Gift Ideas for the Book Lover #13

Lets not limit ourselves to only holidays or special occasions to get some of these great gift! This weekly series is full of fun and unique gifts for the book lover in your life or for yourself!

Harry Potter inspired “Always” Severus Snape quote with Deer 2 charm Necklace *fast USA shipping*
By BilingualBunny
$12.99 (plus S&H)

Harry Potter inspired Always / Deer 2 piece charm Necklace features the queue from Snape with Lily’s protreus measures approx 1 inches long.

classic antique bronze finish. It comes with 2 charms (“always” and deer ) the adjustable Chain measures 11 inches long with Lobster clasp.

*****
Green Mini Leather Journal Earrings
By wayfaringart
$25.00 (plus S&H)
Darling handmade mini leather journal earrings ready to follow you on all of your adventures! These extremely light weight mini journal earrings are the perfect piece of jewelry for any writer, teacher, librarian or book enthusiast in your life.
Each journal measures approximately 12mm x 15mm and contains 48 pages of 67lb paper. Each section has been sewn directly to the cover using strong linen thread.
My mini journals are made from the scraps leftover from the larger leather journals I make, making sure that nothing goes to waste! The closure is made from waxed linen thread which wraps snugly around the leather journal.
*****
BOOK LOVER’S PILLOW customizable novelty cushion, gifts for teachers, gifts for readers, choose your own color, bookish novelty pillow
By BonnieBruno
$30.00+ (plus S&H)

Decorative throw pillow for book lovers, made from 100% spun polyester poplin fabric for durability. Brightly colored tangerine and turquoise cushion is designed with the word BOOKISH and its definition. BUT, don’t feel locked into this color scheme. Choose your own colors at the Sherwin-Williams Color Families website below. Simply send me the names of your two color choices and we’ll begin a Custom Order.

Choose your main color at the Sherwin-Williams site below, along with a contrasting border color.

http://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/

*****
Library necktie. Due date slip tie. Silkscreened men’s 100% silk necktie. Perfect librarian, auhor, book lover, teacher gift.
$45.00

 

Always punctual? Bring those books back on time! The fifth in our series of vintage paper emulation neckties, we present to you, our date due slip silk necktie, because you’ve got the Write Stuff. Not a fan those new laser scanning contraptions? Books over laptops or tablets? We have nostalgia for the good ol’ paper, and think you should too. Want some indelible love? Expecting a new kiddo or time-based arrival? Get out sharpie and make your own best personalized gift ever.
For a crisp new paper look, choose white or ivory. For a more aged paper feel, selecting cream or champagne, or mushroom would be a better choice. For other regular copy paper choices, we have pinks, yellows and blues too!





If items are no longer available, please contact the seller to inquire further information. 



Click here to see more gift ideas!!
Visit us every Wednesdays for more awesome gift/present ideas for you or the 
Book Lover in your life!!! 
 


Blog Tour & Giveaway: All The President’s Menus by Julie Hyzy

allthepresidents

It’s an old adage that too many cooks spoil the broth. But when a tour of the White House kitchen by a group of foreign chefs ends in murder, it’s Olivia Paras who finds herself in the soup… 

Due to a government sequester, entertaining at the White House has been severely curtailed. So executive chef Olivia Paras is delighted to hear that plans are still on to welcome a presidential candidate from the country of Saardisca—the first woman to run for office—and four of that nation’s top chefs.

But while leading the chefs on a kitchen tour, pastry chef Marcel passes out suddenly—and later claims he was drugged. When one of the visiting chefs collapses and dies, it’s clear someone has infiltrated the White House with ill intent. Could it be an anti-Saardiscan zealot? Is the candidate a target? Are the foreign chefs keeping more than their recipes a secret? Once again, Olivia must make sleuthing the special of the day…

Amazon/B&N

About the Author:

juliehyzyJulie Hyzy’s very first job had her flipping burgers and chopping onions at a neighborhood hot dog stand. She traded that experience for a job as a singing waitress at Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour — but gave that up when she started college (and because she couldn’t carry a tune).

Over the years, she’s acted in community theater productions, appeared in television commercials, and crashed a previously all-male fraternity to become one of the first female brothers in Loyola University’s Chapter of Delta Sigma Pi. Julie had dreams of becoming a writer, but family, friends, and frat brothers convinced her otherwise. Having held positions as junior officer at a downtown bank, office manager at an architectural firm, and financial advisor at a prestigious wealth management company, she realizes that the business degree was probably a good choice — but fiction is truly her passion. Now, with some well-earned life experience behind her, she’s delighted to finally be able to make writing a priority in her life.

Website/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of All The President’s Menus

Review (4.75 Stars): This is a fabulous series and I can never get enough of Ollie and the wonderful cast of characters in this series.  In this story, Olivia finds herself entertaining foreign chefs and a presidential candidate from Saardisca at a time when she least expects it, during the middle of a sequester.  While taking the foreign chefs on a pastry tour, Marcel passes out and claims that he has been drugged and soon one of the visiting chefs ends up dead, leaving Olivia to believe that there is more going on than meets the eye.  Now, she must find a killer before it is too late and another victim is found at the White House.

This is the eighth book in the White House Chef mystery series and this is one of my favorite series to date.  Olivia is a fabulous character and I love reading about her life at the White House and the wonderful culinary creations she comes up with for Presidential events or just to feed the First Family.  I enjoyed this mystery because I’m always amazed at the way she handles herself in any situation, whether it is life or death or dealing with difficult chefs and she does it all effortlessly. I can’t say enough great things about this series and I can’t wait to read what is in store for Olivia and her team at the White House.

Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of All The President’s Menu. This giveaway is for US Residents only.  To be entered in the drawing by January 12th, please leave me a comment below:

Natasha reviews How To Plan A Wedding For A Royal Spy by Vanessa Kelly

how to plan a wedding for a royal spyTITLE: How to Plan a Wedding For a Royal Spy
SERIES #: Renegade Royals #3
CHARACTERS: Captain William Endicott & Evie Whitney
AUTHOR: Vanessa Kelly
PUBLICATION DATE: 1/6/15
ORDER LINKS: Amazon| B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Whether as spies or lovers, the Renegade Royals—illegitimate sons of England’s Royal Princes—are bold, skillful, and a force to be reckoned with…

A war hero returned from Waterloo should be able to indulge in a bit of bad behavior. Instead, Captain William Endicott is summoned by his father, the Duke of York, to investigate an assassination plot. The unlikely suspect: William’s former sweetheart. Will can’t believe that innocent Evie Whitney could be mixed up in anything so nefarious. Then again, almost everything about Evie has changed—except for his body’s instinctive response to hers…

Just as Evie’s life is finally coming together, Will saunters back into it. Should she slap him—or seduce him? Even as she tries to decide, scandal pushes her toward marriage with a man she can neither trust nor resist—and into the heart of a deadly conspiracy…

REVIEW: I hate picking up books in the middle of the series, especially if I don’t know they’re a part of a series. This is book 3 in a series and I didn’t realize that until I was well into the book .That said, it didn’t matter. This author gives enough background and reference information that you do not feel like you’ve missed anything and are able to read this book as a stand alone. This is very important to me when inadvertently starting in the middle of a series. If nothing else, this book made me want to go back and read the first two books in this series so I could experience everything that came before; however if you don’t have the time it’s not necessary. This was a nice historical romance that was equal parts entertaining and intriguing. This is a great idea for a series, with great side characters that I cannot wait to see get their own books cough Alec cough. Anywho, I highly recommend this series, it’s truly a great read.

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

4 Hearts
4 Hearts

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Snow Way Out by Christine Husom

9780425270806_medium_Snow_Way_Out

About the Snow Globe Shop Mystery Series

by Christine Husom

We’re in the season of winter and I live in Minnesota, the Land of 10,000 Frozen Lakes. Christmas 2014 is now part of our memory banks, but I know there are people of all ages who were given a snow globe as a gift and are this very minute picking them up, giving them a shaking, and watching the snow settle over a wide variety of scenes.

From little on, I have been drawn to the seeming magic of snow globes. I loved giving them as gifts for my children because they always appreciated them. Even now, when I see one on display in a store, I can’t resist flipping it over then back again to see how the scene looks in a snow fall.

When the opportunity arose to write a series set in a shop that specializes in snow globes, it was a natural fit. The catch is that Camryn Brooks, the one running Curio Finds, never planned to do anything like that in her lifetime. She had a successful career as a senator’s legislative affairs director in Washington D.C., and thought she’d be working there forever.

But a scandal changed her career path and she returned to her hometown of Brooks Landing in a hurry. For how long, she had no clue. But it appears to be the best place for the time being. Her parents need help running Curio Finds, and an added bonus is Cami has a large family and many friends who love and support her, no matter what the media had to say about her.

The cast of characters who are part of a small community in Minnesota often get pulled from their day to day activities to deal with events that are anything but ordinary. Alice “Pinky” Nelson, Erin Vickerman, and Mark Weston are Cami’s childhood friends who stayed in Brooks Landing and are glad Cami came back. Pinky runs Brew Ha-Ha, a coffee shop adjoining Curio Finds.

When Snow Way Out opens, Jerrell Powers, a man that had wreaked havoc in Brooks Landing a few years before has returned to town. And Erin was one of his victims. Cami and Pinky are getting ready for a snow globe making class that evening, and they’re also wondering what Erin will do if she runs into her nemesis. What they have no way of knowing is the role Jerrell Powers will play in the evening’s events or how the night will end after the class is over.

This is a snippet from the back cover, “After the flurry of activity has ended and everyone has gone off with their handmade snow globes, Cami spots on a shelf a new globe left behind, featuring an odd tableau—a man sleeping on a park bench. On her way home, she drifts through the town park and is shaken to come upon the scene from the globe—a man sitting on a bench. But he isn’t sleeping—he has a knife in his back.”

I’d love to have you join me on this Snow Globe Shop Mystery series adventure, I hope you make the people of Brooks Landing and their relationships, and all the things they get involved with, a part of your reading pleasure.

About the Author:

christinehusomChristine Husom lives in Minnesota with her family. She is a small business owner and author of Murder in Winnebago County, Buried in Wolf Lake, and An Altar by the River, the first three in the Winnebago County mystery thriller series. She holds an undergraduate degree in business from Concordia University in St. Paul and a law enforcement certificate from Metropolitan State University in St. Paul. She is a former corrections officer, mental health practitioner, and deputy sheriff. Experience has taught her that fact truly is usually stranger than fiction. She enjoys reading, writing, family time, volunteer work, entertaining, gardening, and exercising.

Website/Facebook

9780425270806_medium_Snow_Way_Out

Curio shop manager Camryn Brooks thought she’d seen every kind of snow globe—until she saw one depicting a crime scene…

Ever since she was a child, Cami has loved the sparkling beauty of snow globes, and now, she sells them. In fact, they’re so popular, Cami and her friend—coffee shop owner Alice “Pinky” Nelson—are hosting a snow globe making class.

After the flurry of activity has ended and everyone has gone off with their own handmade snow globes, Cami spots a new globe left behind on a shelf, featuring an odd tableau—a man sleeping on a park bench.

On her way home, she drifts through the town park and is shaken to come upon the scene from the globe—a man sitting on a bench. But he isn’t sleeping—he has a knife in his back. When the police arrive, it’s clear they consider Cami a little flaky and possibly a suspect. After her friends also come under suspicion, Cami starts plowing through clues to find the cold-blooded backstabber—before someone else gets iced…

Amazon/B&N

Jennifer’s Review of Snow Way Out

Review (4 Stars): Great start to a new series and I just love the idea of a mystery with the heroine being the owner of a snow globe shop.  Camyrn Brooks runs Curio Shop, a lovely little shop that features snow globes, which is situated right next door to a coffee shop that is owned by her best friend, Pinky.  The girls decide to hold their first ever snow globe making class but find that the students have more in common than they originally thought.  When the body of Jerrell Powers is found in the park by Camryn, she learns that several members of her class had reasons for wanting him dead and finds herself on the hunt for a killer to keep herself from being sent to jail for a crime she didn’t commit.

I liked Camryn and I think that this is going to be a great series.  She is smart, intriguing and definitely doesn’t seem like someone that you can push around. I love the idea of having snow globes involved in the mystery and I think that this is a very creative idea for a mystery series.  Snow Way Out is a delightful new mystery that is sure to entertain readers and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

 Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of Snow Way Out. This giveaway is for US Residents only.  To be entered in the drawing by January 12th, please leave me a comment below:

Kelly & Kimberly review Hungry Like The Wolf by Paige Tyler

hungry like the wolfTITLE: Hungry Like the Wolf
SERIES #: SWAT #1
CHARACTERS: Gage Dixon & Mackenzie Stone
AUTHOR: Paige Tyler
PUBLICATION DATE: January 6, 2015
ORDER LINKS:Amazon| B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
INTRODUCING SWAT: SPECIAL WOLF ALPHA TEAM
They’re tight
They’re on target
They’re as alpha as men can get.

The Dallas SWAT team is hiding one helluva secret . . . they’re a pack of wolf shifters.

The team of elite sharpshooters is ultra-secretive—and also the darlings of Dallas. This doesn’t sit well with investigative journalist Mackenzie Stone. They must be hiding something . . . and she’s determined to find out what.

Keeping Mac at a distance proves impossible for SWAT team commander Gage Dixon. She’s smart, sexy, and makes him feel alive for the first time in years. But she’s getting dangerously close to the truth—and perilously close to his heart.

KELLY’S REVIEW:
3.75 Hearts Mackenzie Stone will do anything for a story. Her motto is “The truth should be told”, even if people get hurt. The story comes first. But Mac will soon learn that sometimes the truth can do more than hurt it can destroy.
Gage Dixon is the leader of the SWAT team. And he always puts his pack first. But when the nosey Ms. Stone butts her way into his life he either has to kick her to the curb and risk her finding out the true. Or pull her in and show her enough to throw her off the scent. Question is which is the lesser of the two evils?
This is going to be a good series I can see it already. I really did enjoy this first book. And like many first books in a series there is a lot of world building and history that needs to be laid out. So at times Hungry Like the Wolf was just a tad bit slow for me. At times I wanted to punt Gage & Mac both. But all in all I liked the story and can’t wait for more of these Wolf’s.

KIMBERLY’S REVIEW:
3 Hearts I had a hard time with this book. First I really didn’t feel like the characters had chemistry. I wasn’t too fond of the whole journalist thing and her using the team for information. I didn’t enjoy the writing very much and while I think the story had potential it didn’t meet it.

I really never became a fan of Mac’s. She seems cold and unfriendly, just like a stereotypical reporter, but maybe because of the beginning I never warmed up to her. Gage is good. I liked him. And I liked the Pack but just not the story. I didn’t like Mac’s reaction to finding out the info.

I am not sure why this book just didn’t sit well with me but it didn’t I am sorry to say.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book from NetGalley & Sourcebooks Casablanca in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

3hearts-68-77

Book Spotlight & Giveaway: Lie of the Needle by Cate Price

lie-of-needle-200

As the owner of Sometimes a Great Notion, a shop specializing in vintage sewing notions and antique treasures, Daisy Buchanan is a strong advocate of preserving the past. But when a killer strikes, she turns her attention to saving lives…

Talk about a great notion! As a fund-raiser to save a two-hundred-year-old farmhouse and stop an ambitious developer, the ladies of the Historical Society of Millbury, Pennsylvania, are producing a Hunky Men of Millbury calendar. Daisy is delighted to lend her support, and the female population of the village is abuzz with anticipation.

But after Daisy’s close friend Cyril doesn’t show up for his photo shoot and the calendar photographer is found dead, it’s beginning to look like the days may be numbered for the men of Millbury. Can a cryptic verse on an antique sampler help Daisy pin down the killer before another pinup runs out of time?

Amazon/B&N

About the Author:

cate-price-225Cate Price was born in England and came to the U.S. when she was sixteen. She spent her high school years translating her quaint English expressions for fellow classmates, and majored in Communications at Central Connecticut State University with an emphasis on Radio and TV production. She’s made a living as an actress, voice over artist, talent agent, waitress, bartender, casting director and real estate agent, until finally settling on her current occupation as Executive Assistant to a CEO.

She’s a regular sight on the streets of her home town walking her two amazing rescue dogs, and enjoys gardening, yard sales, and cooking with adventurous friends. Writing this Deadly Notions series proved to be rather a dangerous project, because while researching auction houses, she also became addicted to bidding on box lots.

Cate’s previous (unpublished) books span the genres of romantic comedy, romantic suspense and murder mysteries, and have won or finaled in numerous contests, including the prestigious Daphne Du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, and over the years has served as vice president, web mistress, treasurer, corresponding secretary, and contest coordinator, and has since learned not to volunteer at chapter parties where wine is involved. She is also a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Lie of the Needle

Review (4 Stars): This is the third book in the Deadly Notions mystery series and I have to say that this series is really starting to grow on me.  Daisy is such a delightful character and I love the idea of her selling collectable sewing items in her store which always puts her in the middle of a murder mystery.  In this story, the Millbury Historical society is hosting a fundraiser where they will be selling calendars featuring the men of Millbury.  On the night of the photo shoot of Daisy’s good friend, Cyril, something sinister happens which leaves the photographer dead and Cyril nowhere to be found.  As the hunt for answers begin, Daisy finds that there is more to this mystery than meets the eye and she fears that her friend may also be the victim of foul play.  Hopefully she can find the killer before it too late or everything they have worked for will go up in smoke.

Lie of the Needle is a charming addition to this intriguing mystery series and I enjoy spending time with this fun cast of characters.  The mystery in this story was very complex and I love the fact that I had no idea who it was until the great reveal.  In this story, we also get updates on the lives of secondary characters and love is definitely in the air in the small town of Millbury.  I was so glad that Eleanor found a second chance at love because she is my favorite character after Daisy.  Looking forward to reading the next book in the series to see what treasures and mysteries that Daisy finds next.

 

Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of Lie of the Needle. This giveaway is for US Residents only.  To be entered in the drawing by January 10th, please leave me a comment below:

Guest Blogger: Carolyn Brown

Hello and thank you for inviting me to Books-N-Kisses.Just reading the name of your site makes me smile. Nothing much better in this world than books and/or kisses!

In my newest release, The Trouble with Texas Cowboys, Sawyer O’Donnell and Jill Cleary had no idea that they were going to be sharing a bunkhouse until the deal was already done. Sawyer’s first thought, after Jill put down that shot gun she had trained on his chest, was Travis Tritt’s song, “T.R.O.U.B.L.E” and he wasn’t far from wrong. Before the night was done, two cowboys had already come to the door, hats in hand, asking Jill to go to Sunday dinner with them the next day.

Either one, Quaid Brennan or Tyrell Gallagher, could give Jill a life that any cowgirl could only dream about. A prosperous ranch, money to burn, a lifestyle of the rich and famous and the list went on from earth to eternity. So how in the hell did someone like Sawyer, who was the newly hired, ranch foreman stand a chance? Well, there’s more than one way to court a sassy red headed lady and not a single one of them involve spending tons of money.

Sometimes a foot rub can start off a beautiful relationship:

He picked up her feet and put them in his lap, massaging the soles through her socks. “I’m going to Wild Horse for dinner and River Bend for supper, but believe me, it’s not happening but this one time,” he said. “I’ll be ready for them next time around.”

She dramatically threw a hand over her eyes. “Next time? Shit! We’re going to have to outrun them again? That feels so good. Did you ever think of leaving ranchin’ and going into massage work?”

“No, ma’am. My heart is in ranchin’, but it makes a person plumb cranky to have achin’ feet.”

And then there’s daisies! Jill hates roses but neither of the two feuding families knew that about her and they brought roses. Since wild daisies aren’t blooming in the middle of winter, Sawyer finds things with daisies on them to surprise her, like setting an old cracked cookie jar in the middle of the table that had daisies painted on the lid.

Going to church with her on Sunday morning and sharing a hymn book. There’s something about letting the mind wander as the preacher talks that can create all kinds of sinful visions. A long, sexy shower together when he washes her hair and tells her that he’d planned to let her sleep late while he did their chores.

And slow dancing after the bar closes its doors. There’s just something about swaying to a country music song on the juke box that has “courting” written all over it.

So what would you consider the ultimate cowboy date? Does it involve wining and dining or would you rather have something like Sawyer gave Jill in The Trouble with Texas Cowboys?

 

*****

The Trouble with Texas Cowboys

trouble with texas cowboys

AmazonB&N

When Sawyer O’Donnell takes a ranch job on a whim, he lands smack dab in the middle of a Texas-sized feud! The Gallaghers and the Brennans are at each other’s throats to woo the red-headed spitfire, Jill Cleary, and stake a claim for the Fiddle Creek Ranch.

Jill makes Sawyer’s blood boil. They argue, they banter, but Sawyer soon goes from being driven crazy to crazy in love. Damned if he knows how that happened. But now that it has, how does he compete with two men that can give this cowgirl a lifestyle beyond her wildest dreams.

Make sure to check out Kelly’s review of The Trouble with Texas Cowboys HERE

 

carolyn brown author photoA little about Carolyn: 

Carolyn Brown is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author with more than 60 books published. Born in Texas and raised in southern Oklahoma, Carolyn and her husband now make their home in the town of Davis, Oklahoma. Carolyn’s first women’s fiction novel, The Blue Ribbon Jalapeño Society Jubilee is now available, and you can look for her next cowboy romance, Cowboy Seeks Bride in August 2013! For more information, please visit: www.carolynlbrown.com.

Kelly reviews The Trouble With Texas Cowboys by Carolyn Brown

trouble with texas cowboysTITLE: The Trouble with Texas Cowboys
SERIES #: Burnt Boot #2
CHARACTERS: Sawyer O’Donnell & Jill Clearly
AUTHOR: Carolyn Brown
PUBLICATION DATE: January 6, 2015
ORDER LINKS:Amazon| B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
When Sawyer O’Donnell takes a ranch job on a whim, he lands smack dab in the middle of a Texas-sized feud! The Gallaghers and the Brennans are at each other’s throats to woo the red-headed spitfire, Jill Cleary, and stake a claim for the Fiddle Creek Ranch.

Jill makes Sawyer’s blood boil. They argue, they banter, but Sawyer soon goes from being driven crazy to crazy in love. Damned if he knows how that happened. But now that it has, how does he compete with two men that can give this cowgirl a lifestyle beyond her wildest dreams

REVIEW:
4.5 Hearts Let the great pig wars begin…..

Sawyer O’Donnell is just trying to make a living doing what he loves more then anything. Ranching. But finding himself at the wrong end of a shotgun could end his dream before it begins. Only problem is that the feisty red-headed angel on the business side of the shotgun make him want more.

Jill Cleary doesn’t share well. But then he finds a man living in her bunkhouse she freaks a little. That is until the knocking and offer of dates start coming to there door. Then she realizes that This man maybe the only thing that can save her.

Loved this book!!! Love Sawyer and Jill. Loved Miss Piggy and Miss Chickadee. So glad that I picked up this book and gave Burnt Boot Texas a wehrl. If you love a good cowboy love story filled with mischief, mayhem, roses and daisies you really need to add this to your list of must reads. Can’t wait to see what happens next in this series.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley & SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

4 Hearts
4 Hearts

Kissin’ the week of Dec 29th- Jan 3rd Goodbye

12.29.14

Kelly’s interview with Tara Lain + a tour wide giveaway 

Felicity Heaton’s Winter Warmers Ebook Deals

Kelly reviews Served Hot by Marie Harte

12.30.14

Spotlight Feature of Taken by the Sheikh + a tour wide giveaway

Kelly & Kimberly review Blood Assassin by Alexandra Ivy

12.31.14

Kimberly reviews Make Me Lose Control by Christie Ridgway

Happy New Years Eve from BnK!

Gifts for the Book Lover #12

01.01.15

Natasha reviews Call Of The Dragon by Elianne Adams

Kelly reviews Her Secret Agent by Paige Tyler

01.02.15

Natasha reviews Rise Of The Phoenix by Elianne Adams

Kimberly reviews The Quick And The Undead by Kimberly Raye

01.03.15

SINsational Saturday Series

Duffy Brown’s Consignment Shop Mystery Series

 

Duffy Brown’s Consignment Shop Mystery Series

Iced Chiffon

Consignment Shop Mystery #1

Consignment Shop #1

There’s always something to gossip about in Savannah, Georgia, and Reagan Summerside always seems to be in the middle of it. She’s busy enough running her consignment shop, the Prissy Fox, with her vivacious auntie, KiKi, but now the gossip–and the sales–are about to pick up, after a gruesome discovery…

Reagan’s messy divorce has left her with nothing but a run-down Victorian and a bunch of designer clothes. Strapped for cash, Reagan makes use of the two things she has left, turning the first floor of her home into a consignment shop and filling it with the remnants of her rich-wife wardrobe.

Thanks to his cunning lawyer, Walker Boone, her ex got everything else, including the Lexus–not to mention a young blonde cupcake. When Reagan finds the blonde dead in the Lexus, she’s determined to beat Boone to finding the murderer. As it turns out, the gossip fiends flooding Reagan’s shop can give her a lot more than just their unwanted clothes–they have information more precious than a vintage Louis Vuitton…

*****

Killer in Crinolines

Consignment Shop Mystery #2

Consignment Shop #2

It’s August in Savannah, Georgia—hardly the season for a traditional Southern wedding with hoopskirts and crinolines. One could die from the heat—or from a cake knife in the back…

Reagan Summerside should be devoting all her energy to her consignment shop the Prissy Fox. But when her dear friend Chantilly Parker is arrested for murder, Reagan vows to clear her name. The victim is Simon Ambrose, who’s found lying in his own wedding cake with a knife in his back.

Chantilly has motive (Simon broke her heart to marry wealthy Waynetta Waverly) and opportunity (crashing the wedding in her UPS delivery truck). And she has cake on her face, and the stolen bridesmaid dress the killer wore is in her truck. But Chantilly would never wear crinoline to kill a man!

With the help of her flamboyant auntie, KiKi, and vexing but attractive attorney Walker Boone, Reagan is determined to save her friend—before she’s forced to turn in her brown uniform for an orange jumpsuit.

*****

Pearls and Poison

Consignment Shop Mystery #3

Consignment Shop #3

It’s election time in Savannah, Georgia, and Judge Guillotine Gloria—aka Reagan Summerside’s mom—is neck and neck in the polls with Kip “Scummy” Seymour.  But the already dirty campaign is about to get downright filthy—with one candidate getting buried six feet under….

With her strong opinions and knack for getting into trouble, Reagan is not an ideal volunteer for her mother’s alderman campaign. Plus, she’d rather be running her consignment shop, the Prissy Fox, and eating doughnuts with her dog, Bruce Willis. But when her mother’s opponent, Kip, is found poisoned and her mother is pegged as a suspect, Reagan nominates herself as lead murder investigator.

Reagan is intent on finding Kip’s killer and clearing her mother’s good name, but she soon finds herself on the bad side of Kip’s enemies-turned-suspects. This time, no amount of costumes and makeup can keep her inconspicuous and out of danger. Because the closer Reagan gets to the truth, the hotter things get.

 

 

Kimberly reviews The Quick And The Undead by Kimberly Raye

Quick and UndeadTITLE: The Quick and The Undead
SERIES #: Tombstone, Texas
CHARACTERS: Riley & Boone
AUTHOR: Kimberly Raye
PUBLICATION DATE: 12/31/14
ORDER LINKS:Amazon|B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Welcome to Tombstone, Texas, where anything is possible, even your wildest fantasy. Once a haven to outlaws, Tombstone is now a tourist town that gives travelers a taste of the old West. What visitors don’t realize, however, is that the super-hot cowboys, gunslingers, and lawmen walking the streets aren’t actors—they’re originals. These ancient vampires claimed Tombstone two centuries ago.

So step right up, folks, and book your trip today! The outlaws of Tombstone will be waiting . . .

Travel blogger Riley Davenport loves her job, travelling to the most exotic places in the world. Even better, it keeps her one step ahead of her stalking ex. The last thing she wants in her life is a strong alpha male. But that’s exactly what she gets when she comes face-to-face with Sheriff Boone Jarrett, a hero right out of her most erotic fantasies.

Boone isn’t just the law in Tombstone, Texas. He’s also an ancient vampire and the target of a crazed killer. He certainly doesn’t have time for romance. But a temporary fling? Now that he can handle.

Unfortunately, their first night together ends in disaster when Riley witnesses a murder. And to protect her, Boone forces her into hiding. Only her “captivity” ends up becoming the realization of her wildest, most carnal fantasies. Still, Riley’s not going to fall for him, at least that’s what she tells herself.

But as she gets to know him—the man and the vampire—she starts to wonder if she can hold out . . .

REVIEW:
This book had so much potential but it just didn’t meet up to it. I wanted to enjoy it. I mean what a great concept about original outlaw cowboys being vampires and now running a vacation spot to save their land. I really like the idea and if the story had been through a revision or two (or three) I think it would have worked.

First the good. The characters are interesting. Riley and Boone have an instant connection that continues throughout the whole book. The relationship between Tag and Belle is adorable and I look forward to hearing more about them. There was a bit of suspense. But I think some of the suspense was dropped without much-ado. I mean we heard so much about Phil and then he never shows up. So much could have happened to add to the story if he had shown up as well as the vampire who was there causing trouble.

Now the bad. The thing that drove me the craziest is how many times things were repeated. I mean you don’t need to tell the reader a half a dozen times that Riley had no childhood because of her father. We got it. Over and over we heard about her ex and how he was. Again we got it. And Boone’s father issues were repeated so many times I wanted to slap and tell him he was a outlaw get over it. And finally the fact that each time a character was mentioned we had to be told what he/she was (gunslinger/thief/etc). Maybe in the beginning but not every time.

I have to say usually at the end of vampire books something happens to the non-vampire causing the vampire to have to turn his/her love and they un-live happily ever after. Well that didn’t happen and it left me hanging. I mean what happens now? Will Riley eventually be turned? Will he only have her a few decades and then he moves on? What? BTW: I will never complain about the typical ending happening ever again.

As I said this book had a lot of potential and I wish it had actually met it.

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

3hearts-68-77

Natasha reviews Rise Of The Phoenix by Elianne Adams

rise of the phoenixTITLE: Rise of the Phoenix
SERIES #: Return to Avalore #2
CHARACTERS: Brienne & Evan
AUTHOR: Elianne Adams
PUBLICATION DATE: 11/30/14
ORDER LINKS:Amazon|

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Shattered by bitter rejection, Brienne Roberts flees Avalore. Taken in by the Erritols, she’s stunned at the kindness displayed by her supposed sworn enemies. The curse that surrounds her new family torments them, and she is determined to end it, no matter the cost.
Evan Mayfield, her named mate, will stop at nothing to eliminate all threats to his people. Discovering Brienne living with the man-beasts disgusts and infuriates him, but he must do his duty—to bring her back to face justice with her people, and himself.
Brienne’s pride cannot smother the undeniable love she has for Evan. And despite Brienne’s treachery, keeping her at arm’s length will be the hardest thing Evan has ever done.

REVIEW:
I just love this series so much! This is the second full length novel in the Return to Avalore series and features Evan and Brienne. Evan is the brother to the Queen of Avalore and his duty to protect his people has always come first in his life – until he finds he is to be mated to Brienne. Due to misunderstandings and equal amounts of stubbornness these two were torn apart from one another for years and an unlikely confrontation brings them together again.

I loved these two together! Brienne made an intriguing appearance in book one, Call of the Dragon and I couldn’t wait to learn more about her and Evan. Their story did not disappoint. The chemistry between these two is electric. I also loved how equal they were. They are both incredibly strong and capable individuals and are each protective of each other, but they are also understanding of each other’s abilities and strengths – it was refreshing. I also really enjoyed the story line in this story. Many lingering questions I’d had from book one were answered (yay!). I was interested the entire time and really loved seeing what life was like with the Erritrol’s. This author has done a great amount of world building and I will anxiously await all installments of this series.

Disclaimer:
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

5hearts-68-77