Samhain Publishing’s list for February 2012 is, as usual, long and extremely diverse.
On the one hand, we have the sweetness that Samhain’s Retro Contemporary romances bring to the line in Kane and Mabel. On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, or perhaps at several opposite ends, we have the chills and thrills of their Horror line, represented by Genesis of Evil, and the naughtier sides of romance, from their Red Hots (I wonder, do they want us to think of hot dogs, or not, with that particular warning label?) like Off Limits and Reckless Territory. Those titles even sound hot.
But which titles will be featured this week? Let’s see what we have here…
The number one title stole the top spot and the souls of its readers. The hero, or perhaps anti-hero is a better term, is a soul collector who lands himself on demon death row for betraying his demon boss. His attempt at suicide by demon hunter results in a rescue by a virgin white witch looking to rid herself of a curse that guards her virginity. And she’s found the one demon hunter who would be more than happy to help. If this sounds familiar to you, that’s because it’s Getting Familiar With Your Demon, by Jodi Redford, and reviewers (and there were plenty) gave it high marks. Be prepared to lose yourself in Redford’s series That Old Black Magic, because Demon is book 4. But this looks like a great place to get lost.
If romantic comedy is more your style, then check out the number two selection for this month, Tamara Morgan’s Love is a Battlefield. This first book in her Games of Love series (yeah, a first book in a series!) is a tale about two sets of re-enactment fanatics fighting over the same territory for their “games” who end up having some games of their own. This sounds utterly delicious, the Jane Austen Regency Re-Enactment Society going to war with the Highland Games athletes, with the men in kilts. What does a proper Highlander wear under his kilt? This story provides a sexy, and funny answer to that question.
The last title featured is acclaimed by all the reviewers for its charm, its emotional depth and the painstaking research that went into it. The book is A Private Gentleman by Heidi Cullinan. This historical male/male romance takes place in the mid-19th century, and is much more than a simple love story. Or even more than a complicated love story, for that matter. The story is about love that reaches beyond class boundaries, but even that’s been done before. What captivated the reviewers was the way this story dealt with issues of disability, addiction and childhood abuse, and how the love between the two heroes eventually helped them come to terms with their pasts, their present and their possible future.
Ebook Review Central will be back next week with our four-in-one issue. We’ll see begin April by highlighting February from Amber Quill, Astraea Press, Liquid Silver and Riptide Publishing. Come back next week!