Tag: ebook giveaway

Review: Late Last Night by Lilian Darcy + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> Book Giveaway> book reviews> ebook giveaway> Giveaways
late last night by lilian darcyFormat read: ebook provided by the publisher
Formats available: ebook
Genre: Contemporary romance, Western romance
Series: River Bend #0.5
Length: 112 pages
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Date Released: January 9, 2014
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon

It’s May 1996 and Marietta High School English teacher Kate MacCreadie is almost at the end of her rope, torn between the demands of her work and her heavy involvement in helping her younger brother Rob and his wife Melinda take care of their five young children on the MacCreadie family ranch.

When Marietta’s fine-looking new sheriff, Harrison Pearce, pulls Kate over for her third traffic violation in as many months, they both know it’s a sign that something has to give.

Kate finds it almost a relief to be told by this calm, strong man to get her life in order, and then she just keeps on seeing him – at school after there’s been a suspicious break-in, on the evening of the prom when he’s off duty and driving his nephew and friends to the event in one of his brother’s gorgeous vintage cars.

Late that night, after prom is over, a tragedy at River Bend Park brings Kate and Harrison together yet again, and this time, in the highly charged atmosphere, Kate discovers that she never wants to let him go. But with his divorce still fresh, is Harrison ready for someone new?

My Review:

Late Last Night is the short romantic tale that links the more western-themed Copper Mountain Rodeo series to the author’s new River Bend series. Based on this intro, the River Bend series starts out with more of a small-town romance flavor.

Both series take place in and around Marietta, Montana, which always seems like a town that would be terrific to visit. And while it is not necessary to have read the Copper Mountain Rodeo books to enjoy Late Last Night, the series is great if you enjoy western-themed romance.

This story takes place in 1996, so it’s a bit of a trip back in time for some of the characters that we’ve met in the other series.

Kate MacCreadie is trying to both help her brother take care of his five kids and keep up her full-time job at Marietta High School. It’s not that her brother Rob isn’t willing or able to take care of his kids, or that there isn’t a Mrs. MacCreadie, because he is, and there is.

rodeo sweethearts by lilian darcyBut Rob is running the family ranch, and Melinda MacCreadie is something beyond scatterbrained. (Their complete story is revealed in Rodeo Sweethearts). But in 1996, Kate doesn’t know why Melinda isn’t any help, all Kate knows is that as long as she continues to be nearly a full-time caregiver at her brother’s house AND have a full-time job, she’s going to either start hating someone, or she’s going to kill somebody.

Literally kill somebody, because the new sheriff keeps having to pull her over for a series of driving offenses. Kate speeds. And she misses stop signs. And her taillight is out. Mostly she just drives too fast because she’s in too much of a hurry and not paying attention.

She also likes running into Sheriff Harrison Pierce, she just wishes it wasn’t quite so embarrassing for her when it keeps happening in his line of duty. Kate isn’t aware that Harrison keeps pulling her over because he isn’t quite in a position to ask her out.

Not until his divorce is final.

Harrison tells Kate that she needs to get her life in order before someone dies as a result of her racing thoughts. When he figures out that he’s giving Kate advice he needs to take himself, the steps they each take to move forward with their lives lead them straight to each other.

Escape Rating B+: Late Last Night has a lot going for it. The love story has just the right amount of sexual tension, and it makes sense that the characters are cautious in the circumstances. Unlike a lot of very short novellas, this one is just the right length, it starts at a turning point for Kate, and comes to an ending that feels right for the characters without feeling rushed. Finally, although this story is a setup for the River Bend series, the need to get things setup doesn’t overwhelm the story that needs to be told in this book.

love me cowboy copper mountain rodeoWhile it isn’t necessary to have read the entire Copper Mountain Rodeo series (Tempt Me, Cowboy, Marry Me, Cowboy, Promise Me, Cowboy and Take Me, Cowboy), if you like western romances you’ll enjoy them a lot. I definitely did. But reading Rodeo Sweethearts absolutely helps flesh out Kate’s background, and it’s short, sweet and free.

In Late Last Night, we find out more about how Kate feels than we do about Harrison, at least partly because she’s in the bigger pickle at the beginning. She wants to help her brother, but she needs to have a life. And Rob desperately needs the help, so Kate leaving is going to cause a lot of disruption.

Harrison, on the other hand, his divorce has been coming for a long time. And he recognizes his part in what went wrong. It feels like he’s closer to who he needs to be from the beginning, but it takes quite a leap of faith for him to put his heart on the line. Again.

The ending of the story is tragic, suspenseful and sets up the River Bend series. There’s something seriously wrong in Marietta, and I want to see if Harrison is part of solving it.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Lilian and Tule Publishing are giving away an ebook copy of Late Last Night to one lucky winner! To enter the giveaway, just fill out the rafflecopter. This giveaway is open to all!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

The Sunday Post AKA What’s On My (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 1-19-14

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Book Giveaway> ebook giveaway> Giveaways> The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

Sunday Post

We live in Seattle…and the Seahawks are in the NFC Championship game this afternoon. I had this brilliant idea to watch the football game today, but there’s a funny stumbling block.

Seattle Seahawks logoWe don’t have cable. We don’t watch enough TV while it’s being broadcast to justify it. We stream everything, but next day or later. I think we use the Amazon Prime subscription mostly for the cheaper streaming.

Galen is still trying to figure out whether we can watch the game live without paying for the view. So to speak. So maybe we’ll watch the game. Or maybe I’ll just read!

Current Giveaways:

Steal Me, Cowboy by Kim Boykin; ebook copy
Tourwide Giveaway: $50 Gift Card from winner’s choice of etailer and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers gift basket from Crista McHugh
Tourwide Giveaway: $50 Gift Card or Spectra Nova necklace, winner’s choice courtesy of Cindy Spencer Pape

After the Golden Age by Carrie VaughnBlog Recap:

B Review: Steal Me, Cowboy by Kim Boykin + Giveaway
B+ Review: Ashes & Alchemy by Cindy Spencer Pape
Guest Post by Author Cindy Spencer Pape on Escapist Fiction + Giveaway
B Review: The Sweetest Seduction by Crista McHugh + Giveaway
B+ Review: Gossamer Wing by Delphine Dryden
A+ Review: After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn
Stacking the Shelves (74)

forward to camelot by susan sloateComing Next Week:

Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone (review)
Forward to Camelot by Susan Sloate with Kevin Finn (blog tour review)
Late Last Night by Lilian Darcy (blog tour review + giveaway)
Deeper by Robin York (review)
Chenoire by Susannah Sandlin (blog tour review + giveaway)

Review: Steal Me Cowboy by Kim Boykin + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> Book Giveaway> book reviews> Giveaways
steal me cowboy by kim boykinFormat read: ebook provided by the publisher
Formats available: ebook
Genre: western romance, contemporary romance
Series: Copper Mountain Rodeo
Length: 102 pages
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Date Released: December 29, 2013
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon

Unbeknownst to her boyfriend, Sassy South Carolina hairstylist, Rainey Brown, is headed to Missoula, dead set on giving her minor league baseball player boyfriend of four years an ultimatum. Either put a ring on it or let her go, preferably not the latter.

When Rainey’s piece of crap car dies in the middle of Nowhere, Montana, she’s sure she’s a gonner, until gorgeous restaurateur Beck Hartnett stops to help. Beck falls hard for Rainey, and knows she would admit she’s fallen for him too, if she wasn’t too stubborn to admit it. Beck has five days before the car is repaired to steal Rainey away from a boyfriend who doesn’t deserve her. Five days before she’s gone for good.

My Review:

You can’t buy experience, but you can buy “the experience” at the Nell’s Cut ‘n Curl after Rainey Brown gets stranded in Marietta Montana.

It just takes Rainey a while to figure out that the experience she’s earning is worth even more than the experience she’s helping Nell to sell to the tourists. No matter how much money they’re putting in the karma jar.

Rainey Brown has been true to her minor league baseball playing boyfriend, Adam, for four long and lonely years while Adam has been chasing his dream of the major leagues. She hoped that one day Adam would either make it to the bigs or retire to coaching, and they would be together for good.

Instead, he took up coaching 2,000 miles from their home base in Columbia, South Carolina, and didn’t ask her to come to Missoula, Montana to be with him. He said he wanted her to “visit”. She had finally had enough. But not quite.

She packed up her suitcases and her professional cosmetic and hair dressing boxes into her beat up Honda Civic and set out for Montana. It helped that the salon she worked for had closed and left her unemployed. But still, it was the principle of the thing. It was time for them to be together.

Then her car gave a death rattle outside Marietta. Fate had other plans. Because Rainey was rescued by a cowboy. Sort of a cowboy. Certainly a man who thought that whoever put Rainey into the position of driving across country in that beat-up rat trap should be shot. Or at least horse-whipped.

Beck Hartnett set out to steal Rainey from whoever the jerk was that brought her out to Montana. He started out by alternately being a jerk himself, being marvelously sweet and helpful and pushing too fast past her boundaries.

All he really needed to do was let Nell, and Marietta, work their magic.

And let Rainey figure out what she really wanted all along.

Escape Rating B: Steal Me, Cowboy was surprisingly sweet, with just enough tart to make the perfect romantic treat. It’s also not quite as western-themed as the earlier entries in the Copper Mountain Rodeo series, this one is much more small-town romance than western.

Rainey starts out the story already conflicted about Adam. She’s kept the faith throughout their four-year relationship, and she trusts him, but she’s starting to realize that she gives a lot more than she gets. She’s always available whenever he wants, but he’s not there for her in any way. She’s ready to move on, but he won’t stick around long enough for her to even have a conversation about where they are headed, if anywhere.

Beck’s in an interesting position. He falls for Rainey the minute he sees her, and can’t figure out what to do about it. He keeps trying to do the right thing, but can’t quite figure out what the right thing exactly is. He owns the best restaurant in Marietta, he has more than enough money to fix Rainey’s car and send her on her way, but she’s too proud to take his money (and so she should be) and he wants her to stay in Marietta. Also, the more he observes her phone calls with Adam, the more certain he is that her relationship with Adam is a bad idea.

He’s right, but the breakup has to be clean, and that’s not exactly what he has in mind. What Beck has in mind is very, very dirty. An awful lot of fun, but very dirty. To be fair, Beck starts thinking about forever with Rainey pretty darn fast, and that seems to be more than Adam has ever thought about.

Still, Rainey has to get there on her own.

The character who steals the story is Nell, the owner of the Marietta Cut ‘n Curl. Nell has been “fixing” hair forever, and is still wearing a uniform and charging 1960s prices to “her people”. But she’s a friend and a second mother and a mentor to Rainey just when she needs one, and is just a totally awesome lady. Rainey asks Nell for a place to work, but what she gets is a refuge. And together, those ladies are something very special.

~~~~~~ GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Kim and her publisher, Tule Publishing, are giving away one ebook copy of Steal Me, Cowboy to one lucky winner. To enter the giveaway, just fill out the rafflecopter below. This giveaway is open to all!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: The Sweetest Thing by Cathy Woodman + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews> ebook giveaway> Giveaways
The Sweetest Thing by Cathy WoodmanFormat read: ebook provided by the author
Formats available: paperback, ebook, large print, audiobook
Genre: contemporary romance, women’s fiction
Series: Talyton St. George #3
Length: 400 pages
Publisher: Cornerstone (Random House UK)
Date Released: April 28, 2011
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, iBookstore

If only everything in life was as simple as baking a cake…Jennie Copeland thought she knew the recipe for a happy life: marriage to her university sweetheart, a nice house in the suburbs and three beautiful children. But when her husband leaves her, she is forced to find a different recipe. And she thinks she’s found just what she needs: a ramshackle house on the outskirts of the beautiful Talyton St George, a new cake-baking business, a dog, a horse, chickens…But life in the country is not quite as idyllic as she’d hoped, and Jennie can’t help wondering whether neighbouring farmer Guy Barnes was right when he told her she wouldn’t last the year. Or perhaps the problem is that she’s missing one vital ingredient to make her new life a success. Could Guy be the person to provide it?

My Review:

There’s just something about this book that draws you right in. Or at least it did me. I was hooked on Jennie’s story from the very first page.

This isn’t a story of high drama or rich billionaires, it’s a quiet story about people taking the courage to pick up their dreams and start over. Everyone in this tale is starting over and finding a new path in life; all the kids and all the adults.

That turns out to include Jennie Copeland’s ex-husband David, who spends most of this story in the throes of what looks a selfish midlife crisis.

You could say it’s Jennie’s and David’s divorce that starts this story. But really, it’s Jennie’s dream of being independent, combined with rose-tinted memories of childhood holidays in Devon that lead to her purchase of Uphill House.

“Uphill” is the right name for the place, because the road to Jennie’s happiness is definitely going to be an uphill climb.

The house is definitely a “fixer-upper”. Jennie needs to economize, because her settlement will only go but so far. Living in the country will be much cheaper than living in London, or so she hopes.

But it will also be away from the support network that she has come to rely on, and far from the routine that her three children are used to. Adam, Sophie and Georgia feel uprooted and lost. It may be Jennie’s dream to start a cake baking business in the country, but it isn’t theirs.

So Jennie comes to Talyton St. George to start over. It takes a lot of guts and a huge amount of determination. Jennie seems to have a pair of rose-colored glasses firmly fixed in place; no one seems to think she has a real chance, not her new neighbors in the country, not her old friends in the city, not her kids, and certainly not her ex. But then, that was part of the point of the thing at the beginning.

But never the entire point. This is really about Jennie’s ability to persevere no matter how many roadblocks she faces, or how many times she discovers that her rosy vision doesn’t match the reality.

Rooting for Jennie to not just succeed, but to also get her happy ending, makes Jennie’s story a very sweet read.

Escape Rating B+: The Talyton St. George series is mostly about the veterinarians in the small Devon community, but in The Sweetest Thing, the vets only showed up to treat the various animals that Jennie and her children acquired along the way to adapting to their new life.

Which made this book a perfect way to get into the series without having read any of the other books, no prior knowledge was required.

In The Sweetest Thing, we have the story of a 40-ish newly divorced woman starting over with three kids; a resentful teenaged boy, and two girls, one a pre-teen and the other in elementary school. Adam, Georgia and Sophie.

The breakup is still painful for everyone, and they are all still acting out to some extent, including Jennie. Moving from London to the Devon countryside if you are London born-and-bred definitely counts as acting-out.

The divorce was over the husband’s repeated infidelity, except this time he wants to marry his inamorata. Jennie was a stay-at-home mother, so starting a new life in London would have been expensive. She has the vision and the talent to start a baking business on a shoestring, but practicality, not so much.

We see her grow from all of her trial and error, in every possible direction. But we also see that as she becomes more absorbed in making a go of her new business, there is less time for her to listen to her kids’ need to make the adjustment. The girls have an easier time of it, not just because they are younger, but because they find activities in the country that work for them.

Adam is cut off from his old friends and resentful. At sixteen, he’s also just being a teenager, but he is definitely lost in this new place.

Adam withers while Jennie blossoms with all her new challenges. Even while she finds herself frustrated and scared and exhausted.

Watching the family navigate their surprising journey is fun and absorbing. There is also a love story, but Jennie finding love is the icing on the cake for her, rather than the whole cake. Love is wonderful, but not the solution to her problems or a rescue from her difficulties.

It’s also sweet that the new love of Jennie’s life needs her to sweep the cobwebs out of his life every bit as much as she needs his help with some of the unexpected challenges in hers.

TLC
This post is part of a TLC book tour. Click on the logo for more reviews.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Country Loving by Cathy WoodmanCathy is giving away the winner’s choice of a copy of either The Sweetest Thing or Country Loving by Cathy (check out other stops on the tour for reviews of Country Loving). To enter, use the Rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: Christmas at Copper Mountain by Jane Porter + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews> ebook giveaway> Giveaways
christmas at copper mountain by jane porterFormat read: ebook provided by the publisher
Formats available: ebook
Genre: Holiday Romance; Western Romance
Series: Copper Mountain Christmas
Length: 119 pages
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Date Released: November 29, 2013
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon

Since the loss of her family in a plane crash, Harley Diekerhoff has led a quiet life and keeps to herself. Taking the temporary job at the Copper Mountain Ranch as widower Brock Sheenan’s housekeeper seems perfect for her. But her calm cocoon is invaded with the arrival of Brock’s pre-teen twins, Mack and Molly who’ve never experienced a proper Christmas and before she knows it, Harley’s determined to make their holiday perfect.

Annoyed at first by Harley’s interference, Brock is secretly pleased she’s changed Mack and Molly’s world. It doesn’t hurt that he finds Harley incredibly attractive, fierce, smart and passionate. It’s also an added bonus that she’s not afraid to challenge him and get his blood heated! But when sparks fly and the attractions sizzles between them, Harley’s not so sure she can handle something permanent with this dark, taciturn cowboy who doesn’t know how to let her in. But Brock is determined to hold on to her and praying for a Christmas miracle…

My Review:

Christmas at Copper Mountain would make the perfect Hallmark Holiday Special. It has just that perfect blend of heartwarming family togetherness and holiday miracle sparkle, with a sweet love story as the star on top of the tree.

There’s even a “Grinch” in this holiday tale. Certainly Brock Shennan has lost track of the meaning of Christmas in the decade since his young wife died and left him with 6 month old twins to raise alone. Now Mack and Molly are 11 and while he loves them unconditionally and puts them first in his life, it’s become a hard, cold life without a lot of fun, spontaneity or open affection.

The children see a lot more chores from their dad than they do hugs.

As far as holiday decorations go, well, Brock says they aren’t worth the bother or the expense. (If you are hearing the echo of “Bah, humbug”, it’s intended.) Brock isn’t quite that bad, but the kids are 11. They need a little joy in their lives.

Brock is not a bad father. He’s strict but generally fair. The problem is that he’s walled off all of his emotions, and left the kids on the other side of that wall. They don’t remember their mother, she died when they were infants. Their father treats them like little adults, but they are still kids.

Mack and Molly are looking for someone to let them be kids. They’re looking for someone to love them. They need someone to lighten their father’s heart. And they need someone to care about what they think about how they feel enough to ask them instead of thinking for them. Yes, they are still kids, but at 11, they are definitely starting to have hopes and dreams and feelings that should at least get a listen.

Into all of this walks Harley Deikerhoff. The job of temporary cook and housekeeper at the Copper Mountain Ranch is supposed to be very temporary. Harley was only supposed to be in Marietta, Montana for six weeks, just long enough for the regular cook/housekeeper to get some time off, and for Harley to get away from her well-meaning but smothering family.

The job was supposed to be housekeeping for the owner of the ranch and cooking for the men in the bunkhouse. Nothing was said about children. If she’d been informed about the children, she wouldn’t have taken the job.

The children arrived in the middle of the night two weeks into the job, after they ran away from boarding school in New York and brought themselves home. It was a crazy thing to do. Crazy for them, crazy for Harley, and crazy for Brock.

Because the kids upset all the boundaries. Mack and Molly’s presence forced Harley to deal with why she didn’t want to be around kids at the holidays; something she had been avoiding for three long and painful years.

Watching Brock deal (and sometimes not deal) with his children made Harley step over the line between employee and employer and start telling Brock what she thought his children needed from him, whether he wanted to hear it or not.

And the more they argued about Mack and Molly, the more that Brock and Harley came to see that what they were really talking around was how they might feel about each other; if they gave it a chance.

Escape Rating B: This story contains lots of relationships that get their happy ever after for this Christmas; Mack and Molly and Brock, Mack and Molly and Harley, Brock and Harley, and possibly even Brock and Harley and the universe.

This one ties every possible broken heart back together with a big Christmas bow and sprinkles tinsel on it. Possibly with heavenly intervention (your mileage may vary on that last bit).

Still, this story has a sleigh full of holiday spirit. The best part of the story for me was the development of the relationship between Harley and Mack and Molly. She really does fall in love with the kids first, and the blossoming of that relationship is the one that opens her heart to the possibility that she might be ready to love again.

I wish she hadn’t lectured Brock on being a “friend” to his kids. He can be their parent and still have fun with them, and does he ever need to figure that one out! They can have a trusting and loving relationship while he is their parent. (I’m saying this because I just finished a book where part of the problem was a dad who wanted to be his daughters’ friend and completely forgot about being their parent). I may have a book hangover about this one.

The romantic angle of this story got a bit shorted in the overall holiday tale. It was mostly sweet with a bit of heat, but the majority of the story felt like it was about Harley waking up from her stupor and putting more life into the Copper Mountain Ranch as well as falling for the family.

Falling for Brock (and him finally admitting that he had fallen for her) felt like the icing on the cake!

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Jane is giving away an ebook copy of Christmas at Copper Mountain to one lucky commenter. To enter, use the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: Sail Away With Me by Kate Devaux + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews> Giveaways
Sail Away With Me by Kate DeveauxFormat read: ebook provided by the author
Formats available: ebook
Genre: Contemporary romance
Length: 204 pages
Publisher: Red Sage
Date Released: November 30, 2013
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Jody Carter, recently divorced single mom lives in the quaint seaside town with her twelve year old son, and her recently widowed father. After Jody’s divorce from her college sweetheart, Ryan, she and her three best girl friends decide she needs to lighten up. Along with her friends, Lauren, the glamorous ex model divorcee, Cricket the worry wart, and Doreen, who is more comfortable in gumboots than high heels, Jody books a girl’s holiday aboard the Pearl of the Sea for a week of fun in the sun on a Caribbean cruise.

But before the four friends ever set foot aboard the cruise ship, Jody’s shoe gets stuck in the ship’s gangway and a hunky celebrity saves it from falling to the depths of the sea. Jody can feel the sparks between them but she has sworn off men after her divorce from Ryan.

The hunky man and shoe rescuer is Taggart Keith, a celebrity and best selling author of self help books. He falls for Jody the moment he meets her. He’s a man used to getting what he wants and pursues Jody. Despite her undeniable attraction to Taggart, the last thing Jody needs is to complicate her life in just seven short days, but that’s exactly what happens when she falls for the dashing Taggart Keith. She worries that his jet set lifestyle won’t mix with her small town single mom life once the cruise is over and the fact she has no room in her life for a man and especially a man who dreams big like Taggart. She’s had enough of dreamers with her ex husband Ryan.

The cruise becomes more than they both bargained for when their attraction sizzles. Is it full steam ahead for Taggart and Jody?

My Review:

When rich, successful and sinfully handsome author Taggart Keith rescues Jody Carter from an epic shoe disaster in the opening scene of Sail Away With Me, it sets both the reader and Jody, up for a delicious (not to mention absolutely blistering hot) shipboard romance with Taggart cast as the Prince Charming and Jody playing Cinderella.

Except that soccer-mom Jody isn’t just a soccer-mom, and Taggart is both more and less than a Prince, no matter how charming he might be.

Jody may have only managed to afford the Caribbean cruise because one of her friends won the trip-for-four as a prize package, but she’s not poor, and she’s certainly not downtrodden. Also she’s not waiting for a man to rescue her. Jody is divorced and the mother of a pre-teen son. She is also a well-known artist in her native northern California. While she’s not wealthy in material goods, she has great friends and the love of her family. Her life is good.

Her ex-husband wasn’t a bad guy. He just wasn’t the right guy. He’s a dreamer who kept over-investing in terrible business ideas, and bailing him out repeatedly caused Jody to put off her dreams of being an artist too many times. Financial incompatibility eventually crushed their marriage. There’s no villain here, just two people who didn’t work out.

But Jody has responsibilities at home. Her son. Her artistic career. Her widowed father who lives in the cottage on her property. She has a real life, and one that doesn’t include a lot of free time, a lot of luxuries, or a lot of time to indulge herself.

It doesn’t help that the sexual side of her marriage ended way before the marriage did. So when Taggart Keith pours on the charm, Jody wakes up to being a desirable woman again for the first time in a long time.

But Taggart is attracted to more than just Jody’s looks. Because the self-help guru, and that’s what Taggart is, finds Jody to be someone genuine and honest in a life that has felt increasing fake. He may have started by chasing another pretty face and body, but he sticks around because of the things that make Jody tick. Her strengths combined with her vulnerability.

They both start out believing that what they have is a shipboard romance, but by the end of the cruise, realize that they have laid their hearts on the line. That’s where the fairytale ends and the truth begins.

Because of course this isn’t a Cinderella tale after all. Not because the clock strikes midnight and Cinderella has to go back home, but because it turns out that Taggart is not Prince Charming.

It’s a good thing that Jody doesn’t need rescuing, because Taggart Keith isn’t capable of rescuing anyone. He can’t even figure out how to rescue himself.

Escape Rating B: It almost feels like there are two separate stories packed into this one romance, even though they are both about the same couple. One story is the sparkling and witty erotic shipboard romance between charming Taggart and temporarily footloose Jody. This is a temporary fling between two people who are mostly living a fantasy away from their everyday lives for the length of the cruise.

We think that Jody is the only one who is getting the chance to spend a few days away from her regular life and routine, but we find out after the ship returns to dock that Taggart had as many, possibly more reasons than Jody to want a few days respite from the real world.

Jody has a life worth returning to. She may not be wealthy like Taggart, but her world is filled with family and friends who love and respect her. She is living her dream of painting, and her work is selling. Even though there are a few bumps in her road, she likes her life.

Taggart’s real life is the one with the problems. Money definitely does not buy happiness. So even though Jody misses him every bit as much as he misses her, part of what he misses about her is her genuineness. Too many of the people in his world are fakes. Including himself.

Unlike many romances, the misunderstanding that brings the crises in this relationship is definitely not fake or exaggerated for effect. It is major and extremely important. Readers will wonder if they would have forgiven someone they loved for an omission of this magnitude.

Instead of a Cinderella story, with Jody in the title role, the fairy tale this romance most closely resembles is a reverse Sleeping Beauty, with Taggart as the sleeper. Jody forces him to finally wake up to what’s really important, and just to what’s real.

But it all starts with a shoe.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Kate is giving away an ebook copy of Sail Away With Me! To enter, use the Rafflecopter below.

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***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Guest Post by Author Jeanette Grey on New Year’s Resolutions + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> ebook giveaway> Giveaways> Guest Posts

Take What You Want by Jeanette GreyToday I’d like to welcome one of my very favorite authors, Jeanette Grey. Jeanette is not just the author of today’s book, When It’s Right (reviewed here), but also one of the books on my Best Ebook Romances of the Year list over at Library Journal, Take What You Want (reviewed earlier this year). Last but not least, if you love science fiction romance, she’s a triple threat with her awesome Unacceptable Risk (reviewed here). But today she’s here to talk about…

New Year’s Resolutions
by Jeanette Grey

For the longest time now, I’ve have a love-hate relationship with the idea of making New Year’s resolutions. In theory, it’s great, right? January first marks the beginning of a new calendar, a new year—why shouldn’t it also mark the beginning of a brand new you?

It feels good to set a goal. To articulate your intentions for how you’re going to make things better this time around.

The problem is that it’s almost too easy. Hell, it’s positively simplistic to declare that you’re going to do X, Y, and Z. But no matter how much we might wish it, we wake up on the first day of the new year, and we are, at heart, the same people we were before. Beneath that shiny new resolution, there’s something harder. Something slower and longer and not nearly so glamorous: there’s the work of seeing it through.

Making a New Year’s resolution is the work of a moment. Sticking to it is the work of one moment after another, stretching on and on in perpetuity until the goal has been achieved. If the goal doesn’t have a specific termination point—if it’s more “quit smoking” or “write everyday” and less “lose fifteen pounds”—the slog of adhering to it is literally endless.

As evidenced by those empty parking lots at the gym come February, dedication to changing your ways is infinitely harder than just naming your intention before the clock strikes midnight.

When It's Right by Jeanette GreyIn my new novella, When It’s Right, my heroine, Cassie, has just made one of the worst, most difficult to adhere to resolutions I can imagine: she’d decided she’s going to stop being in love with her best friend, Nate.

She has a plan for this, in theory. She’s going to stop spending as much time with him, she’s going to quit dwelling on him, she’s going to start actively dating again. But the sad fact is that she doesn’t want to do any of these things, and the closeness they currently have is going to be almost impossible to give up.

So when he suggests going on a road trip together for New Year’s Eve, she only hesitates for a moment. This might be her last chance to spend this kind of quality time with him before she follows through with her resolution to get some distance.

Little does she know, though, the trip is going to change everything. And thank goodness, because in the end, the best kind of resolution? Is the kind you never actually had to make in the first place.

Jeanette GreyAbout Jeanette Grey

Jeanette Grey started out with degrees in physics and painting, which she dutifully applied to stunted careers in teaching, technical support, and advertising. When none of that panned out, she started writing. In her spare time, Jeanette enjoys making pottery, playing board games, and spending time with her husband and her pet frog. She lives, loves, and writes in upstate New York.To learn more about Jeanette, visit her website and blog and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Jeanette’s giving away one ebook copy of a single-title release from her backlist: winner’s choice of Take What You Want, Unacceptable Risk, A Gift Of Trust, or Letting Go.  To enter, use the Rafflecopter below:

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Bewitching Book Tours Hot Holiday Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Book Giveaway> Giveaways

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Giveaways from Bewitching Book Tours and their authors! To enter, use the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

1 Kindle Fire HD 8.9 inch or equivalent value Amazon Gift Card

3 Bewitching Prize Packs full of books and book swag goodies- open to US Shipping- prize packs may contain print copies of The Hallowed Ones by Laura Bickle, Would Be Witch by Kimberly Frost and Earth Angel by E Van Lowe, Paranormal Pleasures by Roxanne Rhoads, Tasty Christmas Treats by Roxanne Rhoads- books will be distributed among the 3 prize packs

1 e-book set of the first three books in the Seven Seals Series by Traci Douglass

1 Release, book 3 of The Angler series by Annie Nicholas

1 ebook copy Murder on Mars A New Orleans Mystery by MM Shelley

1 Ebook giveaway Hollow’s End by Marianne Morea

1 Ebook copy of Tigress by JE Taylor

1 ebook copy of In Flames by Jessica Jayne

1 copy of River Road by Suzanne Johnson

1 ebook copy of Visionary- Unleashed by N Dunham

1 copy of each Bleeding Hearts and Blood Rush by Ash Krafton

1 ebook copy of Soul Meaning (Seventeen Book 1) by AD Starrling

1 ebook copy of Blaze Ignites by JL Madore

1 e-book copy of Operation Earth by Maria Hammarblad

1 Earth’s Requiem. Print if in the U.S., an e-copy otherwise.

1 ebook copy Silent Oath (Book 2 of the Locked Within Trilogy) by Paul Anthony Shortt

1 Ebook: Five Golden Rings by Jeffe Kennedy from the Season of Seduction Carina Press erotic holiday anthology

1 eBook: An Unexpected Bride (The Bride Series, Book 1) by Shadonna Richards

1 eCopy of Divine Destiny by Joanna Grace

1 Ministry Protocol: Thrilling Tales of the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences

1 Ebook giveaway. “Beautiful Stranger” by Katalina Leon

1 ebook copy of Chasing the Star Garden by Melanie Karsak

1 ebook copy of Cleaning Up by Jophrael L Avario

1 One e-book copy of Haven by Celia Breslin

1 one e-book copy of Dragon Fire by Dina Von Lowenkraft

1 ebook copy of Hex and the Single Witch by Roxanne Rhoads

1 one kindle copy of Cassie Scot: ParaNormal Detective by Christine Amsden

1 One ecopy of Cursed Ever After by AC James

1 copy of The Miss Education of Dr. Exeter by Jillian Stone

1 ecopy of Catwalk:Messiah by Nick Kelly

1 ecopy of Wucaii by Pembroke Sinclair

1 ecopy of The Bottom Line by Shelley Munro

1 Ebook copy of Dangerous Pursuit by Margaret Daly

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

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Guest Post by Author Sonya Clark on Trancehacking + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | ebook giveaway> Guest Posts

Today I’d like to welcome Sonya Clark, the author of the totally awesome blend of urban fantasy/paranormal/dystopian romance that is Trancehack (reviewed here). 

Trancehacking
by Sonya Clark

Tracehack by Sonya ClarkTrancehack is set in a dark future where witches are identified at birth and sent to live in urban zones with no rights of citizenship. The reason they were sent to urban zones specifically is because of the lack of understanding of magic by Normals who made the laws. Normals believed that being forced to live in an urban environment would mute the nature-oriented magic practiced by witches. What they didn’t know is that magic in this world is about more than fire, earth, air, and water. For some witches in the Magic Born world, it’s also about neon, concrete, cyberspace, and music.

When I decided I wanted to play with ideas on urban magic, I knew I didn’t want to just transplant the usual stuff encountered in fiction into city environs. I wanted to see if I could stretch my own ideas about magic, where to find it, and how to use it. The first thing I did was figure out basic correspondences: fire = neon, earth = concrete and steel, air = cyberspace, and water = music. I played around with ways the city elements could be used. One in particular really set off my imagination: the idea of using astral projection to enter cyberspace. This is where the book gets its name – trancehacking.

I’d already drawn from one childhood influence in creating the Magic Born world – Blade Runner. Both the movie’s future-noir sensibility and the sprawling metropolis that is almost a character unto itself were in the back of my mind while writing parts of Trancehack. When I started thinking about what it would be like to travel through cyberspace as just an entity of consciousness, temporarily apart from the body, I thought of another movie from childhood – Tron. I’ll be the first one to admit Tron hasn’t aged as well as Blade Runner, but both movies left a mark on my young imagination. When I found out the sequel to Tron did not involve exploring the internet, I lost interest in the movie and never saw it. It’s just as well because then I was able to let my imagination run wild. Here’s the first time witch Calla Vesper trancehacks in the book:

“Enchantress of Numbers, guide my journey,” she intoned. With a push of her will she sent magic into her wand and from there flowing into the cable. While Calla’s body sat on the hard floor of a filthy abandoned building, her consciousness slipped into cyberspace with practiced ease. Familiar blue-white light formed at the edge of the darkness. Dots and lines not unlike the city lights at night glowed brighter as she settled more fully into the different environment.

The small handful of witches like Calla who are able to trancehack have to hide their abilities from Magic Born and Normal alike, lest they wind up lab rats or worse. Even so, they’re able to do a lot of good for the Magic Born by hacking for information, as well as doing other things with their unique gifts. The Magic Born are up against bigotry, poverty, and the law itself, so they need all the advantages they can get.

And I have to admit, combining magic and technology was a lot of fun, too.

About Sonya Clark
Sonya Clark grew up a military brat and now lives in Tennessee with her husband and daughter. She writes urban fantasy and paranormal romance with a heavy helping of magic and lots of music for inspiration. Learn more at her website. Find her on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Sonya is kindly giving away a digital copy of Trancehack. To enter, use the Rafflecopter below.

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Guest Post by Author Karen Greco on the Inspiration for Hell’s Belle + Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | blog tours> Book Giveaway> ebook giveaway> Giveaways> Guest Posts

Today I’d like to welcome Karen Greco, who recently published Hell’s Belle (reviewed here). She’s here to talk about…

Hell’s Belle inspiration: Babe’s On the Sunnyside
by Karen Greco

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Babe’s on the Sunnyside, the bar that Nina and her aunt Babe run, was a real bar located in Providence’s Fox Point neighborhood.

Located on the ground floor of a tenement building, it was the quintessential dive bar. The kind of place where old men from the neighborhood would knock back a few beers. College kids who were cool with the dive bar vibe could be found in the tiny place as well. The conversation veered from motorcycles, to politics, to history, to sports. It was just a fun place to be.

And any place with a huge jar of pickled eggs behind the bar is the perfect bar to enjoy a pint or two.

Anthony "Babe" Silva (via Pinterest).
Anthony “Babe” Silva (via Pinterest).

Babe was owner. He was this very old diminutive man, kind of like the bar itself. The walls were covered in old boxing photos. From what I was told, Babe was a former trainer and a bunch of the pictures on the wall were the boxers that he had trained. The beers were cheap, the ambiance was chill.

The bar was sold, and cleaned up considerably. I entertained buying the place when it went up for sale again a few years ago. But cleaned up and without Babe, it lost the charm–gritty as it was– of the original.

Babe’s now lives on in my imagination, and, I am happy to say, in the pages of Hell’s Belle.

Karen GrecoAbout Karen Greco

An award-winning playwright, Karen Greco has spent close to twenty years in New York City, working in publicity and marketing for the entertainment industry.A life-long obsession with exorcists and Dracula drew her to urban fantasy, where she can decapitate characters with impunity. HELL’S BELLE is her first novel.

To learn more about Karen, visit her blog or follow her on Twitter, Facebook, or Goodreads.

~~~~~~TOURWIDE GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

hells belle by karen grecoKaren is giving away 10 ebook copies of Hell’s Belle — either mobi or ePub, winner’s choice. To enter, use the Rafflecopter below.

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