A- Reviews

REVIEW:  Against the Tide by Elizabeth Camden

REVIEW: Against the Tide by Elizabeth Camden

Dear Ms. Camden, I’m always on the hunt for new and different in romance, and when it comes in the form of an inspirational historical suspense story centering on the opium trade in late 19th-century Boston – with a gorgeous cover as a bonus – I am helpless to resist. As a child, Lydia Pallas(…)

REVIEW:  The Seduction Hypothesis by Delphine Dryden

REVIEW: The Seduction Hypothesis by Delphine Dryden

Dear Ms. Dryden: The Seduction Hypothesis is the sweetest book I’ve ever read involving stainless steel butt plugs and a spreader bar with a set of neoprene ankle cuffs. The hero Ben is just adorable. A few months ago he stupidly broke up with his now ex-girlfriend Lindsay because he’d panicked, an act he’s regretted since(…)

REVIEW:  The Definitive Albert J. Sterne by Julie Bozza

REVIEW: The Definitive Albert J. Sterne by Julie Bozza

Blurb: Albert Sterne, forensics expert with the FBI, is so obnoxious on the surface that no-one bothers digging deeper. When he’s sent to Colorado to investigate what turns out to be the work of a serial killer he encounters Special Agent Fletcher Ash and they end up reluctantly joining forces to unravel the case. It’s(…)

REVIEW:  Love Irresistibly by Julie James

REVIEW: Love Irresistibly by Julie James

  He’s used to getting what he wants A former football star and one of Chicago’s top prosecutors, Assistant U.S. Attorney Cade Morgan will do anything to nail a corrupt state senator, which means he needs Brooke Parker’s help. As general counsel for a restaurant company, she can get a bug to the senator’s table(…)

REVIEW:  Real by Katy Evans

REVIEW: Real by Katy Evans

Dear Ms. Evans: When Jane contacted me and said that there was a new book coming out with an underground fighter hero, I immediately requested the book. I love fighters, and the high stakes physicality of them. Your new book, Real, features Remington Tate, a disgraced boxer, who now is fighting on the Underground circuit,(…)

REVIEW:  Take What You Want by Jeanette Grey

REVIEW: Take What You Want by Jeanette Grey

Dear Ms. Grey: Wow, do I like this book. Which surprises me because, prior to reading Take What You Want, your New Adult romance, I’d yet to encounter a NA that did much for me. I had thought I was either too old and cranky and/or too surrounded by actual New Adults to enjoy tales(…)

REVIEW:  Shadows and Strongholds by Elizabeth Chadwick

REVIEW: Shadows and Strongholds by Elizabeth Chadwick

  “Ten-year-old Brunin FitzWarin is an awkward misfit in his own family. As an act of encouragement, his father sends him to be fostered as a knight in the household of Joscelin, Lord of Ludlow. Here he meets the lord’s youngest daughter, Hawise, and a strong friendship is formed. When Brunin aids his lord in(…)

REVIEW:  Going Under (A Bound by Magick Novel) by Lauren Dane

REVIEW: Going Under (A Bound by Magick Novel) by Lauren Dane

Dear Ms. Dane: Your Bound by Magick series is my favorite of your paranormal series. Clan Owen, one of the largest and oldest covens of witches in the United States is recovering from the horror of the Magister, a superpowered enemy that annihilated much of witch-kind, but was beaten back at the end of the(…)

REVIEW:  The Typewriter Girl by Alison Atlee

REVIEW: The Typewriter Girl by Alison Atlee

Dear Ms. Atlee: Janine actually turned me on to this, your debut novel. I now owe her a big present, because I hate to think that this story would otherwise have escaped my attention. The book is marketed as historical fiction rather than romance, but I will go out on a limb and say that(…)

REVIEW:  The Chocolate Kiss by Laura Florand

REVIEW: The Chocolate Kiss by Laura Florand

Dear Ms. Florand: I have been eagerly awaiting the next installment in your Chocolate series, and I’m delighted to say that it was worth the wait. You are writing my favorite type of series: all the books are set in the same world, but while the characters from past books make an appearance, they don’t(…)

REVIEW: A Kiss for Midwinter by Courtney Milan

REVIEW: A Kiss for Midwinter by Courtney Milan

Dear Ms. Milan, I hope you are having a lovely holiday season. This year, as in 2011, you enriched my December by releasing a stellar Christmas tale. A Kiss for Midwinter is not quite as brilliant as This Wicked Gift (mentioned here in my list of favorite holiday stories) but it’s still wonderful. Thank you. The heroine of your novella, Miss Lydia(…)

REVIEW:  Motorcycle Man by Kristen Ashley

REVIEW: Motorcycle Man by Kristen Ashley

Dear Ms. Ashley: You were easily my biggest discovery this year, and probably my favorite. Sure, I gnash my teeth and moan about the editing and the weird writing ticks that you have, but I read your books over and over and I pimp them relentlessly on Twitter. So, as I started to come up(…)

REVIEW:  A Galactic Holiday Anthology by Stacy Gail, Sasha Summers, and Anna Hackett

REVIEW: A Galactic Holiday Anthology by Stacy Gail, Sasha Summers, and Anna Hackett

When looking around at the holiday offerings this year, I saw this anthology from Carina Press. It was a complete stab in the dark for me as I knew nothing about any of the authors and SF/futuristic usually isn’t my thing. Perhaps having no expectations allowed me to just read in the moment but I(…)

REVIEW:  Lean on Me by HelenKay Dimon

REVIEW: Lean on Me by HelenKay Dimon

Dear HelenKay Dimon: Your Harlequin Intrigue books are autobuys for me, so when I saw that you had a straight contemporary romance coming out I snagged it right away without paying attention to what it was about. When I discovered one of the main characters was a professional climber, I was even happier, especially when(…)

REVIEW:  Knaves’ Wager by Loretta Chase

REVIEW: Knaves’ Wager by Loretta Chase

Dear Ms. Chase, I’m sure you are familiar with Choderlos de Laclos’ 18th century epistolary novel, Les Liaisons dangereuses. It has been adapted to stage and screen, and the cinematic versions include Dangerous Liaisons, Valmont, and Cruel Intentions, among others. In Les Liaisons dangereuses, the corrupt Vicomte de Valmont wants to seduce the married Madame(…)