Category: B reviews (Page 39 of 74)

The Lonely Drop by Vanessa North

August 23, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: It was recommended to me all over the place. It’s also free as a free thing which is free. Extra bonus points for the clean formatting and good copy editing.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Dear Author,

Ten years ago, I turned him down.

One night stands were his norm, and not because he couldn’t have had a relationship if he’d wanted one. He could pretty much have any man he wanted. I walked away because I deserved better.

Now our paths have crossed again. He has the world at his feet. It’s a tempting thought to throw away my lifetime of ideals for a single night with him.

Do I still have the strength to walk away?

Do I even want to?

Photo Description:
Two men lie naked in bed. One is on his stomach, with his head out of the frame, the other strokes a hesitant hand down his lover’s back.

This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group’s “Love’s Landscapes” event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): Nick Hana and Kevin Dorsey have been best friends all through college. They’re both on the college soccer team and they’re both gay. They also have a lot of other things in common and have been very close. Nick is in love with Kevin but Kev gets around and is notorious for one-night stands. Nick is a firm believer in sex having to mean something. He doesn’t want to have sex for the sake of sex. He wants the relationship too. Believing he cannot get that from Kevin, they part the eve before graduation on unfriendly terms.

The Boss by Abigail Barnette

August 12, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I follow Jenny Trout (the author – Abigail Barnette is a pseudonym) on Twitter and I picked this one up some time ago when it was either free or 99c. At the time of writing, it was free from Amazon. The other books in the series are available from Kobo but I couldn’t find this one there for some reason.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Sophie Scaife almost ran away once, trading her ticket to college for a ticket to Tokyo. But a delayed flight and a hot one-night stand with a stranger changed her mind, putting her firmly on track to a coveted position at a New York fashion magazine.

When the irresistible stranger from that one incredible night turns out to be her new boss – billionaire and publishing magnate Neil Elwood – Sophie can’t resist the chance to rekindle the spark between them… and the opportunity to explore her submissive side with the most Dominant man she’s ever known.

Neil is the only man who has ever understood Sophie’s need to submit in the bedroom, and the only man who has ever satisfied those desires. When their scorching, no-strings-attached sexual relationship becomes something more, Sophie must choose between her career and heart… or risk losing them both.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I might be remembering wrongly but I think Jenny Trout is open about this being her attempt at writing a Fifty Shades of Grey/Crossfire type book; except better. There is the billionaire and the young girl, kinky sex, a work connection and drama-llama. I’ve never read Fifty and I don’t plan to. I read and really liked Bared to You but I haven’t read beyond book two of that series because I lost interest. I think this book is better. And there are a number of reasons for that. Let me explain. *beckons*

Peanut Goes to School by Thea Harrison

July 18, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I received a copy from the author via NetGalley.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Dragos Cuelebre is no longer the only dragon.

Dragos’s son Liam Cuelebre (a.k.a. Peanut) is springing into existence, reminiscent of the first of the Elder Races who were born at the beginning of the world. At just six months of age, he has already grown to the size of a large five-year-old boy. He can read, write in complete sentences, and his math skills are off the chart.

A white dragon in his Wyr form, Liam also holds more Power than almost anyone else. In an effort to give him a taste of normality, no matter how fleeting, his parents Pia and Dragos enroll him in first grade.

They hope school will help teach Liam how to relate to others, a vital skill that will help him control his growing Power. But school has a surprising number of pitfalls, and relating to others can be a tricky business.

When a classmate is threatened, Liam must quickly learn self-control, how to rein in his instincts, and govern his temper, because there’s no doubt about it—he is fast becoming one of the most dangerous creatures in all of the Elder Races.

Warning: Series spoilers follow

What worked for me (and what didn’t): Peanut Goes to School follows on about a month after the events in Pia Saves the Day. Pia asked Liam to be a “big soldier” so he “pushed” and grew bigger overnight – he’s only six months old chronologically but he looks like he’s about five or six. Because Liam is surrounded by adults, Pia and Dragos decide it is important to send him to school so he can socialise with other children. He needs to learn how to interact with people and to control himself (there was an incident with some cows). His parents realise they have little time before he’s apparently an adult and once he’s bigger he will be that much more powerful. He doesn’t need the curriculum for education purposes. Liam is wicked smart. But he needs to play and interact with other kids.

Much of the story is told from Liam’s POV and he remains charming and cute. He does have to learn to control his temper because he is very strong and very powerful but the good news is that the control he has to learn is in the role of protector not villain.

Losing Control by Jen Frederick

July 8, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I received a review copy via the author.

ETA April 2015: At the time I accepted/read the book and wrote the review, I didn’t know Jen Frederick was also Jane Litte from Dear Author. No Jen Frederick books have been reviewed by me, anywhere, since I became aware of this and, given my existing relationship with Jane, I will not be reviewing any more of her books. I will continue to update my personal Goodreads account with all the books I read as per usual but, consistent with my review policy, there won’t be further formal reviews of Jen Frederick’s work.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) I’d do anything to keep my mother alive.

Anything, including ask Ian Kerr for help. I don’t know much about him, except that he has more money than some small countries. And he’s willing to spend it on me. Just one catch: there’s a string attached, and not just the one I feel pulling me into his arms and his bed. There’s also the plan for revenge he wants my help with.

Every time he says my name, it makes my body shiver and my heart stutter. I know he’s going to wreck me, know there won’t be anything left of me but lust and sensation by the time he’s done with me, but even though I can see the heartbreak coming towards me like a train, ready to crash into me, I can’t get out of the way. I want what he makes me feel. Want what he’s offering.

This may have started out as something to save my mother, but now…now it’s about what he makes me feel. I’m in danger of losing everything that’s important. Worse? Ian’s whispered words and hot caresses are making me believe that’s okay.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I confess I hadn’t planned to read this one quite yet. But I saw ~~Mandi’s~~ Tori’s Smex Scene Sunday which featured an excerpt from Losing Control and I decided to bump it up the queue. You may make of that what you will :P.

I guess this is Jen Frederick’s take on the billionaire/ingenue trope but while it conforms to the trope in many ways, it breaks the mold in others and I found it a very entertaining read. It is the first book in a series (there is another book to be released later this year, which I understand will be told from Ian’s POV but will not be merely a re-hash of what happened in this one – I stand to be corrected on that) but it does have a satisfying HFN ending, which you could take as a HEA if you really wanted to. You’d hardly have to squint.

Real Feelings by Charlotte Stein (Summer Rain anthology)

July 6, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: This book of “novelettes” contains offerings by some of my favourite authors and proceeds go to a worthy cause.

I decided to review Real Feelings separately for a couple of reasons:

1. The review for the entire anthology was way too long and the section about Real Feelings was the longest individual bit.

2. I had lots of thoughts about the story which I wanted to tease out separately to the other novelettes in the anthology.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) What happens when love gets caught in the rain?

In this romance anthology, RITA-Award winning author Molly O’Keefe shows us the power of a city thunderstorm from the top of a skyscraper, while Amy Jo Cousins soaks us in a rain in Spain. New York Times bestselling author Ruthie Knox’s heroine is devastated by a winter storm, while a summer thunderstorm grants Alexandra Haughton’s hero and heroine a second chance at love. Rain sparks self-awareness in the robot in Charlotte Stein’s story and allows Mary Ann Rivers’s heroine to fall in love with her hero and her own art. Rain causes romance between the college students in Audra North’s and Shari Slade’s stories, while romance causes rain in Cecilia Tan’s myth-inspired tale of a sacrifice to a demi-god. Nine romance novelettes, edited by Sarah Frantz.

All proceeds from the volume will be donated to the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (www.rainn.org), the largest anti-sexual violence organization in the United States

What worked for me (and what didn’t): What a fascinating concept this story had. Set some unspecified time in the future, a woman buys an android, basically as a sex toy. But when she turns him on (heh) she finds that issues of will and consent are important and she struggles with the morality of their “relationship”. He was programmed to serve her in any capacity she wishes. He has no free will, She literally owns him. The Dear Reader note at the front indicates that Ms. Stein wanted to explore these kinds of issues in a “safe” kind of way and it is a very novel idea indeed. Moira feels so uncomfortable with her power over her android, she does not immediately seek a sexual relationship with him – even though that’s what she bought him for. I suppose it is spoilerish to say that the android (who calls himself Michael), becomes sentient but I felt it was the intention of the plot all along so I don’t feel major qualms about letting it slip here. (Also, the blurb gives it away.) And it is in this aspect I found the most things to ponder and talk about anyway. Michael says:

“The more I saw you angry at the idea of owning me, the more I imagined deciding for myself. The more I became Michael. You made it all right for me to become Michael.”

Summer Rain anthology

July 4, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: This book of “novelettes” contains offerings by some of my favourite authors and proceeds go to a worthy cause. Which is a bonus but not why I bought it. (Does that make me a bad person?)

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) What happens when love gets caught in the rain?

In this romance anthology, RITA-Award winning author Molly O’Keefe shows us the power of a city thunderstorm from the top of a skyscraper, while Amy Jo Cousins soaks us in a rain in Spain. New York Times bestselling author Ruthie Knox’s heroine is devastated by a winter storm, while a summer thunderstorm grants Alexandra Haughton’s hero and heroine a second chance at love. Rain sparks self-awareness in the robot in Charlotte Stein’s story and allows Mary Ann Rivers’s heroine to fall in love with her hero and her own art. Rain causes romance between the college students in Audra North’s and Shari Slade’s stories, while romance causes rain in Cecilia Tan’s myth-inspired tale of a sacrifice to a demi-god. Nine romance novelettes, edited by Sarah Frantz.

All proceeds from the volume will be donated to the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (www.rainn.org), the largest anti-sexual violence organization in the United States.

Note: Some of the stories deal with issues of abuse, sexual and otherwise and/or violence. Some readers might find them triggering to read/read about.

Redemption by Ruthie Knox: There is a “Dear Reader” letter in the front of each of the novelettes. Ms. Knox says Redemption is a sad story. And it is. Both Jessie and Mike are sad. They’ve been beaten down by life and are just about at the end of their respective ropes. Unfortunately and partly because the story is short, I found the characterisation, especially in relation to Mike to be a little thin and I didn’t see what attracted him to her and from her side of things, what made him someone more than she wanted to have sex with. Because for a year, they didn’t talk and he didn’t smile and they didn’t share anything important apart from some good sex and in the end, I didn’t buy the commitment because I didn’t see enough of those things within the story itself. The writing has a kind of haunting melancholy quality to it and there were parts which we quite lovely. Short stories often work better for me when they are about people who already know each other. But this story seemed to take pains to tell me they didn’t know each other that well really so I was left a little unconvinced.