Protecting Paige by Norah Wilson

Tommy Godsoe’s life hasn’t always sucked, in fact until recently, it’d been pretty damned awesome. Being a cop was his life, being a dog handler was his passion, but being shot during a police raid has put a damper on things. Days that were once spent serving with honor and purpose are now filled with pain and uncertainty. Unable to stand the thought of the pity he'd see in the eyes of his ex-fellow officers, Tommy has closed himself off from any and all contact, but much to his displeasure, the fortress of painkillers and bitterness he’s locked himself in has been well and thoroughly breached by his new neighbor who comes bearing dinner, and — despite his best efforts to get rid of her, won’t take no for an answer.

It’s not easy being a single parent, just ask Paige Harmer, she’ll tell you. Her son, Dillon, is a really great kid, but at 18, he’s not much of a kid anymore, and so Paige has to perform that tough balancing act of caring but not smothering. Dillon’s smart, respectful, ambitious… he’s pretty much everything a mom could hope for in a son, but unfortunately for them, his clean cut, boy next door image is exactly what Derek Weaver is looking for, and Derek is not one of the good guys.

Nervous and in need of something to do and someone to talk to, Paige takes dinner to her next door neighbor who, according to her landlord, is recovering from a recent surgery. The man is gruff, rude and clearly unappreciative of her offering, but Paige, being the strong, persistent woman she is, won’t take no for an answer.

Protecting Paige is the third book in the Serve and Protect series and is, hands down, my favorite! Being a parent myself, I always worried that my kids would fall in with the wrong crowd and get involved in things they shouldn’t, so I was able to relate to this story. And because Paige was facing those same things that all parents are familiar with, her character drew me in. Her strength, her devotion to her son, and her determination to do whatever she had to do to protect him…the magnitude of her love for him truly pulled at my heartstrings and made her a woman I could understand and admire.

And then there’s Tommy. Though we didn’t see a lot of him in the earlier books, we saw enough to know that he was an honorable cop who loved his job and the men he worked with. It was a little bit heartbreaking to see the bitterness that had taken hold of him, heartbreaking but understandable. I can only imagine what it would be like at 30 years old to lose any chance of returning to the job you loved, the one you’d planned to spend the rest of your life doing.

I've always felt that when things go wrong in your own life, when you just can't figure out what to do next... help someone else. Instead of feeling sorry for yourself or fretting over things you can't do anything about, devote your time and energies to the needs of others and everything else will fall into place. So, with that in mind, one of the high-points of this book, for me, was that when Tommy did just that... when he focused on helping Dillon and Paige... that's when things in his own life fell back into place and he once again became the man he was born to be - an honorable, powerful, caring man and a force to be reckoned with!

Okay, sorry - enough rambling!

The bottom line – If you’re like me you love romantic suspense, but sometimes you want the stories to be about everyday people, people who could be your friends, neighbors, or even yourself. You want to be able to relate to what’s going on in their lives, believable events and situations that could, for the most part, happen to anyone. So yeah, if you look for those things in stories, too, then I really do think you’d enjoy Protecting Paige. It’s emotional but not angsty, the characters are flawed but not stupid, and the friendship, the romance, the courage... all of these things combined have made this my favorite book in the Serve and Protect series and I’m hoping there will be many more books to come!

4.5/5 stars

Guarding Suzannah by Norah Wilson

Guarding Suzannah is a fun, sexy, romantic suspense novel, and my first taste of Norah Wilson’s writing. I enjoyed her easy, comfortable way of storytelling, and the voice she gives to her characters, making them believable, quirky people I couldn't help but love!

Suzannah Phelps is a criminal defense attorney who has been dubbed ‘The Ice Princess’ due to her cold, calculating demeanor in the courtroom. She’s every cop’s worse nightmare because with her razor sharp mind and well honed skills, she can tear their cases apart, and few of the people she represents ever end up behind bars.

John “Quigg” Quigley is a no-nonsense Detective who has seen firsthand how The Ice Princess works in the courtroom, but despite her aloof, seemingly snobbish behavior, he sees something else in her, too – that Suzannah’s need to keep people at arm’s length, to be in absolute control of her life is her way of making sure no one sees how vulnerable she really is. But when it becomes clear to John that Suzannah’s life is in danger, there’s no way he’s going to let her out of his sight. John knows she needs the kind of protection he can provide, and despite her protestations to the contrary, becomes her self-appointed bodyguard.

I really enjoyed this story. While it is romantic suspense, it’s more romantic than suspenseful, and I loved that through their budding relationship, the characters drove the story. There's certainly a ‘bad-guy’ plot there - and a well told one at that, but what I loved about it most is that it enhanced, rather than overshadowed, the romance. Another thing that I enjoyed about Guarding Suzannah is the location. This story takes place in Canada which made it refreshing in that phrases, dialogs and settings were not the same places we so often read about.

The bottom line – If you're looking for something fresh, and you enjoy romance in your romantic suspense like I do, you’ll definitely want to give Guarding Suzannah a try. As I said, it’s a fun, sexy story and I’m thrilled to have found another author who knows how to tell a tale – by letting her characters pull us in and keep us coming back for more.

Don't Mess with Texas by Christie Craig

“I wanted to talk, but I wasn’t going to talk about sex. Not that I don’t like talking about sex. I just prefer having sex to talking about it.” He grinned. “But talking about it isn’t bad.”

Don’t Mess with Texas is my introduction to Christie Craig’s writing, and a delight to read! It was fresh, funny, and steamy and I loved the world she wrote. The characters are interesting, quirky people who I want to know more about. I’m fairly new to the straight, non-erotic, non-suspenseful Contemporary Romance genre, and unfortunately I don’t often find the stories detailed or interesting enough to hold my attention. Thankfully that’s not the case with this story!

Story blurb:

Nikki Hunt thought her night couldn't get worse when her no-good, cheating ex ditched her at dinner, sticking her with the bill. Then she found his body stuffed in the trunk of her car and lost her two-hundred-dollar meal all over his three-thousand-dollar suit. Now not only is Nikki nearly broke, she's a murder suspect.

Former cop turned PI, Dallas O'Connor knows what it's like to be unjustly accused. But one look at the sexy-though skittish-suspect tells him she couldn't hurt anyone. The lead detective, Dallas's own brother, has the wrong woman and Dallas hopes a little late-night "undercover" work will help him prove it . . .

I loved the ‘if something can go wrong, it will’ nature of the story because rather than angsty, those things were all handled with humor. Some of the funniest moments in the story could actually have been dismally dreary, but Ms. Craig did a great job of keeping it light, easy to follow and a joy to read. The family dynamic between Tony, Dallas and their father was laugh out loud funny at times, as well as heartwarming and poignant. The interactions with Dallas and his partners, Austin and Tyler – anyone else notice they’re all named after major Texas cities? – were also pretty darned funny at times, and that’s all part of what made the book so enjoyable. But I have to be honest and tell you, Bud, the English Bulldog with flatulence issues was one of my favorite characters. And speaking of Bud, this was one of my favorite scenes:

Her heart swelled with hope. “We should start all over, try dating, and just see—”

He put a finger over her lips. “No.”

Her chest grew tight.

“I don’t want to start over. I want you back at my place. Bud hasn’t been the same. He’s not eating right. I carried him to the vet and he said he’s depressed. He’s farting like crazy and there’s no one there to laugh with me about it. It’s pathetic.”

She chuckled. “This is supposed to make me want to go back?”

He smiled. “You love Bud. Don’t deny that.”

She took a deep breath and decided to be honest. “He’s not the only thing I love, Dallas. And that scares me because if you don’t feel the same way—”

“For God’s sake, Nikki, what the hell do you think I just said?”

She considered his question. “Saying you want me to share your dog’s farts is not saying you love me.” She laughed.

He dropped his head back on the sofa and laughed with her. Seconds later, he looked at her. “Then let me say it. I love you.” He kissed her nose. “I love all of you. There’s nothing I don’t love about you. The way you talk to yourself. The way you care about your crazy grandmother and her friends. The way you accept people and make everyone happy. Including me. You make me happy, Nikki. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve been happy? Oh, and I love your body. I really love your body.”

She smiled. “I love you, too.”

“And my body?” he asked, his blue eyes twinkling with sexy humor.

She laughed again. “I love your body, too.”

The bottom line – This was a really enjoyable read. Christie Craig knows how to write fun, sensitive, honorable people who I couldn’t help but fall in love with! And the secondary characters were just as interesting, entertaining and captivating as Dallas and Nikki. And speaking of secondary characters, I think one of my favorite side stories was watching Dallas' dad, recently widowed, find new friends and reasons to keep living. I’m hoping that there will be more books coming because Austin and Tyler both need a happily ever after.

This ebook was provided free of charge by netgalley.com in behalf of Grand Central Publishing. This had no influence on my rating or review.

Liberating Lacey by Anne Calhoun

Liberating Lacey is one of those stories that takes you by surprise because it’s been labeled erotica so many times that you go into it expecting nothing but a heaping helping of crazy hot sex. Well, let me just tell you - you certainly do get that, but you also get so much more!

Lacey Meyers is a successful businesswoman whose husband of 15 years has dropped the D-bomb on her. She tried everything she could think of to save the marriage, including spicing up their sex life. Unfortunately – or fortunately as the case may be, she was the only one interested in saving that sinking ship. So here she is, 36 years old and single again, and on the advice of her very best friend, Claire, Lacey decides to test the ‘casual hook-up’ scene. Claire drills into Lacey’s head that she needs to keep it light – that it’s only about sex, and nothing more.

Hunter Anderson is a 28 year old hot, no-strings-attached edgy cop and when he meets this beautiful, sexy woman who’s looking for a no-strings-attached night of passion, he’s not about to turn her down. He’s done this before and he knows the score – keep it light – it’s only about sex and nothing more.

Hunter and Lacey don’t even make it out of the bar’s parking lot before they’re making hot, wild monkey love, and over the next several weeks it becomes clear that their sexual chemistry is off the charts. It’s a win-win situation for both of them, until the one thing neither of them expected to happen did – their “it’s only about sex and nothing more” relationship starts turning into something more.

This is one of those rare books that you can call an erotic read or a great romance and either way you’d be right. Anne Calhoun did a fabulous job of giving us two amazing people who, each for their own reasons, are feeling vulnerable and who are protecting their hearts. I couldn’t help but fall in love with Hunter, even though he was at times callous. In fact, Hunter holds a place of honor on my "Heroes I'd Do Ten Way To Sunday" shelf! And Lacey was such a wonderful, compassionate woman, how could I not adore her too?

The bottom line - This is so much more than just an erotic read. I was laughing one minute and tearing up the next. I wanted to hurry and finish so I could see Hunter and Lacey get their happily ever after and yet, I didn’t want it to end. I’m so glad to have discovered Anne Calhoun and can’t wait to read more of her writing. I can’t stress enough how much I enjoyed this story and if all of her books are this good, she’ll be an auto-buy author for me!