B- Reviews

REVIEW:  Obsidian Flame by Caris Roane

REVIEW: Obsidian Flame by Caris Roane

Dear Ms. Roane: I tell everyone I know about your books. I even shared the story of Parisia and Micah’s with some random taxi cab driver in Chicage because the tangerine craziness is something that I can’t keep to myself (although in searching the DA archives it appears that I have not reviewed this masterpiece.(…)

REVIEW:  The Girl in the Park by Mariah Fredericks

REVIEW: The Girl in the Park by Mariah Fredericks

Dear Ms. Fredericks, I was in the mood for something different when I ran across your novel. A reader can take only so many paranormal and dystopian YAs before she loses it. A YA mystery/thriller sounded right up my alley. Your novel delivered what I needed, along with something more. Rain was once best friends(…)

REVIEW:  A Kiss in the Wind by Jennifer Bray-Weber

REVIEW: A Kiss in the Wind by Jennifer Bray-Weber

Dear Ms. Bray-Weber, I can honestly say I’ve never read a book like your pirate romance A Kiss on the Wind. Not only is it the only pirate romance I’ve read, it’s the only historical romance I’ve read where the heroine isn’t a virgin and no reason is given for that. I’ve read plenty of historical(…)

REVIEW:  Bared to You by Sylvia Day

REVIEW: Bared to You by Sylvia Day

Dear Ms. Day: I requested this book from NetGalley after a prompt from KatiD.  She enjoyed it and noted that it was reminiscent of the infamous erotic romance that is sweeping the book reading world, Fifty Shades of Grey.  I have read your contemporary novella contributions to recent anthologies and really enjoyed them. I’ve often(…)

REVIEW: The Duke’s Perfect Wife by Jennifer Ashley

REVIEW: The Duke’s Perfect Wife by Jennifer Ashley

Dear Ms. Ashley The McKenzie family epitomizes the Byronic creed of being mad, bad and dangerous to know. The MacKenzie head of the family was a horrible man who beat his kids, sent his youngest son into an insane asylum, and ultimately killed his wife. Hart MacKenzie, the eldest, did all he could to protect(…)

REVIEW: Lover Reborn by J. R. Ward

REVIEW: Lover Reborn by J. R. Ward

Dear Ms. Ward: I haven’t read a book in this series since Book 5.  My interest waned as I felt the series moved farther away from the core romance base where the series was birthed.  I read the flyleaf of the hardcover when I received my complimentary copy and discovered that this was the love(…)

REVIEW:  Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom by Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin

REVIEW: Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom by Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin

Dear Ms. Masterson and Mr. Halpin: My interest in this book was piqued by an off hand remark but excited remark by The BookSmugglers. When it became available for review, I requested it. I’m a casual reader of Young Adult fiction books and my tastes run toward the YA romances more than issue books but(…)

REVIEW: Wedded in Scandal by Jade Lee

REVIEW: Wedded in Scandal by Jade Lee

Dear Ms. Lee, I fell head over heels in love with your hero in the very first few paragraphs of your novel, Wedded in Scandal. “Yer wants to go in there? But, er, why?” Robert Percy, Viscount Redhill, ignored the mine manager and began stripping off his coat and gloves. They were in the shack(…)

REVIEW: Ride with Me by Ruthie Knox

REVIEW: Ride with Me by Ruthie Knox

Dear Ms. Knox: I received a number of recommendations for this story and the recommenders were correct.  Ride with Me was right up my alley.  It was a well paced, contemporary featuring a non clingy heroine and a caretaker hero set on a bike ride across America.  The only downside was that Tom, in particular, came(…)

REVIEW: Casting Samson by Melinda Hammond

REVIEW: Casting Samson by Melinda Hammond

Finding your boyfriend in the shower with another woman isn’t high on Deborah Kemerton’s “best birthday presents ever” list. Her life in London shattered, she retreats to her sleepy hometown to heal her broken heart. There, she’s quickly swept up in planning a pageant to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the village church. Tasked with(…)

REVIEW: Gold Mountain by Sharon Cullars

REVIEW: Gold Mountain by Sharon Cullars

Dear Ms. Cullars, I can’t recall whose blog I was reading when this book was mentioned but I’m glad I found out about it. A Negro heroine and a Chinese hero in 1865? Sign me up. “In 1865, the hope for gold has spurred many to seek their fortunes in California, the place the Chinese(…)

REVIEW: Where There’s Smoke by L.A. Witt

REVIEW: Where There’s Smoke by L.A. Witt

Dear Ms. Witt. I really enjoyed the main characters in this book. I’m…ambivalent enough about the other characters and some of the plot that it affected my enjoyment of the book as a whole. Jesse is running for Governor of California. He has no experience whatsoever in pretty much anything. He comes from acting royalty(…)

REVIEW: The Shadow Reader by Sandy Williams

REVIEW: The Shadow Reader by Sandy Williams

Dear Ms. Williams: I admit I passed this book over when it first came across my desk. The cover, the story blurb all seemed a little twee to me. It’s largely about the fae and I’ve never really been interested in that fantasy world. Months later (the book was released at the end of October(…)

REVIEW: Time Out by Jill Shalvis

REVIEW: Time Out by Jill Shalvis

Dear Ms. Shalvis: I’ve read much of what you’ve written in the past five years. I’ve found quite a few of your contemporaries irresistible: Animal Attraction and The Sweetest Thing were two of my favorite reads in 2011. I’ve been less enthralled with your Harlequin Blaze books; they seem to me to be more formulaic than your(…)

REVIEW: Nightfire by Lisa Marie Rice

REVIEW: Nightfire by Lisa Marie Rice

Dear Ms. Rice: Sometimes authors and readers have some kind of strange sychronicity where everything that author writes hits all the buttons of the reader and everyone else on the outside looks on in befuddled wonderment.  Objectively I can see that there are things that don’t work very well in this book. There is the(…)