her neighborhood bar is in – but she bought it 8 years ago so how can he now own it? She has tried calling his business and emailing but she’s gotten no response at all. She takes it upon herself to get close to the head guy, Russell Wilder, and earn some extra cash at the same time by getting a temp job in his corporation.

During a company Halloween party Emelia meets Drake. He’s handsome and amazing and she almost falls in love at first sight. She’s pretty shocked when her new position in the office is to be Russell Wilder’s new assistant. Little does she know that Drake and Russell are one in the same.

Drake is also bowled over by Emelia during their meet at the party but for him it’s because he has met his Luminary aka his mate. As Drake is a werewolf he knows that this doesn’t happen very often and he’s amazed – and scared. He finally comes to terms with Emelia being his but his twin brother has it out for both Drake and Emelia and he won’t stop until he’s taken everything from them.

Gone with the Wolf is the first book in the Seattle Wolf Pack series. For the first book we get to read about the Alpha – well he basically becomes Alpha during the book. He is a very powerful man and wolf and has been around for hundreds of years. This, however, didn’t do him any favors as he ended up being very old fashioned. I don’t think the author intended him to be but he was pretty overbearing and decisive when it came to Emelia’s life and I wanted to see him open up to her way before he actually did.

Emelia is a hard worker and is damned proud of every penny she’s ever earned as she knows it’s come with blood, sweat and tears. This, I think, is almost her weakness though. Her pride in what she’s accomplished is wonderful but she’s almost too proud in some instances and makes foolish and rash decisions throughout the book because of it. With Drake trying to make her decisions and Emelia fighting against them it was a big push and pull between the two of them. Unfortunately with them at odds with each other for most of the book I thought that the only thing carrying them a great deal of the time was their lust. I didn’t feel that deep connection to them nor did I feel they had it for each other. It did start to spark in my mind toward the end of the book but then things were wrapped so we didn’t get to see farther, which was a bummer.

Despite the issues I had with the story I was intrigued by the concept of this wolf pack and will look into reading more of the series when it releases.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Kristin Miller

What I Read Last Week

Hey there!

Happy Belated Mother’s Day to all the mother’s out there that read this blog!

I had a good day in that I did almost nothing. lol I helped my youngest with her class project, read and was a general laze-a-bout. It was 105 yesterday and our air conditioner’s in the process of getting fixed right now so even moving around the house was, in general, enough to make you pass out from heat exhaustion. Hopefully it will be fixed by tomorrow – right in time for it to be ONLY 80! lol

I’m really stuck for time this week so I’m giving you the basics – sorry!!!! I promise I’ll be better next week! 

1 – The Brazen Amazon by Sandy James – review here 4 out of 5 

2 – His Bonnie Bride by Hannah Howell – 4 out of 5 

3 – Gone with the Wolf by Kristin Miller – 3 out of 5 – will post my review this week 

4 – Dear Lucy by Julie Sarkissian – 3 out of 5 – review here on Goodreads 

5 – Down London Road by Samantha Young – 5 out of 5 – will post my review of this one this week 

6 – The Hot Girl’s Friend by Lisa Scott – 4 out of 5 (short) 

7 – An English Bride in Scotland by Lynsay Sands – 4 out of 5 

8 – Dragon Mine by Jaime Rush – 3 out of 5 

9 – Flirts! 5 Romantic Short Stories by Lisa Scott – 4 out of 5 

10 – From the Ashes by Daisy Harris – 4 out of 5

 









My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
True by Erin McCarthy
Game On by Tracy Solheim
Love Irresistibly by Julie James

Happy Reading!!!

Saturday Song

How long has it been since you've heard The Black Crowes???  I'm gonna bet a darned long time.  Yeah, me too.  When I heard Hard to Handle playing in not one store this week but 3 I knew it was the one to play for my Saturday Song.  Enjoy!