Category: Fantasy Romance

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Kelly’s review of The Passage by Justin Cornin

TITLE: The Passage
AUTHOR: Justin Cornin
PUBLICATION DATE: 06/08/10
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
“It happened fast. Thirty-two minutes for one world to die, another to be born.”

First, the unthinkable: a security breach at a secret U.S. government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment. Then, the unspeakable: a night of chaos and carnage gives way to sunrise on a nation, and ultimately a world, forever altered. All that remains for the stunned survivors is the long fight ahead and a future ruled by fear—of darkness, of death, of a fate far worse.

As civilization swiftly crumbles into a primal landscape of predators and prey, two people flee in search of sanctuary. FBI agent Brad Wolgast is a good man haunted by what he’s done in the line of duty. Six-year-old orphan Amy Harper Bellafonte is a refugee from the doomed scientific project that has triggered apocalypse. He is determined to protect her from the horror set loose by her captors. But for Amy, escaping the bloody fallout is only the beginning of a much longer odyssey—spanning miles and decades—towards the time and place where she must finish what should never have begun.

REVIEW:
HOLY SHITE!!!!!!

This book was intense. I do have to say I really love my HEA books… But this was a great book. Very well written. As I said before very intense. Depressing, Doom & Gloom the whole way through.

And WOWZA what a way to end a book…

If you have not read this book I would suggest putting it on your list to read. Yes it is a super long book 800 pages strong or if you do as I did and listen to on audio 36+ hours.

But it was worth every tear and heartbreak I suffered along the way. I am looking forward to book 2 The Twelve and very much looking forward to book 3 The City of Mirrors.

Disclaimer:
The following review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

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Jennifer’s review of Tangled Web by Crista McHugh

TITLE: Tangled Web
AUTHOR: Crista McHugh
PUBLICATION DATE:   10/16/12
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS: Azurha, a beautiful former slave turned deadliest assassin in the empire, has just been offered the ultimate challenge–seduce, then murder the new emperor.  But Titus is not the tyrant his forefathers were, and his radical ideas might be the glimmer of hope the empire needs.

Titus Sergius Flavus has yet to master the powerful magic of his ancestors–magic he must wield if he’s to protect his people–but his father’s death has left him no choice.  Rule the Delzian Empire and attempt to right his ancestor’s wrongs, or watch her fall to his greedy kin.

More than just Titus’s ideas hold Azurha captive.  Night after night, he awakens desires she thought lost and uncovers the magic of her hidden lineage.  As her deadline approaches, Azurha is forced to make an impossible decision–complete her job and kill the man she loves, or fail and forfeit both their lives.

REVIEW: This book is the first in a new series by author Crista McHugh and seemed to have everything for me. Tangled Web was an action-packed adventure with a beautiful female assassin and a romantic love story that brought me to tears by its conclusion. Azurha was a very strong character that had been born as a slave and abused by her previous master before she was able to gain her freedom through violence.  After this, she had been trained as a deadly assassin known only as “The Rabbit”, who struck fear into the hearts of her potential victims.

I felt so sorry for Azurha because she had been through so much before meeting Titus and she never wanted to be in a position where she was vulnerable and couldn’t protect herself.  She loved Titus with every ounce of her being and would give up her own life to protect him instead of being the one to kill him, which was very touching.  She couldn’t believe that Titus would give up his entire empire to be with her because no one had ever cared for her or tried to protect her in that way before. Their love had changed Azurha from a cold-hearted assassin to a strong, caring woman and it was nice to watch the transformation of this character throughout the book.  I understood her reasons for not telling Titus the truth about her identity because she was afraid that he wouldn’t love her anymore and she just wanted to hold onto that relationship for as long as she could.  In the end, Titus didn’t care about her past because he knew how she felt about him just by looking in her eyes and watching her actions around him.

Tangled Web is a great read and I have a feeling that this book will stay with me for some time.  I’m looking forward to reading the second book in the series which is Claudia’s story, a character that made a brief appearance in Tangled Web.

DISCLAIMER: The following review is my opinion and not a paid review. I received this book free as part of the blog tour.

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Kelly’s review of Hunter’s Season by Thea Harrison

TITLE: Hunter’s Season
AUTHOR: Thea Harrison
PUBLICATION DATE: 09/18/12
ORDER LINKS:Amazon |B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A Novella of the Elder Races

Duty. Devotion. Desire. When fate brings two isolated people together, love is in the cards.

As a palace guard and assassin for the Dark Fae, Xanthe always wore a mask, hiding her emotions to do her duty. But when her identity is compromised, she trades undercover work for guarding Queen Niniane—a position that often brings her in contact with Chancellor Aubrey Riordan.

Aubrey’s trust is shattered. A year ago his wife tried to assassinate their new queen in his name, a betrayal of everything he believes in. And now an attack on his life is proof the dark conspiracy is not yet over. Although injured and weak, Aubrey can’t help but be drawn to this shy assassin and loyal protector. Xanthe is everything Naida wasn’t, and the passion she stirs in him is something he thought had long passed him by.

Warning: Take a man recovering from an assassination attempt, the assassin sworn to protect him, add in a magical Tarot card deck and an isolated cabin, and watch the sparks fly!

REVIEW:
Another great novella from Thea.  And just like any good novella I don’t want to give too much away.  But it is so great to see Aubrey finally get a little bit of happiness after all the sadness that he suffered in Storm’s Heart.  It was great to see Niniane & Tiago. But I really enjoyed Xanthe she is a tough warrior, yet she longs for something that she never thinks she deserves.  That makes Aubrey the perfect person to show her that loves heals all.

If you are a fan of Thea Harrison you will enjoy this novella.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. The following review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

4 Hearts
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Kelly’s review of Enslaved in Shadows by Tigris Eden

TITLE: Enslaved In Shadows
AUTHOR: Tigris Eden
PUBLICATION DATE:   06/18/12
ORDER LINKS:  Amazon

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
A man’s Past leads to his Future……

Agent Stone of the Shadow Unit’s job is simple, most days. Work in the Shadows, police his own Kind.

When an unwanted assignment turns out to be his darkest fantasy from the past, Draven can’t help but be conflicted by the memories of the past and his responsibilities in the future. But his decision has been made.

The Heart of a woman is Tested……..

Jes can’t let the tall dark agent back into her life. How can she trust any man after what she’s endured. Years of abuse have broken her down and she doesn’t have room for more. The man she turns to for help hasn’t abused her physically but he’s tormented her emotionally. A past betrayal left her scarred, but also brought her life.

Can she accept him into her heart and trust him again?

One will survive and adapt, the other will realize hearts can be mended even if it’s a bit too late.

The road to forgiveness sometimes only brings more pain. Unexpected events set their lives on two separate tracks leading to one outcome. Lives will be changed and an emotional battle to save their souls will leave them both trapped and enslaved in their need for one another

REVIEW:
Where do I start with this book.. Oh how I want to tell you about the ending, but that just would not be fair.  Not fair at all.  But Oh MAN!!  OH, Oh *covers mouth*…  Okay lets start at the beginning.

Enslaved is Tirgis Eden’s debut novel and let me tell you I think she knocked it out of the park.  This book has a little bit of everything.  You have love, lust, trust, betrayal, failure and hope.  And oh man I really wish I could tell you all the sordid little deals.  But again that is really not fair.  I will tell you that this book left me dying, DYING I tell you for the next book in this series.

Let me tell you how hard it is to write this review without giving away spoilers.  And I try really hard not to give spoilers.  So I would just say if you are looking for a new author, a new series, a new hero & heroine to fall in love with you really need to pick up a copy of Enslaved In Shadows.  Oh and the band of side characters SO MUCH potential.

Oh and the ending?   Nope not going to tell you…. Yes, because I am evil like that.  🙂

4 Hearts
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Kimberly’s review of Ghostwriter by Lissa Bryan

TITLE: Ghostwriter
AUTHOR: Lissa Bryan
PUBLICATION DATE:   10/11/12
ORDER LINKS:  Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
After being laid off from the newspaper where she worked as a journalist, and losing her boyfriend in rapid succession, Sara Howell is looking to downsize before her dwindling savings run out. Things are finally starting to look up when she lands a job ghostwriting the biography of a popular politician and rents an isolated island house which turns out to have once been the home of her favorite author, Seth Fortner, who mysteriously disappeared in 1925.

But when strange things start happening, as objects break, or go missing, and terrifying visions appear, Sara begins to wonder if Seth ever left, or if she is losing her mind.

What happened to Seth is a secret closely guarded by the family to this day, a family that seems to exist under a terrible curse. Through an old trunk of letters she discovers in the attic, Sara unravels the mystery and becomes caught up in a tale of greed, lost love and the horrors of WWI.

When Sara realizes she is not going crazy and that Seth Fortner’s spirit still haunts her new home on the isolated island, she begins to draw him out of his shell bit by bit. She will discover what happened to the idealistic young writer who went to the battlefields of France to save lives, and to his beautiful bride to destroy the love between them, and what led Seth to make a terrible choice which would have consequences that would echo for generations.

They gradually fall in love in their world of dreams, dreams which swiftly become more attractive than reality, as Sara learns from a ghost how to truly live. Will she be the one to break the “Fortner Curse” by helping Seth conquer his demons, and heal both of their hearts in the process?

REVIEW:
This is a beautiful story with a lovely concept but I had a really difficult time getting interested in it in the beginning. While written wonderfully it was very slow in the beginning. I kept waiting for something to happen and when it did I just didn’t find myself interested for some time. I thought the relationship between Sara and Seth was beautiful as far as the love of characters go but didn’t understand how they could “fall in love” I wish the book had brought in an actual character that Sara could have found herself drawn to instead. That being said it was a beautiful love story and any fan of ghost stories will enjoy it. The time spent getting to know Seth was very intriguing and the dream life of Sara and Seth is very sweet and endearing. I found Sara to be an almost sad yet caring person and found enjoyed her character. Stepping back into the time of WWII was also interesting since I do not know a lot about that time period.

This truly is a love story in every sense of the word and one that will stick with you for a while.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

4 Hearts
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Kelly’s ARC review of Blind Destiny by Shiloh Walker

TITLE: Blind Destiny –
Grimm’s Circle #7
AUTHOR: Shiloh Walker
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/16/12
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:

Heigh ho, heigh ho, it’s back to hell she goes…

Myrsina knows the stories. As one of the oldest of the Grimm, she had a hand in writing most of them, but only she knows the dark origin of the Seven Bloody Sisters. It springs from the place of her birth—and her death. A place of pain and misery to which she plans to never return. Unless forced.

When Luc appears on her doorstep, her heart twists with suppressed longing for the man who can never be hers. The only man who can make her do the impossible—go home.

Luc may be blind, but through their unique, bittersweet connection, even he can see that the task laid before them is ripping Sina’s soul apart. This time it isn’t as simple as fighting a demon that has escaped from the netherplains.

Sina must go back in time—to that cursed ground—and right a wrong that she unknowingly brought about. To write a new ending to a story that may give them both a chance at happily ever after. Assuming they survive.

REVIEW:
While Blind Destiny was not my favorite of all the Grimm Circle stories I still loved being back in the Grimm world.

Luc has lived in the past for way too long.  Now that the love of his life has moved on Luc has to rethink his purpose as a Grimm.  What does he have to offer?  Where does he belong?  And of course that is when Will shows up and send him on his newest mission.  But first he has to go get his new partner.  Sina

Sina has lived with the fact that she has been in love with Luc since the first moment she met him.  But she will never pay second to his wife (will ex-wife) so she has resolved to love him from afar.  But fate seems to have a way to change the things that we want even as we fight them.

Luc & Sina are really a good part.  Both are stubborn, determined and both complete pains in the butt.

Unlike Shiloh’s normal Grimm Circle books we don’t have to wait to the end to figure out who this fairy tale it about.  Which was kind of fun, but I do miss the who is this the whole time I am reading.

If you are a fan of the Grimm Circle books I believe you will enjoy Luc & Sina’s story.  And I am very much looking forward to the next installment in the Grimm’s world.  And I am really hoping one of these days we will get to see Will brought down a notch or two and find his lady love.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. The following review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

4 Hearts
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Ursula’s review of Spinning Gold by Vivi Andrews

TITLE: Spinning Gold
AUTHOR: Vivi Andrews
PUBLICATION DATE: 06/18/12
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:

Rumpelstiltskin as you’ve never seen it before. In this fairy tale, no princes need apply.

Juliana Ravel will do anything to save her innocent brother from the executioner, but what the supposedly charming prince demands is impossible. Spinning straw into gold? He might as well ask her to fly. Her only hope is a family heirloom – a gold medallion rumored to be the magic prison of one of the fabled golden fae.

Trapped inside the medallion for hundreds of years, Rue isn’t fool enough to trust Juliana, but he can’t help but be tempted by the feisty beauty. Even though she is the spitting image of the witch who betrayed and imprisoned him, Rue agrees to help her. For a price.

Entranced by the exotic, golden-skinned man, Juliana agrees to his terms, believing her worries are at an end. But when the tyrannical prince finds her surrounded by riches, he isn’t about to let her walk away – instead holding her prisoner within the corrupt court. Juliana’s only freedom is her nights with Rue, where their negotiations turn to seduction, and together they construct a desperate plot to escape a life where they must keep spinning gold… or die

REVIEW:
A very romantic tale on the classic: Rumplestiltskin.  It was set in medieval times, contained magic, fae and had hot sex.  There was a villain, a brother in peril and a handsome prince. Sounds like the stuff dreamy stories are made of.  I just wasn’t swept away.  The whole evil prince/evil advisor plot was a little convoluted. So was the whole captured/enslaved fae part for that matter. I enjoyed the premise of a girl willing to do anything it took to save her brother. The realization that she was totally naive and that she had some growing up to do was the best part of the book. Oh and the happy ending. Because I am a sucker for those.

The premise for the story was great. The characters were the stuff that fairytales are made of. The writing was solid. And the plot was classic. But it just didn’t carry me off into the fantasy. I think a lot of people will really enjoy this book. It just wasn’t for me.

Disclaimer:
The following review is my opinion and not a paid review. I received this book free as part of a blog contest.

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Kimberly’s review of A Touch Of Greek by Tina Folsom

 A Touch Of Greek
AUTHOR: Tina Folsom
PUBLICATION DATE:   09/30/10
ORDER LINKS:  Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Selfish and gorgeous Greek God Triton is cast out of Olympus after seducing Zeus’ mistress and can only gain reentry if he finds a woman who loves him for his kindness and selflessness, not his beauty. When the mortal Sophia – recovering from an eye operation and virtually blind – needs a home healthcare worker, he takes on the role, hoping she will be his ticket home.

While defending Sophia from an unknown adversary, Triton’s protective instinct emerges. At the same time rival Gods do everything to doom him to failure. And even if Triton can win Sophia’s love, will he throw it away to return home, or will he lose his own heart to the only woman who truly sees him?

A Touch of Greek is the first book in the humorous and sexy paranormal romance series Out of Olympus following the romantic adventures of four Gods: Triton, Dionysus, Eros, and Hermes.

REVIEW:
What an interesting story. I was surprised at how much I liked this book. I have only read one other book that had to do with god/goddess and thought it was only “ok” but from the synopsis I thought this book would be funny so I decided to read it and I was pleasantly surprised. While I am not sure I would say it is funny it is enjoyable.

I enjoyed Triton and his god friends. And I enjoyed Sophia even though she was written as a helpless female. She did have some spirit about her which helped redeem her helplessness. But it really is Triton’s story more than Sophia’s if you ask me and that was just fine. I am not sure that this falls into a paranormal story, if anything it fits more into contemporary then paranormal even though it has the whole god theme, especially since Triton has lost his powers for most of the book.

This is a fun read. It is written very well. I had never read anything by this author before but I would enjoy reading the rest of this series. If you enjoy romances with a twist them I think you will really enjoy this book.

4 Hearts
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Kelly’s review of West of Want by Laura Kaye

West of Want
Hearts of the Amenoi #2
AUTHOR: Laura Kaye
PUBLICATION DATE:   07/10/12
ORDER LINKS:  Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Betrayal is all he’s ever known, but in her, he’ll find a love strong enough to be trusted…

When Marcella Raines’ twin brother dies, she honors his request to be buried at sea, never expecting the violent storm that swamps her boat. Recently divorced over her infertility and gravely injured, Ella still fights to survive.

Zephyros Martius is the Supreme God of the West Wind and Spring, but being the strongest Anemoi hasn’t saved him from betrayal and loss—worse, he’s sure his brother Eurus is behind it. When Zeph’s heartbreak whips up a storm that shipwrecks a human, his guilt leads him to save her, but he vows not to get involved.

Ella’s honesty, empathy, and unique calming influence attract Zeph like no other, and he finds himself wanting…everything. Ella knows Zeph’s different and fears rejection, but falls for his otherworldly masculinity and ancient, sad blue eyes. When Eurus threatens Ella, she and Zeph struggle to let go of the past, defend their future, and embrace what they most want—a love that can be trusted

REVIEW:
After almost losing her own life Ella finds herself face to face with a stranger.  A stranger that she is drawn to beyond explanation.  But Ella is a little gun shy she has been hurt in the past.  Trusted blindly and been burned.  So how can she learn to put her full trust into someone she just met?

Zephyros suffered betrayal and loss many times in his very, very long life.  So when he learns that he is the cause in almost killing a innocent human he does what ever it takes to protect her.  But Zeph never thought that he would fall for her.  But is he willing to put his heart on the line again?

Ella & Zephyros are two peas in a pod.  Both have suffered from loss and betrayal.  But can they both learn to trust each other blindly?  Because that trust is the only thing that will keep them safe from the Eastern storm that is heading their way.

West of Want is Laura Kaye’s 2nd book in her Hearts of the Anemio Series.  While I enjoyed this story I felt at times it was a little rushed.  I mean, I am all for the lust at first sight, but Ella really just jumps into this relationship with Zeph with both feet and never looking.  But other then that I really like this story a lot.  I love the world that Laura has created and I am looking forward to what is next for the Gods.