Captive Bride by Bonnie Dee

Bonnie Dee writes some impressive historical romances, if for no other reason than they are unique. She takes the same old storylines and gives them a twist which makes them distinctive and definitely interesting! Captive Bride is another mail order bride gone wrong story, but this time we have Chua Huiann who has come to America to marry Xie Fuhua, a successful Chinese businessman. Her parents hadn’t met the man, but through Lui Dai, one of Xie’s servants/agents, they were assured that their beloved, albeit unruly daughter, would have a life of prosperity and happiness.  However, when Chua Huiann arrives in San Francisco she finds that things were not at all as they had been made out to be, and her life would be anything but happy.

Alan Sommers is the owner of a successful general store. He’s an honorable, hard working man who is running from the memories and nightmares that haunt him. Having fought in the Civil War and been taken prisoner early on, he spent years in captivity, not knowing whether he’d live or die, before he was finally released. Alan headed west to start a new life, but his nightmares followed him.

This story delves into the racism so prevalent during the period, and the hardships Asian immigrants endured while trying to make a life for themselves. I don’t want to go into detail about how Huiann and Alan meet and spoil it for you, but I enjoyed watching their relationship grow into a sweet love story. Their cultural difference and the language barrier made for some fun and touching moments.

Overall, Captive Bride was another enjoyable, very sexy read by Bonnie Dee, and I’m looking forward to more by this talented author.

This story was provided to me by netgalley.com

Tessa's Pride by Olivia Brynn

Tessa’s Pride is a sweet, very sexy, emotionally charged story about a woman’s determination to prove herself in a man’s world - and not just prove herself competent, but prove herself successful, a woman to be reckoned with.

The story opens with Tessa leading Sugar Cookie, the last of 40 horses who have all met a similar fate, into a trailer so she can be taken to be euthanized. I was reading along and thinking how sad it was, and then found myself in tears as I felt Tessa’s heart breaking at her sense of guilt over the outbreak of EIA – Equine Infectious Anemia – on the Bradley Equestrian Ranch.  I don’t know if I’ve ever been brought to tears that easily or that early in a book, but I was in this one, and it took me by surprise.

As the story progresses, we meet Josh Bradley, the son who walked away from the ranch and the reason it is now in Tessa’s hands. He’s moved on with his life, far from BER, but is still in touch with old friends. He’s gotten wind of Tessa’s problems and decides to return home to see how he can help restore the ranch to its former glory, and at the same time, try to pick up where he and Tessa had left off two years earlier – in the middle of a sexual encounter that was interrupted by his father.  

There were things about this book that I loved, but as with all shorter stories, the ending can sometimes feel rushed and unfortunately, this one had that, but then the epilogue made up for it, in my mind.

The bottom line – I really enjoyed this story. Tessa and Josh made for a fun, exciting hero and heroine, the sex was hot and the ending sweet. I’m so happy I chose to read Tessa’s Pride and will definitely be picking up more by this author!

This story was provided to me by netgalley.com

Against the Wind by Kat Martin

This was the first book that I’ve read by Kat Martin, so I went into it with no preconceived ideas of what to expect from her storytelling and writing style. I know she’s published several books, so expected, at the very least, to enjoy the story, which for the most part, I did.

While I think that the premise of the story, and Jackson Raines as a character, were good, I felt like the writing itself was inconsistent. Sometimes it flowed really well, and other times it felt choppy. Sometimes I was able to feel what I was reading, and other times not. For example, this room service order they received sounded more like the reading of the daily special from a menu. There was nothing about the scents of the food that might make it sound appealing, it was an inventory of what was on their plates. –

They ordered two filets, medium rare, and Jackson added a bottle of Stag’s Leap Napa Valley cabernet. The plates came piping hot with fully loaded baked potatoes, two big green salads, and there was a strawberry shortcake for dessert.

Other than to say that Jackson picked at his food, there was no indication of whether they enjoyed the meal, only that a paragraph or two later they were done. I can only explain it by saying it felt empty.

And then there were repeated unnecessary descriptions of the clothing that people were wearing, and it came across - to me anyway - as a fashion report. And after their first time making love, which felt very unexciting to me, Sarah was thinking to herself what a demanding and intense lover Jackson was. And even Jackson, when recounting their love making of the night before said to Sarah, “I’m a man, after all, and a fairly demanding lover.” Seriously, I went back several pages to see what I missed, and found nothing that convinced me that he was anything other than… average.

I won’t go into a lot of character details, because unfortunately, they didn’t really stand out to me, although Jackson was at least consistent in his feelings for Sarah, whose emotions were wishy washy at best. Now, given all she’d been through, that would have been understandable, but we then go back to the lack of emotional detail given to them.

I felt like the whole murder/on the run/investigation aspect of the story wasn’t quite as convincing as it could/should have been and I don’t want to go into detail about it and possibly ruin the story for anyone who might read it. But, while Jackson’s actions and emotions were consistent with what I might have expected from an alpha male, they were not at all in keeping with what Sarah’s, actions, a mother worried about her daughter’s safety, would have been. It just wasn’t something I was able to buy into and as a major part of the storyline, that was something I definitely needed in order to feel their fear and their desperation to solve the crime.

So, this is a hard book to rate, because I knew what the author was trying to tell me, I knew the emotions she was trying to convey, but those things didn’t actually come through, never became anything more than words on the page that never leapt out and grabbed me, convincing me to believe what I was being told or that what I was being told was important. Honestly, I was pretty disappointed, and just about the time I was ready to throw in the towel, something would happen, I’d actually feel drawn into the story and couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen next.

As I say, this is a hard book to rate, so I’ll break it down this way:


---Storyline and Character Potential – 4/5: I could see where the story was going and loved the idea of it.

---What was delivered – 2.5/5: As I said, I could see where it was going, but I didn’t feel it, never quite got there.

---Writing – 2/5: Again, it felt choppy and inconsistent in quality.

But that said, I have to admit, the Raines brothers, Jackson, Gabe and Dev, have me intrigued, and despite my less than stellar review of this book, I’m definitely planning to read Gabriel’s and Dev’s stories. How can that possibly be? you might ask. Well, I’ll tell you. There was so much potential in this book, and I’m hoping that in the next, that potential will be met, that the writing will flow consistently and will grab me, draw me in and compel me to keep reading as only sections of Against the Wind did.

2.75/5 stars

This story was provided to me by netgalley.com

Letters to a Secret Lover by Toni Blake

Every so often I read a book that seems to have been special ordered for my needs at the time. You know the ones – they have just the right amount of angst, just the right level of steam, the perfect amount of relationship building before they finally admit they belong together and a story line that touches you deeply. Well, Letters to a Secret Lover is all that and more.

I can’t really tell you why without spoiling the story, but Rob Colter is my champion. Few storybook heroes touch me the way he did, and I have to admit, I cried more than a few tears for him. There were moments when my heart just broke because of the pain he’s lived with – the loneliness, the emptiness – knowing that there’s something he’s missing out on and believing he’ll never have it in his life. I can’t tell you what that something was without giving away too much of the story, but suffice it to say it moved me deeply.

Lindsey Brooks was such a fun loving heroine. To be honest, I didn’t much like her in the beginning. I thought for someone doling out relationship advice on her wildly popular Love Letters blog, she was pretty ditzy. But once she left Chicago and found her way to Moosefalls, she really started to become grounded. I loved how she grew as a person, realizing that there really was more to life than shopping for Jimmy Choos and being seen with the social elite she’d always associated with before her move. I’m glad she became the woman she did, because I couldn’t have accepted her relationship with Rob under any other conditions!

The other characters, the residents of Moosefalls, were all awesome people. They were just down to earth men and women who I’d love to have as friends and neighbors!

I love Toni Blake’s writing. It’s so easy to read, so normal… so real. I don’t feel like I’m reading a book, rather more like I’m watching a story unfold before my eyes. The characters are compelling people and their passions run deep. The sex scenes sizzle and border on erotic, but never feel out of place within the story. The physical relationship enhances the emotional relationship and that’s an absolute must if I’m going to give a book 5 stars. There was one thing that I thought was a little too coincidental, but it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the story.

The bottom line – this is my 3rd Toni Blake book and I’ve loved each one. Whether part of a series or a standalone like Letters to a Secret Lover, she’s become one of my favorite contemporary romance authors. I laughed, I cried, and I’m happy to say that I fell in love with Rob, Lindsey, and the entire town of Moosefalls, Montana. And I wouldn’t mind revisiting there someday.

'Twas the Night by Sandra Hill, Kate Holmes, Trish Jensen

All aboard for the Santa Brigade!!

When I requested this book from netgalley.com, I was expecting your standard holiday anthology. But as I tried to determine which stories were 1, 2, and 3, I was surprised to learn that this was not an anthology at all, but a single story written “round robin” style by 3 authors. I’m glad I didn’t know that upfront because I probably would have passed on it. Why is that, you ask? Well, with an anthology, if you start 1 story and don’t like it – maybe the story itself isn’t appealing, or you don’t like the author’s writing, you can move on to the next. But with a book like this, you’re kind of forced to read through the "bad" to get to the good. Well, I’m happy to tell you that there was no "bad," and I’m so glad I had the chance to read this book.

‘Twas the Night is a contemporary romance, however there are actually three couples involved, each the focus of their own happily ever after. The way it was written was ingenious, if you ask me. Each author was writing about a different hero, with all three stories overlapping. Chapter 1 was about Sam, chapter 2 was about Kevin, and chapter 3 was about Stan. Then in chapter 4 we're back to Sam, chapter 5 is Kevin again and so on and so on. We were seeing similar scenes, the same happenings, but through different eyes, and I loved how seamlessly it all flowed together.

Now on to the story itself.

Imagine this – It’s a few days before Christmas and Sam, Kevin and Stan are trying to make their way back to Snowdon, Maine for their dear friend and mentor George’s wedding. Well, it just so happens that there’s a horrible snow storm and all planes have been grounded and trains halted. So how are they going to make it back home in time for the wedding? The Santa Brigade, of course! The Santa Brigade is made up of a bunch of senior citizens and others who spend their holiday on a bus traveling from one homeless shelter to another, spreading Christmas cheer to young and old alike. It was such a funny, heartwarming part of the story that I found myself cheering them on as they made their way to each place, sometimes having to call in hilarious favors for snow plows and assistance breaking into stores, as much as I did the couples and their budding relationships.

I just can’t emphasize enough, what a wonderful, feel good story this was. There was nothing intensely thought provoking or life altering to the story, but the romances were touching and there was enough steam to keep things interesting. It was definitely cheesy in places but really, it was worth every minute of every hour it took to read it.

I wavered between a 3.5 or a 4 star rating, but because in the end I was left with fond memories of their exploits and a huge smile on my face, I'm giving this story a full 4 stars. 'Tis the season, after all!

***Slight Spoiler/Question For Anyone Who Might Know***
This story was first published 9 years ago and what I read was the newly republished version. The epilogue invites us to the wedding of the three couples taking place in July 1st, 2011. Does anyone know If there’s another story related to this one being released at that time?

Red-headed Stepchild by Jaye Wells

Red-headed Stepchild is the first book in the Sabina Kane series. We’re introduced to, of course, Sabina Kane, who is half mage, half vampire. We’re also introduced to a hilarious demon named Giguhl, a nymph named Vinca and a hot mage named Adam.

This is my first read by author Jaye Wells, and I enjoyed it. There were some very funny moments, and I have to be honest here and say that I think Giguhl, who spent a good part of this story as a bald cat, is probably my favorite character of the book. There were times I really liked Sabina, and times I didn’t. She’s not a heroine I connected to in a big way, and found myself more concerned about the outcome of the secondary characters than I did her. In fact, it took me well over ½ the book before I became interested in her at all, and to really love a story, I need more than that from my heroines.

One of my favorite scenes takes place with Giguhl and Sabina, when she tries to use magic to send him back home:

"Are you sure you can handle it? I mean, you've never done magic before, right?"

“It seems pretty straight forward. You game?”

He jumped off the couch and looked back at me. “Sure. What’s the worst that could happen?”

Twenty minutes later, we had our answer.

“I can’t freaking believe this!”

I cringed. “I’m so sorry.”

“I’m bald!” Giguhl continued. “I look like a freak.”

“It’s not that bad,“ I said. But it was. Oh my lord was it bad. I’d never seen an uglier cat in my entire life. “Look at the bright side, you won’t have to worry about shedding anymore.”

Urban Fantasy isn’t my favorite genre, but that said, Red-headed Stepchild is a pretty decent beginning to a promising series. And as I mentioned before, I did end up liking this book more than I thought I would, but the world in general didn’t grab me and suck me in as I had hoped it would, and even though I did enjoy Giguhl, Vinca and Adam, I’m not sure I’ll continue on with the series.

However, I have been known to change my mind :)

3.25/5