Category: B reviews (Page 61 of 74)

How to Misbehave by Ruthie Knox

February 5, 2013 / Kaetrin

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

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) What woman can resist a hot man in a hard hat? Beloved author Ruthie Knox kicks off her new Camelot series with this deliciously sexy original novella, in which a good girl learns how to misbehave . . . with all her heart.

As program director for the Camelot Community Center, Amber Clark knows how to keep her cool. That is, until a sudden tornado warning forces her to take shelter in a darkened basement with a hunk of man whose sex appeal green lights her every fantasy. With a voice that would melt chocolate, he asks her if she is okay. Now she’s hot all over and wondering: How does a girl make a move?Building contractor Tony Mazzara was just looking to escape nature’s fury. Instead, he finds himself all tangled up with lovely Amber. Sweet and sexy, she’s ready to unleash her wild side. Their mutual desire reaches a fever pitch and creates a storm of its own—unexpected, powerful, and unforgettable. But is it bigger than Tony can handle? Can he let go of painful memories and let the force of this remarkable woman show him a future he never dreamed existed?

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I enjoy Ruthie Knox’s style of writing, the sharp wit in particular. Amber is a “good girl” who wants to be a little bit bad and who gets and opportunity after she’s stuck in a shelter during a tornado, with bad boy Tony Mazzara. I liked her descriptions of Tony:

He wasn’t a big talker, and maybe that was because his voice was such a valuable substance, he had to ration it.

The Look of Love by Bella Andre, narrated by Eva Kaminski

January 31, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I listened to it: I saw this one at Audible and decided to give it a go. I’ve had the ebook on my TBR for a while. Sometimes, the audiobook is something I can get to earlier.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) With THE LOOK OF LOVE, bestselling author Bella Andre introduces you the Sullivan family. In this fun and emotional contemporary romance series, when a Sullivan bad boy falls…he falls hard. And it’s forever. Chloe Peterson is having a bad night. A really bad night. The large bruise on her cheek can attest to that. And when her car skids off the side of a wet country road straight into a ditch, she’s convinced even the gorgeous guy who rescues her in the middle of the rain storm must be too good to be true. Or is he? As a successful photographer who frequently travels around the world, Chase Sullivan has his pick of beautiful women, and whenever he’s home in San Francisco, one of his seven siblings is usually up for causing a little fun trouble. Chase thinks his life is great just as it is—until the night he finds Chloe and her totaled car on the side of the road in Napa Valley. Not only has he never met anyone so lovely, both inside and out, but he quickly realizes she has much bigger problems than her damaged car. Soon, he is willing to move mountains to love—and protect—her, but will she let him?

Chloe vows never to make the mistake of trusting a man again. Only, with every loving look Chase gives her—and every sinfully sweet caress—as the attraction between them sparks and sizzles, she can’t help but wonder if she’s met the only exception. And although Chase didn’t realize his life was going to change forever in an instant, amazingly, he isn’t the least bit interested in fighting that change. Instead, he’s gearing up for a different fight altogether…for Chloe’s heart.

All He Ever Desired by Shannon Stacey

January 30, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: All He Ever Dreamed just came out (I bought it straight away) and I realised I hadn’t got to this one yet. I do like to read in order, y’all.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) A second shot at first loveAfter college, Ryan Kowalski decided to leave Whitford, Maine, rather than watch Lauren Carpenter marry another man. Now his siblings need his help to refurbish the family-owned Northern Star Lodge and he’s forced to face the past sooner rather than later when he collars a vandal—and learns the boy is Lauren’s son…

The last person Lauren needs back in her life is Ryan Kowalski. With a bitter ex-husband and a moody teenage son, she has enough man trouble already. But her son needs to learn a few lessons about right and wrong, even if Lauren has to escort him to Ryan’s door every day to work off his crime.

With all this close contact, Ryan and Lauren can’t deny the chemistry between them is as powerful as ever. But can a few searing kisses erase their past and pave the way for a second chance at true love?

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I love the Kowalskis. From the very first line in the book I was kicking myself for taking so long to read it.

Because hectic Monday mornings didn’t suck enough all on their own merits, Lauren Carpenter managed to miss her lashes and apply mascara straight to her eyeball.

I knew it was going to be good. Then, a couple of pages later, Ryan arrives on scene:

Ryan Kowalski made very few mistakes when it came to running his business, but trapping himself in a pickup with an idiot definitely counted as one.

Room at the Inn by Ruthie Knox

January 23, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I picked this up from NetGalley. I have only read the Ruthie Knox story.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) ROOM AT THE INN by Ruthie KnoxCarson Vance couldn’t wait to get out of Potter Falls, but now that he’s back to spend Christmas with his ailing father, he must face all the people he left behind . . . like Julie Long, whose heart he broke once upon a time. Now the proprietor of the local inn, Julie is a successful, seductive, independent woman—everything that Carson’s looking for. But despite several steamy encounters under the mistletoe, Julie refuses to believe in happily ever after. Now Carson must prove to Julie that he’s back for good—and that he wants her in his life for all the holidays to come.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): Having read and enjoyed Ride with Me and About Last Night, I was keen to read the Christmas novella I’d heard a lot about on Twitter. I was prepared, from Brie’s review for the main characters to be flawed. I read somewhere (where I cannot now remember) about it being possible to perceive Julie as being somewhat stalker-y given that she moved to Potter’s Falls, donated a kidney to Carson’s mother, nursed his mother, took over all of her roles in the community etc. I suppose, partlybecause of all my prior reading, I didn’t find those things as problematic as I might otherwise have done. Perhaps, because of it, my take is a bit different to the other reviews I’ve read.

Love in the Aftenoon by Alison Packard

January 21, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I picked this one up from NetGalley. Given that I was addicted to Days of our Lives in the 80’s, the theme piqued my interest.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Kayla Maxwell is eager to shed her slasher-flick bimbo image—and she plans to do just that in her new role on daytime’s most popular soap. With a chance to showcase her dramatic range, Kayla will be able to wash away the lingering betrayal and public humiliation left by her controlling, philandering ex-boyfriend.Sean Barrett, the son of an influential, award-winning actor, is the hottest soap star in the country. Paired on-screen with the talented and beautiful Kayla Maxwell, Sean is determined to keep her at arm’s length, burned before by fame-seeking actresses who had no qualms about using him to get to his famous father.

But when Kayla receives threatening letters, her past as a scream queen seems to be coming back to haunt her. Succumbing to an attraction neither one of them can deny, Sean and Kayla must face down her stalker and their own personal demons before trusting what they both feel—a love that lasts long after the cameras stop rolling.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I enjoyed this one quite a bit. The writing style was easy and friendly and the stuff about working on a soap opera was fun. I kept trying to imagine whether Sean and Kayla’s on screen pairing was based on anyone – but I haven’t watched soaps for ages so I don’t know who the supercouples are anymore. When I was watching, in my teen years and just into my twenties, it was Bo and Hope on Days and Eden and Cruz on Santa Barbara (I’m dating myself big time here!). I think many soap fans like the idea of their favourite couples being real life couples and this book taps into the fantasy.

Addition by Toni Jordan

January 18, 2013 / Kaetrin

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Why I read it: I picked this one up from the library after seeing the author’s post on Anna Cowan’s blog. Happily it also qualifies for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2013.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Grace Vandenburg orders her world with numbers: how many bananas she buys, how many steps to the café, how many poppy seeds on her daily piece of orange cake.She always sits at the first available table, starting from the top left-hand corner and proceeding around the room and inwards in a clockwise direction.

Every morning she brushes her hair 100 times, brushes her teeth with 160 strokes of her toothbrush. She can remember the day she started to count, how she used numbers to organise her adolescence, her career, even the men she went out with.

But something has gone wrong. Grace used to be a teacher, but now she is living on sickness benefits; as the parent of one of her students put it, ‘she’s mad’. Her father is dead, her mother a mystery to her, her sister sympathetic but not finally able to understand.

Only her niece Hilly can connect with her. And Grace can only connect with Nikola—Nikola Tesla, the turn-of-the-century inventor whose portrait sits on her bedside table and who rescues her in her dreams. Then one day all the tables at the café are full. As she hesitates in the doorway a stranger invites her to sit with him.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): You might want to get a cup of tea because this is going to be long. Don’t say you weren’t warned!Usually when I struggle to finish a book, it is because the book isn’t very good. But that wasn’t the case here. I struggled because I found Grace’s situation so sad. The author did such a good job of setting up her character that I felt increasingly pessimistic that there could be an HEA. I took a break about half way through and read some other books – light sexy contemporaries as a bit of a palate cleanser. I picked the book up last night, thinking that I’d sneak in a couple of chapters and then take another break, but I found myself powering through to the end.