C+ Reviews

REVIEW: The Whip by Karen Kondazian

REVIEW: The Whip by Karen Kondazian

Dear Ms. Kondazian: One of the reasons I was excited to read The Whip is that I lived for quite a while in Santa Cruz County, where some of the novel is set. I was also intrigued by the idea of a fact-based story about Charley Parkhurst, a woman who not only lived for most(…)

REVIEW: The Players’ Club series by Cathy Yardley

REVIEW: The Players’ Club series by Cathy Yardley

This post reviews all three Players’ Club books, two of which are available now and one which is set to be released digitally on February 1, 2012. I will say that if you read one, you’ll have to read them all. Players’ Club: Scott The Players’ Club is an urban legend of men jetting around(…)

REVIEW: Sex, Lies & Surveillance by Stephanie Julian

REVIEW: Sex, Lies & Surveillance by Stephanie Julian

Dear Ms. Julian: I liked the blurb for this book.  The heroine is the daughter of famous CIA agents who have retired. Janey DeMarco works in the family agency that does everything from surveillance to retrieval of kidnapped victims.  Their agency’s services are wide ranging, almost too wide ranging in my opinion. I had a(…)

REVIEW: Shattered by Jennie Marsland

REVIEW: Shattered by Jennie Marsland

Dear Ms. Marsland, When deciding on a romance novel to read, if there is something out of the ordinary about it, I’m more likely to give it a second glance. It still might not make the cut but it has a better chance. Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1917 with WWI still raging, a heroine hoping(…)

REVIEW: Mad About the Earl by Christina Brooke

REVIEW: Mad About the Earl by Christina Brooke

Dear Ms. Brooke (aka Christine Wells): I didn’t pick up the first title in this series. I think I was put off by the concept of the Ministry of Marriage (although that’s probably why the series was bought by the publisher).  The Ministry of Marriage (and the fact that is has a name) is this(…)

REVIEW: From This Moment On by Bella Andre

REVIEW: From This Moment On by Bella Andre

Dear Ms. Andre, I purchased this book on a Kindle Daily Deal, I think. It’s regularly priced at $4.99 and while I felt that $4.99 was a bit too pricey for DA_January’s budget, I could spend two dollars and not hate myself in the morning for buying it. From This Moment On was extremely readable,(…)

REVIEW: Unraveled by Courtney Milan

REVIEW: Unraveled by Courtney Milan

Dear Ms. Milan: Thank you for sending me “Unraveled” for review. I have enjoyed (but been somewhat critical) of your past works but your novella, “Unlocked,” was one of my best reads of 2011. Smite’s book was hotly anticipated. Part of the problem I had with “Unraveled” was the result of my own expectations and(…)

REVIEW: How the Marquess Was Won by Julie Anne Long

REVIEW: How the Marquess Was Won by Julie Anne Long

Dear Ms. Long, I’ve been reading your books since I discovered Beauty and the Spy back in 2006. Beauty and the Spy is still on my keeper shelf, and three others of your books have since joined it: The Secret to Seduction, I Kissed an Earl, and What I Did for a Duke. What’s more,(…)

REVIEW: A Place Called Home by Jo Goodman

REVIEW: A Place Called Home by Jo Goodman

Dear Ms. Goodman: I am a huge fan of your work and there is rarely a book in your bibliography I haven’t responded favorably to.  I’ve even lamented about the fact that your work doesn’t seem to be getting the proper attention.  I am also a fan of the langourous fashion in which some of(…)

REVIEW: Steampunk! edited Kelly Link and Gavin Grant

REVIEW: Steampunk! edited Kelly Link and Gavin Grant

Dear Authors, Steampunk is that subgenre I want to love, that I think has so much potential. Unfortunately, we have a rocky relationship. I’ve attempted to read too many novels in which the steampunk trappings are superficial — put a pair of goggles on someone, mention an airship, and have someone drink some tea seem(…)

REVIEW: Wishes and Stitches by Rachel Herron

REVIEW: Wishes and Stitches by Rachel Herron

Dear Ms. Herron, A few years ago it seems quilting in romance books was all the rage. Now it appears that knitting has taken over. I’ve resisted reading any of these books since I’m not a knitter but in my quest to expand my single title contemporary repertoire, I decided to take the plunge with(…)

REVIEW: Trencarrow Secret by Anita Davison

REVIEW: Trencarrow Secret by Anita Davison

“Isabel Hart is afraid of two things, the maze at Trencarrow where she got lost as a young child, and the lake where her brother David saved her from drowning in a boating accident. With her twenty-first birthday and the announcement of her engagement imminent, Isabel decides it is time for her to face her(…)

REVIEW: Silent Blade and Silver Shark by Ilona Andrews

REVIEW: Silent Blade and Silver Shark by Ilona Andrews

Dear Ms. Andrews: Thank you for sending me a complimentary copy of this short story. Because it is short, I admit I don’t have much to say about it. When I was told that this book was connected to another short, “Silent Blade”, it made sense to read it and review it together. I had(…)

REVIEW: In Total Surrender by Anne Mallory

REVIEW: In Total Surrender by Anne Mallory

Dear Ms. Mallory, I have been anticipating the release of your novel, In Total Surrender, since I read about the Merrick brothers in your last effort, One Night Is Never Enough. There’s just something about a pair of intellectual thugs that gets my blood pumping. In Total Surrender is Andreas Merrick’s book. The one in(…)

REVIEW: Deadly Descent by Kaylea Cross

REVIEW: Deadly Descent by Kaylea Cross

Dear Ms. Cross: I enjoy romantic suspense but I like a good military romantic suspense primarily because other RS often rely upon serial killers for the suspense but the military setting or paramilitary setting is more action driven, less psychological.  I also like the camaraderie between the soldiers but rarely do we ever read about female soldiers.(…)