Kat Morrisey: Lost & Found In Fiction

Back On Track

2013-05-19T11:23:00.001-04:00

After two Sundays of rest and relaxation I am back with my Week in Review and weekly ROW80 updates. I know, you guys missed me, right?! Unfortunately today will be relatively quick as I have a busy day ahead of me. I have plans to write, read and and, eventually, mowing the lawn. If it stops raining. I hope it does, cause I really need to get on that. There's a whole lot of other things on my to-do list too and I want to get as much done as I can so I'm not bogged down this week.

On the blog this week I reviewed the first in Tessa Dare's Spindle Cove series, A Night To Surrender. I seriously love this book and this entire series. The fourth novel (there are two novellas in the series as well) will be released on May 28th. I cannot wait!

I also found two highlander romances at the library by Paula Quinn, Laird of the Mist (MacGregors, #1) and A Highlander Never Surrenders (MacGregors, #2), that I read this week. I really enjoyed both of them and gave them each 4 stars on Goodreads. Her characters are well developed but it was the research she clearly did that had a huge impact on me. She gave a pretty accurate portrayal of Scotland during that time and the fighting between clans, as well as the issues between England and Scotland. Often times in historicals/highlanders actual facts are glossed over so this was a nice change.

On a side note, I am loving being able to download eBooks from my library. However, as I noted on twitter this week, I am pretty impatient. The eBooks can be out for 14 days and for me, who reads fast, I'm practically jumping out of my chair as I wait for others ahead of me in the 'hold' line to get done. Yeah, this is something I need to work on.

Also, has anyone else noticed an uptick in twitter drama of late? I love twitter, but lately it's like there is drama and/or controversy every time I turn around, especially with authors. Maybe it's always been there and I've only just noticed it because I'm more active on twitter of late. I don't know, but whatever it is, it's making me need to turn away from social media more and more so I can focus. This might be a good thing because focusing on my to-do list and WiPs is of course a priority but still, I'll be happy when things settle down. I don't like drama and conflict. It makes me twitch.

Anyways, back to more important things. Here's my ROW80 update:

Write every day: I hit 5 out of 7 days. Not too bad but next week I hope to make it every day.
Review minimum of 3 books per week via the blog or GR: See above for the break down.
Post my Sunday ROW80 update: Done
Finish organizing all WiPs and make a plan: In progress. I've gone through my outlines and cleaned those up a bit, added info where I needed to, and started to prioritize them in a way that makes a reasonable amount of sense in terms of order to write them in. Now I have to move on to the WiPs I have half started, nearly finished, etc. There are a bunch of those. I have to read through each this week and see if they are salvageable or if I should toss 'em.
Workout a minimum of 3 times per week: Well, I didn't get any yoga in but I did take a couple walks. I'm dog sitting for a month while my uncle has surgery on his back and the dog likes his walks. In addition to walking I've also been doing a bunch of yard work. I am trying to get more comfortable about being outside in nature. It would be perfect if the bees just left me alone but I swear my face is on a "Most Wanted" poster somewhere in the buzzing insect community. Every time I step outside they freaking find me! So yeah, I gotta work on this still. :D

Anyways, that was my week. Not too exciting but at least somewhat productive. My goals for next week will remain the same and hopefully next Sunday I can tack on some others. I hope everyone had a great week and good luck!

Book Review: A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare

2013-05-15T10:42:00.001-04:00

Title: A Night to Surrender (Spindle Cove #1)
Author: Tessa Dare
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: August 30, 2011

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

From Goodreads

A peaceful resort by the sea, Spindle Cove is a retreat for Regency ladies—offering intelligent, often unconventional women a temporary escape from men and their madness. Unfortunately for Miss Susanna Finch, the seaside safe haven she has so painstakingly nurtured is no longer quite so safe. The Cove’s been invaded—not by Napoleon’s forces, but by battle-weary, barely civilized, dangerously handsome men.

Victor Bramwell, the new Earl of Rycliff, knows he doesn’t belong in Spindle Cove. So far as he can tell, there’s nothing in this godforsaken place but spinsters… and sheep. But he’s stuck here—with orders to gather a local militia. It’s a simple mission, made complicated by the spirited, exquisite Susanna. Not only has she driven all red-blooded men from the place with her "modern" notions, but her lively wit and tempting beauty are distractions Bram doesn’t need.

Bram fears he may have met his match, for Susanna won’t easily surrender.

The scene is set for an epic battle ... but who can be named the winner, when both have so much to lose?

My Thoughts:

This series, along with Maya Banks' Highlander series, has brought me back to loving (and seriously glomming on) historical and highlander books. I'd been in a bit of a book funk of late and everything I read was all the same. The contemporaries the PNRs, it was all just melding into one glob of sameness and nothing was holding my interest. I realized I needed variety in my reading genres. And I also realized I needed to space things out. Reading and reviewing contemporary after contemporary was wearing me out on hte genre. So I looked back, searching for historicals and highlanders, that caught my interest to give me a bit of distance. One of the authors I kept seeing come up was Tessa Dare so I grabbed the first in her Spindle Cove series and I fell in love with it, and the genre, all over again.

Bram and Susanna. Oh how I loved these two. Their story was so beautiful, funny, steamy, sexy and had me even tearing up in a few places. Susanna's independence and her reasons behind it both tugged at my heart strings and made me cheer for her. She was doing what she could to help others like her while at the same time resigned to her fate as a spinster. Or so she thought. When Bram and his friends blast into her life (literally) this sets of a chain of events that slowly allows Susanna to see she can be more than just a spinster. She can love and be loved, and still be independent. In fact, I think that's why Bram and Susanna fit so well together. As much as he (Bram) seemed to get exasperated by her need to do things on her own, he seemed to also respect her for it. But I gotta say, watching Bram break down her walls, slowly but surely, until they finally came together...*sighs* I admit, I might have swooned a bit.

The writing and plot were tight. The characters were well developed and had real issues they were dealing with. The end wasn't rushed and it came to a reasonable (and believable) conclusion. But what I think is most notable of this book is the world that Ms. Dare created. She has a whole slew of secondary characters in this community that she managed to make interesting and this is what made me want to read the next book, and the next, and then wait anxiously for the release of the third novel in the series. (Note: there are 2 novellas in this series as well. See the series page on Goodreads for the order).Not many others can make a whole town seem like a place I not only would want to visit, but a place I'd like to spend a considerable amount of time in, getting to know the residents and join in the often humorous situations the residents find themselves in. (I'm thinking of the tea shop incident here but I won't say more than that. It was both horrifying -for Susanna and the ladies- and humorous at the same time!)

I've read the other two novels in this series and will be reviewing those on the blog soon. But seriously, if you're looking to get into historicals with some seriously sexy, strong heroes and feisty, independent women (and the sexy times -and tension- that come along with all that) get thee to Amazon or Barnes & Noble, or wherever it is you purchase your books. Make haste people. Make haste!

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Getting Back To Writing & ROW80

2013-05-14T08:45:00.000-04:00

The last two weeks have been insanity. I've barely posted. As a matter of fact, I haven't posted at all. I've only gotten my daily writing in a handful of times. Instead, I've been working, grading papers, reading when I can and falling asleep on the couch way too early. I blame this on a lot of things: work, of course. It's the end of the semester and if anyone has seen my recent tweets you'd see many consist of me being buried in papers and finals and trying to close out the semester for my students. When I get done grading 50 critical essays I find my brain is numb and I'm not very good at putting words down on the page at that point. So I read. Or sleep.

But also I've had a lot of little league and softball games to go to during the week and on the weekend. My niece has three games a week; my nephew has two. This doesn't include spring concerts of which my niece is in three. (She is in chorus and chorale. She's a busy kid!)

I feel bad for the slacking. And I hate not writing. It makes me twitch to not find time to tap out words onto the computer screen. And the lack of blogging is frustrating cause of course I have lots to say, just not a lot of time to sit at the computer and ya know, actually say it. But at the same time I've enjoyed spending lots of time with my niece and nephew. They are growing up so fast-she's 14, he'll be 13 later this summer-and I don't want to miss a minute of it. I know it sounds cheesy, but what can I say? I guess I'm becoming a sap in my middle age!

But with classes over, my grading done and just waiting to be submitted (I can't officially hit 'submit' on the grades until Friday) time is opening up for me. I can now get back to the WiPs that have been languishing and type up a few rough outlines I've been scribbling on a legal pad for future stories. I'm excited to jump back in. I know two weeks isn't all that long, but for me, who was writing every day, I feel a bit lost.

But I won't stress over getting back into the swing of things for long. I'm just going to jump right in. Starting this morning. No time like the present, right?

As for my ROW80 goals, I've done a bit of tweaking. My overall goal for the round of finishing the revisions of Wanted (as indicated in my starting post for Round 2) will remain the same but I am tweaking my weekly goals as follows:

Write every day: Camp NaNo is done so my focus will be on revisions of Wanted and the Camp NaNo still untitled project but I'm open to working on any of my WiPs as long as I am writing every day.
Review minimum of 3 books per week via the blog or GR: I will get back on track with this. I have so many reviews to post that are in my draft folder. Gah!
Post my Sunday ROW80 update
Finish organizing all WiPs and make a plan: One of my larger goals for this Round was to go through and get myself together, prioritize, and make a plan. This will now be a weekly goal until I finish it.
Workout a minimum of 3 times per week: In my 2 week hiatus I am happy to say I was doing this. Yay! Well, if you count all the outdoor work I've been doing and the lawn mowing. (I have a huge backyard and a push mower so yeah, my legs and arms have been getting a workout!)

My other overall goal for round 2 has been completed: completing Camp NaNo. I'm glad I did it. It was a long and exhausting month but I have proven to myself that I can write a heck of a lot of words in a month's time that don't completely suck. :D This will bode well for the other WiPs I have on the back-burner, I hope!

I hope everyone is having good luck with completing their goals! Oh, and LET'S GO RANGERS! Yeah, it's playoff time again in hockey!

Three Days Until Camp NaNo Comes To A Close...

2013-04-28T13:18:00.002-04:00

And I'm trying to take deep, calming breaths, because I can finish this. Right? I should, by Tuesday, have hit my word count goal of 30K for the month of April. (This was 30K words in addition to the 38K the WiP already had when I started ) Right now I think I am about 6500 words shy of this goal. I bet you can guess what I will be doing the next couple days.

Because of my need to get lots of words down (and preferably words that don't completely suck) I will do a fairly short (at least for me) week in review. On the blog this week I reviewed the following:

Conviction by Nicole Edwards (Club Destiny, #1): I rated this 3 stars. It was good, but I did have some issues with it that I go through in my review. I will be reading other books by this author though in hopes that the issues I had with the narrative improve.

Star Crossed by Kele Moon (Battered Hearts, #2): 5 stars for this one. This was such a great mix of romance and the suspense plot was great. It had be on the edge of my seat towards the end. The main characters were so adorable but they could certainly burn up the sheets.

As for my ROW80 goals, here's how I did:

Write every day: I did write every day however much of my writing was in the realm of revising. As I am getting close to the end of Camp NaNoWriMo I have been going through my WiP and seeing where I need to add missing scenes. This is exciting and terrifying since it basically means that, yep, I have my third book done. This will also mean that for the rest of this ROW80 Round, I will be focused on revisions and edits of this WiP and Wanted. (The latter is close to being done though, thank goodness!) But still, after years of not ever finishing the books I've begun to write, now to have one submitted to publishers and two drafts complete and moving to the revise/edit phase, well, it's a bit overwhelming.
Review minimum of 3 books per week via the blog or GR: I was able to hit two of these this week. I also finished reading two other books that I am in the process of writing reviews for. So I guess two out of three ain't bad.
Post my Sunday ROW80 update: Done!
Complete all outstanding grading: Um, erm...just ignore the stack of papers on my desk.
Prepare final exam: In progress.
Work out twice per week: I am super excited to say that I got in two workouts. I am still taking it slow, doing yoga and stretching routines as opposed to heavy cardio, but still, working out is working out! In addition to that I worked in the garden for an hour this morning before it got too hot out: pulling weeds, transferring plants from area to another, shoveling, watering, and well, other garden-type things. I don't know if that counts as a workout but ya know, I was wiped out after and muscles I didn't even know I had were aching (in a good way).

My goals for next week are the same. Classes are winding down so this week and next I will be hip deep in grading students' research papers, final exams and calculating grades but I will do my best to get my daily writing in! I hope everyone is having a great round and see you around the ROW!

Book Review: Star Crossed by Kele Moon (Battered Hearts #2)

2013-04-25T19:09:00.001-04:00

Title: Star Crossed (Battered Hearts #2)

Author: Kele Moon

Publisher: Loose Id LLC

Publication Date: July 3, 2012

My Rating: 5 out 5 Smoking Hot Stars!

This is the second book in the Battered Hearts series, focusing on MMA fighters (current and retired) and the women who love them. I liked the first in this series, Defying the Odds a lot but this second book, Star Crossed, is a huge 5 star read that I could not get enough of.

From Goodreads:

Heavyweight MMA fighter, Romeo Wellings comes from the hard streets of New York where his family ties to the mafia cause him nothing but pain. His life takes a surprising detour when he crosses paths with the twin sister of his long time enemy. After a steamy one-night stand, he faces the fight of his life, but it’s not in the cage. The secret relationship that blooms between Romeo and his real life Juliet has him battling his family and a dark past rather than let her go.   

The only lawyer in her hometown of Garnet, Jules Conner is also a volunteer Sheriff’s deputy and co-owner of a successful MMA training center. Strong and dependable, Jules is always there for those who need her. Until one forbidden night in Las Vegas with Romeo leaves her feeling so alive she can’t stop reaching out to the sexy, bad boy of MMA, even knowing the forbidden love affair could jeopardize everything.  

As the tide rises against them and the people they love work at keeping them apart, Romeo and Jules hold onto a dream for a better life together and vow to go down fighting rather than accept a tragic ending.

My Thoughts:

I cannot begin to tell you how much I loved this book. I mean, I'm going to tell you, of course I am. This is a book review after all. But it's hard to find the words to describe how freaking amazing this book is. Let me try to explain what I mean. Those who know me (or have looked at my Goodreads "read" shelf) will notice that I read a lot. I also re-read a lot. I have a ton of books on my Kindle app and my Nook that I still have not read. And don't get me started on the paperback books I have or the ones I get from the library. But despite all these there are times, like the last two weeks, where I have trouble finding a book that really grabs my attention. I have done a lot of re-reads of faves lately because everything I picked up was just "blah". Either it was too much sexy and not enough plot, or too much inner dialogue and not enough action/communication. I just couldn't find books that grabbed me.

But this changed when I realized I had yet to read Star Crossed by Kele Moon. As I mentioned earlier, I had read the first in this series and liked it a lot. I gave it 4 stars on Goodreads. I figured this would be around the same in it's awesomeness but Romeo and Juliet surpassed all my expectations.

I loved Juliet. At first I thought, "Okay, a book with the MCs named Romeo and Juliet; please let this not be hokey." And I am happy to say it was not in any way cheesy. It's freaking perfect. I loved Romeo with his shady past and his love for his Juliet and I loved even more how much Juliet wanted to give Romeo happiness and love because he deserved it and had to struggle so much in his life. Their relationship was not ordinary by any means. The book picks up after the end of Defying the Odds and we see just how Romeo Wellings and Juliet Connors met, went to dinner and well, progressed from there. The two weren't able to be together as much as they'd like, at least in the beginning. But seeing how they made this work and began to fall in love even across the miles was the sweetest thing I ever read.

What about the all important hotness and sex factor? Well in a word, or a few, that was super, smokin, hot. The phone sex, the video chat, the actually being together. Holy freaking smokes people! Have some ice water nearby. Or your guy. Because Kele Moon knows how to write a sex scene that not only oozes sex but has emotional depth as well. This is not easy to do so I give her serious props for that.

I mentioned that the plot was tight, right? I think I did. And it was. I loved the back story of both Romeo and Juliet, and the relationship Romeo had with his brothers, and Juliet had with Wyatt (her twin), was one of love and complications. These complications didn't make it easy for Romeo to be with his Juliet, and at one point I really thought things were going to go south for them. The fight they had? And what Wyatt did? Ohmigod, I was freaking out! I needed to know what was going to happen and then when it all came to a head?! Frakin A, Ms. Moon, next time just punch in me face, because seriously I was getting all teary eyed and wondering what the hell had happened!

The next book in this series is about Wyatt and Tabitha. I am anxiously awaiting this one cause Wyatt needs some serious lovin' and an HEA. And just, fyi, after reading this, Kele Moon is going to be getting her own shelf on my Nook Color. And I'm also going to glom her backlist. Like seriously glom people because I have a new fave author! ♥ This book, and the first one too, will also be going on my Nook's "re-reads" shelf. (See! I am serious guys. I don't re-read all my books. Only a small portion, so the fact that this gets included is a big deal. Well, okay not really, but it's a big deal for me. :D )

So the bottom line is if you love MMA, or just hot guys in general, strong women, solid story lines and a tightly written (and well edited) book, you might want to check out this author. I would suggest reading the stories in order so you know the players and what happened at the end of the first book which bleeds into the second. Also, for those wondering, neither book has a cliffhanger in regards to the main couple. (And thank goodness cause cliffhangers... *shudders*).

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

Book Review: Conviction (Club Destiny #1) by Nicole Edwards

2013-04-22T12:52:00.000-04:00

Conviction by Nicole Edwards
Publishing Date: July 29, 2012
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I am having a hard time rating this. A really hard time. So let me break it down a bit. First, the sex is well, seriously hot. Like even I was all "Woah" a few times at what the main couple were doing so if you are at all squeamish about intense sex, menage, a 4some, and even some m/m action between two other characters, well, this might not be for you. And even though I was all "woah" it didn't make me stop reading. (I've been reading Stephen King and other horror novelists since I was 12, so seriously people, not much bothers me, whether it's sex, violence or whatever.)

What is making me bring this down from a 4 star (because seriously, I liked the story, I liked how Logan was trying to get Sam to lose some of the tight control she had on her entire life) and had me wavering at the 2 star rating (meaning it was okay), was the narrative itself. There was a lot of head talking. Don't get me wrong, I get that this happens in narrative such as this, but it was just too much. And I also did not like how Sam kept running, refusing to communicate with Logan at times, even by phone. This pissed me off and made me want to slap her, hard. Or tell Logan to go find someone else, someone who is more deserving than Sam. I get she was hurt by a relationship in the past, I get she was cautious, but going incommunicado after everything they went through (Especially towards the end of the book) just was not cool.

Oddly, even though I liked Logan, it was his twin brother Luke, who intrigued me the most. I can't wait to read his story and I really hope that there is less intense head talking and more, well, talking, talking. :D Overall, a good read and I look forward to reading more from this author.

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

View all my reviews

Little Progress This Week: A ROW80 Update

2013-04-21T09:36:00.001-04:00

Tragic, sad, gut wrenching horrifying, terrifying and finally triumph as the manhunt for the perpetrators of the Boston Marathon ended. And then there was the explosion in West, Texas that occurred, killing many volunteer firefighters and EMS workers. Again: tragic, sad, gut wrenching, horrifying and terrifying. My heart goes out to those affected by these tragedies and they are all in my thoughts and prayers. Also, to the cops, firefighters, EMS, federal officials, members of the military and other heroes and heroines who do the hard work every day of trying to keep us safe: thank you for everything you do. I don't say it enough, but I should. And after this week and seeing these men and women run towards the danger instead of away from it -just like so many did on 9/11- I plan on saying it more often.

Because of the events this week I, like so many, have been restless. I moved through the week as if on autopilot, getting my work done, reading, always keeping an eye and ear on the news, and trying to get some sleep. I say trying because my insomnia came back with a vengeance this week. This tends to occur whenever I'm worried or anxious and well, what can I say: this was a week full of worrying and anxiety. From this point on all I want the world to experience is that which includes rainbows and unicorns

So how did I do with ROW80? Well, not great. My progress is seriously lacking. This means I am way behind on Camp NaNo too. I guess I better get my butt in my chair today and get my fingers
moving. Here's how I did:

Write every day: So much for maintaining the progress I'd been making both on my Camp NaNo project and the revisions/edits of Wanted. I wrote Monday and Tuesday and for about 30 minutes yesterday. Yeah, I sucked this week.
Review min. 3 books per week on the blog and/or GR: I only achieved one book review this week and that was Enslaved by Shoshanna Evers. I received this ARC via Netgalley. I did read this week, but they were comfort re-reads for me. I need to get on this goal though because I have so many books I need to read and want to review.
Post a Sunday ROW80 Update: Done
Catch Up On Grading: Well, I have about half of it done. I don't know if I can finish them today either but I am going to try and get through at least half of the half.
Work out once per week: I didn't get a full workout in this week. Well at least not all once. Because of work, my niece's first softball game of the season and the wacky weather, I had to resort to short bursts here and there. Not ideal, but it's better than nothing I guess!

Next week my goals will be:

Write every day
Review minimum of 3 books per week via the blog or GR
Post my Sunday ROW80 update
Complete all outstanding grading
Prepare final exam
Work out twice per week

I've added a few other things to my goal list and I am hoping that I can get back on track starting today. I hope everyone has a quiet, calm, and relaxing week with nothing but sunshine, roses and those rainbows and unicorns I mentioned. Have a great week!

Book Review: Enslaved by Shoshanna Evers (Enslaved Trilogy #1)

2013-04-16T19:19:00.000-04:00

Title: Enslaved (Enslaved Trilogy #1)
Author: Shoshanna Evers
Publisher: Pocket Star
Publication Date: April 8, 2013

My rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

From Goodreads:

From a red-hot erotica writer comes an original eBook—a sensual romp across the playgrounds of the unbelievably rich and extremely sexy.Elisabeth Anderson has seen Trevor and his friends at the infamous Manhattan BDSM club WhipperSnapper, where everyone calls them the BAD Boys, for “Billionaire Arrogant Doms.” The BAD Boys—Trevor Brooks, Marc Wilde, and Roman Chase—are aptly named; they’ve made money hand over fist due to their aggressive investing at the Brooks Wilde Chase Fund. These guys are so rich they can get away with anything, or so the rumors go.

Trevor gives Elisabeth full reign of his estate in Westchester, letting her do as she pleases. He has only two rules. Rule One: she must obey and submit to him while she is living in his house. Rule Two: always answer the blue cell phone. She’s happy to oblige, because being with Trevor makes her want to obey, to love him the way he seems to be falling for her. But Elisabeth’s never been good at being the quiet sub; she's feisty and gets off on the punishments more than she does by pleasing Trevor.

Elizabeth can’t submit to Trevor the way he needs her to, so his friend and business partner (and fellow BAD Boy) Roman takes her in hand. But love triangles can have sharp edges...and somebody’s bound to get hurt.

My Thoughts:

Yes, Ms. Evers, triangles do have sharp edges. And yours hurts! Gah! I don't normally shout at my Nook since, well, it's an eReader, not an actual person. But you achieved this feat. I was glaring. I was grinning, I was glaring again while yelling at Elisabeth and Trevor. And then yelling at Roman! Then my mouth dropped open, and I was all "oh, wow. No. GO TO HIM!" And then finally I was smiling like a dork. I mean, people, this was a serious freaking roller coaster and half the time I didn't know if I was at the top of the hill or the bottom, but I definitely was enjoying the ride!

Let's get into the meat of this book. We have a heroine who has been released by her Master. Why you ask? Well you'll have to read it to find out but let's just say that the two are able to part ways yet remain friends. In fact, her former Master remains very concerned with Elisabeth and her well being. I didn't think this would work-him being her former Master and all, but given the circumstances it worked. And when he released her, he made sure to find her a Master who would take care of her and hopefully give her what she needed. This is where Trevor comes in, with his oodles of money, cars and a huge house. Oh, and horses too! And did I mention that we also had Trevor? Cause yeah, that's really all we needed. He was hot and just, wow. Trevor is quite the Master to his Elisabeth. *waggles eyebrows* (Or tries to be. More on that later!)

What about Elisabeth? Elisabeth was a little off for me, character wise, but eventually I got her. And what I saw was a woman who liked to be bad, or as she called it, a brat. Trevor was not looking for that kind of fun though. So while things, I thought were going okay, well things happened and suddenly, there was another man involved.

Well, that certainly can complicate matters, can't it? And poor Trevor! He was in such a bad position. He wanted Elisabeth so much but she had so much to learn! And the one person who could teach her, and the one person he thought he could trust, was one of his best friends, Roman.

Ah, Roman. Roman, Roman, Roman, you beautifully broken man. I thought Trevor was my favorite but once I saw inside Roman's poor, messed up brain, my inner good girl went all "awwwwwww" and I immediately wanted to find Roman and fix him. Badly. His book won't happen until the third book though so the author is has effectively hooked me into these delicious men she's created. We have Marc to tide me over when his book is released in May. And tide me over he will. Or tie me down. I'm fine with either.

Back to Roman. Roman was able to get inside Elisabeth's head and show her that being a brat wasn't her being submissive. He showed her what true D/s was (or his version of it). Elisabeth did well under his care, but well, it caused feelings. And feelings cause complications. And all I could keep saying to my Nook was "But Elisabeth, Trevor loves you! He's waiting for you!!" She didn't respond. Obviously. She isn't real! See Ms. Evers?! See what you've done to me?! Kudos to you for tying me into knots and freaking me out! *sighs* Anyways, by the time I got to the end I was calmer. And more than satisfied with the end. Now, is it May yet?

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

A Busy Week With Lots of Reflection & Writing

2013-04-14T15:18:00.004-04:00

I debated whether to post my week in review. The 14th of April is always a hard day for me. It's the anniversary of when my grandma passed away and so I've been out of sorts since I woke up. Actually, I've been out of sorts for the past week. It doesn't seem like it was 6 years ago. In fact it feels very much like it was yesterday. But I will try not to dwell on the sad and instead try to enjoy the sunshine she brought to Central New York today. Well, I think she brought it. She loved spring after all and was always outside with her flowers. And it makes me feel a little better thinking she is the reason for the sunshine.

Because of the above, add in some things going on work, catching up on grading, writing, and having to do my taxes, I've been a bit more reflective -and busier than is usual- this past week. This meant that, although I was present on twitter and getting writing done, I didn't get to post many reviews this week. This makes me all sad face but I was so busy I just couldn't fit it all in. This week things should go back to their regularly scheduled programming though. I've even got some reviews in the hopper to keep me on track.

In terms of reading and reviewing, here's what I did:

Book Review: Hard Evidence by Pamela Clare (I-Team, #2)

I also read the second book in J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood series, Lover Eternal, on Goodreads. Oh my freaking goodness. Rhage. He is my new number 1 book boyfriend ever. EVER! So damn bad ass yet sweet. I cried. And cried. I will be getting the third book from the library in the next week or so, hopefully, so we will see what happens with Z. He's a scary MoFo, but I can't wait to read his story.

I feel like I am forgetting to mention a review or something else I've read but oh well. My head is scrambled today. Next week I will be much more organized and not sound like a crazy woman. I promise. (Well, I'll at least try! :D )

Okay, so now on to my ROW80 update. I don't have too much to say since things are moving forward at a good pace so I will just go through these quickly:

Write every day: Done! I am a little bit ahead on my Camp NaNo project (yay!) and I am now halfway through the revisions of Wanted. I have added a few scenes towards the end to wrap things up and need to write those out, but all in all, it's looking good. Writing every day is a challenge Some days the words just don't want to come, but I make sure that I sit down and do something. Even if it's on some other WiP, or notes in my outline. Just a little bit each day makes such a difference and seems to keep the creativity flowing.
Review min. 3 books per week on the blog and/or GR: So, I definitely hit two. But I swear I did another one on GR, I just can't find the thing. It's really driving me nuts. I will have to go through my Kindle archive and my Nook to find what I had read.
Post a Sunday ROW80 Update: Done!
Catch Up On Grading: Everything that the students handed in as of last Monday has been corrected. I have some worksheets to go over from Wednesday and their test from Friday, but other than that I am on track! YAY!!!
Work out once per week: This is getting easier. I did a yoga workout (easy level) and took a short walk, keeping my inhaler handy, just in case. I am hoping that, after this week, I can up this to three again. Or maybe two per week, then three, and so on. I am just glad my breathing has improved a heckuva lot from when I was sick because I really miss working out. (Did I just say that?! Out loud?! OMG, someone check and see if I have a fever!)

Next week my goals will remain the same, cause why change something that isn't broken, right? I hope everyone has been having a productive round so far and I look forward to seeing how everyone has been doing when I check around the ROW tomorrow! Have a great week!

Book Review: Hard Evidence by Pamela Clare (I-Team #2)

2013-04-12T17:37:00.002-04:00

Title: Hard Evidence (I-Team #2)
Author: Pamela Clare
Publisher: Berkley Publishing
Publication Date: October 1, 2006

My Rating: 3 out of 5

From Goodreads:

Investigative reporter Tessa Novak witnesses the murder of a teenage girl--and believes Julian Darcangelo committed the crime. But Julian is actually an undercover FBI agent on the trail of a human trafficker and killer. Tessa's report has brought them closer than either one of them could have imagined--and put both of their lives in danger.

My Thoughts:

Before I get into the issues I had with the second book in the I-Team series, let me just say that I did like this book. I really did. Three stars means, for me, I Liked It and I Will Read More of This Series/By This Author. Three stars does not mean that I didn't like it or wouldn't recommend it. In fact it means the opposite. It was steamy and the mystery was well written. The suspense element was there and I definitely stayed up late reading this because I wanted to see what would happen next. So three stars definitely means I liked it and am really looking forward to jumping into the third book soon!

Okay, now on to the issues I did have with the book. First, Tessa cried all the freaking time. I get it. The story was upsetting, she was having PTSD from what she witnessed and even if she hadn't seen what she did, having a bunch of crazy people after you and trying to kill you, well it's upsetting. And honestly, a heroine that cries a lot never bothers me. I mean, people, I cry at commercials and Lifetime movies, so I am not one to talk. But for some reason, Tessa really got on my nerves with the crying all the time. After awhile I wanted to kick her! I think that I could have handled it if, when she was crying, she didn't suddenly (and sometimes inexplicably) flip flop in the next second and be all "I can do this. I can be strong." And then start blubbering again.

I also took issue with her righteous indignation that the cops held the documents for a week before releasing them. She kept going on about how it was wrong etc, but I mean, they weren't doing it to obfuscate justice. they were doing it to give them a lil bit of time to stop the killer and oh yeah, save her freaking life! I mean, a little gratitude and understanding would be the nice thing to do. Or at least something like "I know Chief and Julian, you don't want me to end up raped and murdered nor do you want to give the real bad guy the heads up your closing in. So I'll give you X amount of days to do that before I have to release the information via the paper." Cause if someone was gunning for me, and my life was in serious danger, then I'd do this. It seems more realistic than acting like a righteous defender of freedom of the press and then, because of that attitude nearly getting the people trying to save your life killed. (Yeah, that part really pissed me off. She knew, she knew, not to go there. And she did it anyways. Knowing what could happen. This was a TSTL moment that I had a hard time getting past.)

Now let's talk about Julian. I liked him a whole heckuva lot. Julian hated himself for awhile and I understood why he did. He had a pretty bad childhood that scarred him. But sometimes he'd say something that really hurt Tessa (the "I'm not a babysitter" really pissed me off) and then they never really talked about it. I mean, I don't remember him apologizing to her. Like at all. Maybe it happened and it was when Tessa was on a crying jag and I missed it (I do admit, I skimmed over some of the crying jags) but I don't remember it. And when he sent the coffee pot back, that bothered me too. It kinda said "nice knowing you", ya know? I know he had to get the task force together but still, it was kind of heartless and made me a tad annoyed with him. But of course, Julian being Julian he made up for this. Eventually. But like so many alpha-type heroes I don't think they know how to speak an apology, I think they give their apologies in orgasms. And far be it from me to complain about this cause ya know, an orgasm, well that's better than any "I'm sorry", isn't it? *shrugs*

The epilogue was great and was glad to see they didn't rush into babies. Neither of them was ready for that. I also liked to see story-line throughout with Tessa and her mom. Even though I had my issues with this book, it was still well worth the read and I will be reading the rest in the series!

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Writing, Reading & Reviewing, Oh My!

2013-04-07T09:06:00.001-04:00

It's the first Sunday check in for the second round of ROW80 and time for my Week In Review post. I love these posts because I can look back and see that, yeah, I have gotten things done. Sometimes I am so busy during the week I don't take stock of it all. So having a day to do that helps me see that I am moving forward, even if it is slowly. Of course there are still things to be done, but hopefully I can keep up the momentum next week.

So let's review what I've been up to this week. I reviewed two books this week on the blog:

Dirty by Megan Hart: This book took me by surprise. I mean, here I thought this would be just another romance with a HEA. Boy was I wrong. Sure there is a love story but talk about gut wrenching...holy hell. This threw me for a loop but it was so worth it.

Own The Wind (Chaos, #1) by Kristen Ashley: This was a fantastic book and totally lived up to my expectations. Loved it and Shy is seriously one of my favorite heroes ever!

I also reviewed three other books on Goodreads. One of those books was a real gem that I had on my kindle app. I reviewed Neanderthal Seeks Human by Penny Reid on Goodreads. If anyone is looking for a well-written, sweet, and hysterically funny book, this might be for you. I absolutely loved it. I have been gushing about this book to fellow readers all week. Seriously, I don't think I have been this thrilled about a new author in a long time.

I also found via someone's tweet a post that anyone who is a writer and/or nearing the time to publish -however you choose to do it-, or even if you have already published something, may find very helpful. Cara McKenna wrote it over at Wonk-o-Mance and there is a lot of good advice there but most important, I think, is where she talks about balancing the author-stuff (my words) and the writing, and not letting the author stuff get in your way, or get you down.

Lastly, here's how I did on my ROW80 weekly goals:

Write every day: Done!! I was surprised how easy it was to get back in swing of writing every day but I did it. At least this week I did. I am on track, so far, with my still untitled Camp NaNo project. But not only that, I've also worked about one-third of the way through my first round of revisions on Wanted. As I've gone through both WiPs I have also added to my outlines where necessary and updated information. Now if only the plot bunnies would go hide in the forest until I am done with these WiPs everything would be perfect!
Review a minimum of three books per week (either posted here or on Goodreads): Done!
Post Sunday ROW80 Update: Also, done!
Catch up on all grading by the end of the week: I'm all caught up other than papers that students handed in on Friday. I will be working on those this afternoon so I can start Monday with a clean slate. Hopefully.
Work out once per week: I did get a short walk in. I am still not at 100% from my bout of pneumonia so I am still taking it slow. Doctor's orders and all that.

At this rate my Round 2 goal of finishing revisions and edits of Wanted will be done in no time. I am not moving up my finish date though. Right now it's set for the end of the round and I will keep it there. This way I don't feel the pressure and I just do a little bit of revisions/edits each day. Slow and steady wins the race, right? As for next week's ROW80 goals, they will remain the same.

I hope everyone is having a successful ROW80 and for those participating in Camp NaNo, see you around the camp fire. I'll bring the s'mores! :D

Book Review: Dirty by Megan Hart (Dan and Elle, #1)

2013-04-06T09:18:00.003-04:00

Title: Dirty (Dan and Elle, #1)
Author: Megan Hart
Publisher: Spice
Publication Date: March 1, 2007

My rating: 4 stars out of 5

From Goodreads:

This is what happened... I met him at the candy store.

He turned and smiled at me and I was surprised enough to smile back. This was not a children's candy store, mind you--this was the kind of place you went to buy expensive imported chocolate truffles for your boss's wife because you felt guilty for having sex with him when you were both at a conference in Milwaukee.

Hypothetically speaking, of course.

I've been hit on plenty of times, mostly by men with little finesse who thought what was between their legs made up for what they lacked between their ears.

Sometimes I went home with them anyway, just because it felt good to want and be wanted, even if it was mostly fake.

The problem with wanting is that it's like pouring water into a vase full of stones. It fills you up before you know it, leaving no room for anything else. I don't apologize for who I am or what I've done in--or out--of bed.

I have my job, my house and my life, and for a long time I haven't wanted anything else.

Until Dan. Until now.

My Thoughts:

This book was not was I thought it would be. Here I thought I would be reading a story about two damaged people finding each other and their HEA.

Uh, yeah. Not so much.

What I got instead was one of these most heart-wrenching, emotionally gripping novels I've read in a long time.

Sure there, is sex. And some it is kinky. (Okay, a lot of it is.) But this book is not about sex. It's not just about Elle and Dan and their journey together. No. It's more than that. It's about a heroine who is so badly broken, so scared, and so in need of love and the journey she has to take to love not only Dan, but herself as well.

This was a romance but not a traditional one. this was hard. this was ugly. and it had little to do with the hero who was fantastic. it had t do with a broken heroine...a truly broken heroine...who had to find herself and fix herself before she could find her happiness.

Dan was a great hero. A freaking saint for what he had to go through to get through Elle's walls. Elle hated herself. And I mean she really, seriously, absolutely hated herself. She was not your typical heroine who was 'fixed' at a glance or touch by the hero.

This was hard to read but well worth it. I've read other books by Megan Hart and I love how she matches a love story with emotional, gut wrenching plot. Her books are not easy reads. They touch on difficult topics that most people don't want to talk about and Dirty is no different. Child abuse, sexual abuse, suicide, alcoholism, cutting are just a few of the topics touched on in this book. It's not comfortable. It's not all rainbows and unicorns. In fact, there are very few light, happy moments where the over-arching -and heavy- theme of the book is not present. But in the end, to see ELle grow and begin to love herself, the difficult journey to Dan and Elle's HEA was more than worth it.

This is the second book by Megan Hart I've read and I really like her voice. The writing is tight and the editing was well-done. I am looking forward to reading more books by this author. Note: Dirty does not end in a cliffhanger. (I hate cliffhangers. Loathe them actually. So trust me, I would tell you if it did.) There is a novella length story about Dan and Elle and what happens after the end of this book. I think it's a sort of epilogue though I'm not entirely sure since I haven't read it. Yet. :D

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Book Review: Own the Wind by Kristen Ashley (Chaos #1)

2013-04-02T10:00:00.000-04:00

Title: Own The Wind (Chaos, #1)
Author: Kristen Ashley
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: April 2, 2013

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

From Goodreads:

Tabitha Allen has a not-so-secret crush on Parker "Shy" Cage. Shy thinks he knows the path Tabby's on and it isn't a good one. So he decides to teach her a lesson to lead her to the right path.

Unfortunately, he was wrong and his actions wound Tabby, breaking her heart. It's Tabby who then teaches Shy a lesson about casting judgment and Shy Cage learns what it feels like to be invisible. But when tragedy strikes and Tabby's heart is broken again, Shy does what he can in the background to help. Trying to forget her heartbreak, Tabby finds herself in danger. To keep it secret from her biker family, the Chaos Motorcycle Club, she calls Shy to rescue her. But when she lets him back in, she gets much more than she bargained for.

Proceed with caution. This review includes spoilers.

Loved loved loved. Beyond freaking loved. I read this over a week ago when I got the ARC and people let me tell you I never was so excited in my life! Now, I know. You're all probably out there rolling your eyes all "Of course she loved it. She fan girls over KA the same way she does over Mal and Firefly." But seriously. I have to admit with this book I was worried. First Tabby is young, about 22 or 23 in the book. I was worried if KA could reel in Tabby's younger voice, and maturiry in some ways, realistically given most of her heroines are late twenties plus. And I also worried that, since this was her debut with a traditional publisher, an editor would take away her amazing detailed, descriptive voice. So weith trepidation I loaded it on my Nook and dove in head first.

Why did I doubt KA? She nailed it. Tabby was young, she was wild and Shy messed up big time trying to get her to straigthen her life out. Both Shy and Tabby suffered for this mistake. But they also both grew up, grew apart and then were brought back together in a friends to lovers that had me tearing up at several points. And I think that part, the section where Kristen Ashley writes Shy and Tabby re-connection Shy helping her, being there for her as her friend, was amazing Shy held himself back for Tabby. He let Tabby work through her emotions, the tragedy she had to go through, and waited.

But Tabby was almost too late. And that part nearly killed me. The confrontation between Shy and Tabby, ohmigod. My heart stopped. I couldn't breathe. And then he left! And then, she was leaving. And I was all, oh no she didn't! But she did! But then Shy got word and thank god stopped all that nonsense. I was so freaking relieved.

Seriously. Kristen Ashley can make your heart thump, your eyes burn with tears and your gut hurt from laughing all in the same book. This is not an easy feat. and this is why she is my hero, biotgh as a reader and a writer. As a reader I want to read stories like this-feel good, sweet, sexy, romances with a happily ever after that leaves me grinning like an idiot for days. And as a writer I want to know how to make my readers feel like that. (Well, when I get some. I'm not published. Yet. lol)

One other aspect of the book I liked was the way Kristen Ashley did the time jumps. Sometimes as a reader it is hard for me to grasp the ides of insta-love in about 2 weeks and the characters are already planning for weddings and babies. Now, in some books and with some characters I can deal with this and even is some Krsiten Ashley books it's believable. But with Tabby and the loss she experienced I was so glad to see MS. Ashley take a slow, measured progression of the two, taking Shy and Tabby from barely speaking to friends, to lovers. It didn't feel rushed and it made the story that much sweeter for me. We see the growth of both main characters, as well as the good times and the bad that they experience. There are times jumps here and there (sometimes only a week, or a day,. sometimes 2 months, sometimes longer) but the time doesn't effect the story or the characters other than to show just how well Shy and Tabby fit together.

Shy's back story was tragic, heartbreaking and brought tears to my eyes, but he was so controlled and mature about it. Sure he freaked at one point and I was worried he was going to go all SOA on the guy, but he pulled it together, for Tabby, for his brother and for himself. I like seeing that maturity in a character and not someone who goes off all half cocked and has to beg for forgiveness all the time.

Okay, so now I need to talk about Tack and Tyra. Many of you know that I love the book Motorcycle Man. Tack is my favorite book boyfriend. He is in so many ways the ideal alpha male. I didn't think my love for him could ever, ever, wane. But oh Tack. He fraked up in this book. In fact, I was so angry at Tack and Tyra I had to put my Nook down and do some meditative breathing exercises. I was pissed at Rush too. Those judgmental ba%&$#*@! It took me a lot longer to forgive them, Not calling her girl back? What was that about? And then the confrontation at the Clubhouse? Oh no Tack, do not even go there. Tabby has a seriously big heart because I think I would have held that grudge a lot longer if that happened to me and my guy. I was really disappointed in their reaction, but eventually, redemption was made and well, I am back to loving Tack. Sort of. *glares at the Motorcycle Man cover on my Nook*

There is an overarching mystery, which I knew would have something to do with Natalie the moment she was seen on the page, is interesting and has me waiting impatiently for Fire Inside, which is now releasing a whole month early (June, 2013 *squeeeeeeeeeeeeeee*) . Benito seems like one serious bad ass given what he is a part of, and the last bit, from Tack's point of view, freaked me out a little. He seems to know that this could go bad. Really bad. And Tack thinking that, well hell. I think this means we're all in for a rough ride.

Lastly, let's talk about the hotness factor. The steamy scenes? Well they are scorching. I'm always impressed with Kristen Ashley and how well she can convey emotions during these scenes, but with Shy and Tabby, well holy hell, those two have some serious stamina. But it wasn't just about the sex. These two characters brought forth the intensity of their emotions for each other and I liked that just as much as the steam factor. I did think they were a tad tamer than some of her other books but I'm not sure if this was a conscious decision or editorial.

And now, as I wind down this review, I need to talk about my man, Hopper. So many folks on the GR boards was freaking out that Hop was a cheater, how could Kristen even think of making him a hero and well, blah blah blah. I was a staunch defender of Hop and vowed not to judge him until I heard his side of the story. And not to say I told you so, but well, I did. I knew, I just knew that KA would not have made Hop a cheater. Kristen Ashley made perfectly clear that, like I surmised, he was technically not with his wife when he slept with that whore from Motorcycle Man. *Cue Ross on Friends. "We were on a breakkkkkkkkk!*

Oh and I can't leave without mentioning the cameos. There are a lot of freakin Denver cameoes that had me squealing all over the place. I won't say who but let me just tell you I nearly fainted at the mention of the first Denver bad ass, and then, the scene towards the end, I was Kermit-flailing all over the place. I know, getting all these guys working together is going to be so much hotness and awesome my Nook might burn up by the end of this series.

I wonder who book three will be about. (We know the last book in the series will be Rush) It could be Joker, or maybe one of the older Chaos boys. Or Lan maybe? Not sure. But seriously, Joker has me intrigued. There is something about him that. Oh and the reference to SAMCRO had me giggling since I love that show to pieces.

All in all this was a great story and well worth the wait. I can't wait to explore more of the Chaos world and June can't come fast enough! I am giving props to KA for a great publisher choice and to her publisher for letting Kristen Ashley be who she is and let her awesome light shine through.

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

A New Round And New Goals (Sorta): ROW80, Round 2

2013-04-01T20:21:00.002-04:00

Before delineating my goals I need to do a quick recap of my plan for 2013. When I posted my goals in January for Round 1 I set about making a year long plan and then broke down my goals from there for Round 1, and then ever further into weekly goals. I plan on doing this same thing as I start Round 2: evaluating my 2013 plan, seeing what I've done and what still needs to be accomplished, and then outlining my goals from there into Round specific goals and then weekly goals. This, for me, was an effective strategy last round so why change what clearly isn't broken, right?

So let's review. In January I wrote that in 2013 I wanted to send out my first complete novel length book to publishers. I used the first round to learn to write query letters and synopses that don't totally suck (though I still hate them. I loathe them even. Abhor! Well, you get the idea...) and well, I hit send about a week ago, sending off my MS to a few publishers I think I would rather be in a cage with a very hungry and pissed off zombie than go through that again, but well, hopefully it gets easier the more I do this.

One of my other goals for 2013 dealt with sending off Wanted to publishers by mid year 2013. I am on track to have it ready sometime in June or July but I am obviously going to wait to see what happens with my first book and then adjust if necessary. Either way, part of Round 2 will be focused on this book and getting it ready for query or self-publishing. My other 2013 goal was to finish my GR reading challenge and well, I'm moving right along on that so need to talk about that as of now. The last of my 2013 goals was to organize my billion and a half unfinished WiPs and outlines and make a WiP plan. Well, this is a work in progress itself. I'll get there. Eventually. *grumbles and sulks*

Overall it looks as if my 2013 plan is working out well. So given the progress I've made so far here is what I want to accomplish by the end of this specific ROW80 Round:

Complete Camp NaNo in April: My goal is a minimum of 30K words on my WiP for the month. I hope to have a title soon but til then, well, it's my Camp NaNo project. (Note: This isn't a from scratch project for NaNo. I had about 30K words written on it already. By the end of April hopefully this book will be complete, or at least close to it.)
Finish revisions and edits of Wanted: This is the one I finished in November for NaNoWriMo but then put aside. I had hoped to finish revisions in Round 1 but evil queries and synopses got in my way. EVIL I SAY! So now it's time to finally dig into the revisions and finish this.

My last set of goals are those outlined each week and are more micro in nature as I work towards accomplishing the larger Round 2 and year long goals. These may change from week to week depending on work projects and other things going on. This week my goals are as follows:

Write every day: whether this is revisions of Wanted, writing on my Camp NaNo project, notes for my outlines, or on some other WiP, I am committing to writing every day. *nods for emphasis*
Review a minimum of three books per week: I slacked off last week from being so sick. Pneumonia will do that to a person apparently. But this week, well it's time to get back on the horse.
Post Sunday ROW80 Update
Catch up on all grading by the end of the week
Exercise: I am going to start out slow and try for once a week. It's not a lot I know, but the doctors want me to take it easy while my lungs heal up and since I'm still not 100% I need to be really careful here. I'm thinking some relaxing yoga to start might help and then hopefully I can move to more active cardio in the next couple weeks.

As you can see, for me, staying organized is key. And I have found that separating my goals into a year plan, then smaller chunks accomplished via ROW80 Rounds and within that, goals outlined every week, I am able to stay on track and not get overwhelmed. At least, that is the hope! And speaking of writing, I am off to write a bit more as I have a few more scenes I'd like to finish tonight. I wish everyone a happy start to the second round and good luck with your goals!

Book Review: Alexandra's Legacy by N.J. Walters (Legacy, #1)

2013-03-28T10:19:00.001-04:00

Title: Alexandra's Legacy (Legacy, #1)
Author: N.J. Walters
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Publication Date: Oct. 13, 2009

4 out of 5 stars

Wowza. This is the first in a shifter series that has a lot of potential. The story was strong and except for a few issues here and there, I really liked the world that the author has introduced.

From Goodreads:

The truth will set her free...or get her killed.

Alexandra Riley's day starts out like any other in her normal, predictable world. Then a tall, dark stranger bursts into her father's garage and shatters the illusion. In one shocking moment, she discovers why she's been feeling hot, restless--she's the half-breed daughter of a legendary werewolf and is a much-sought-after prize.

Joshua Striker, enforcer in charge of protecting the alphas of the Wolf Creek pack, has come to take Alex home. Nothing more, nothing less. From the first moment he sees her, she becomes the one thing he can't afford--a distraction from his duty. A weakness he doesn't want--but can't resist needing.

If only keeping her safe was as simple as fending off males on the hunt for a mate. Through city streets to the mountains of North Carolina, Alex and Joshua have to evade those who don't want their pure bloodlines tainted with human DNA, as well as bounty hunters who think the only good werewolf is a dead one.

What Joshua and Alex can't outrun is the passion that flares between them--or the choice Alex must eventually face. Whether to claim her inner wolf, or forfeit her chance to claim Joshua as her own.

My Thoughts:

Be prepared: this story involves insta-lust between the couple. And in this case I didn't mind it one bit. It fit the story. It made sense, it was written well, and the world the author created supported this. Also, just because they wanted each other almost on sight, that doesn't mean it happened. The author instead provides the reader with a hero who is willing to sacrifice his happiness for his mate, giving her a chance to choose someone other than him. Is there anything more swoonworthy than that? I think not.

Also, in Alexandra's Legacy, the attraction between Alex and Joshua worked. Often in shifter stories the H and h end up finding their mate and want to claim the person quickly. I expected this and therefore was not surprised when the finding each other definitely happens here. What I did appreciate was that, instead of acting on (or at least instead of acting fully on it), Joshua held back claiming Alex so she could make her choice. He didn't want her to choose him because he was the only wolf around. even though he desperately wanted to have her. He did the honorable thing, or tried to, and waited until they got to Wolf Creek so she could, if she wanted, choose someone other than him.

What a nice and honorable werewolf, right?! I really liked Joshua. He was strong, protective, hot, sexy and really cared for Alex. He struggled with the attraction he had for her, the love he felt and the knowledge that she was his, but fought all that in order to give her the choice. This kind of sacrifice isn't seen often seen in PNR heroes and I really liked it.

The author did a great job introducing the 'world' in which the shifters lived, and the background stories of Alex's dad. (I want him to get an HEA! Please, please please!!!!!) He also made huge sacrifices, endangering himself and in some ways his kind, in order to ensure Alex was safe. And that alone makes him a hero I want to read more about. The next story in the series is Isaiah's though (Joshua's brother) and it is already set up and ready to go on my Nook.

I didn't run into any glaring editing errors which is not surprising since this is a Samhain title and they are usually pretty good on that front. However, I do have an issue with the formatting. First, the font is really small. I thought I might end up blind as I tried to read. This is not the author's fault and I didn't take this into account while rating it. But it is something that, for the edition I read, I wish I had known about before hand. Also, there was an issue sporadically with page numbers. Pages were out of order or skipped several pages here and there. I had to constantly manually put in the page number. In my rating I am not counting this as a negative (although in a sense it *is* a negative) but more as a notice to readers to check out the sample pages first. I've had my edition for awhile so it could just be mine. Whatever the case, the eye strain I think might have been worth it anyways. :D

Here are the purchase links for: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Book Review: Extreme Exposure by Pamela Clare

2013-03-21T09:08:00.001-04:00

Title: Extreme Exposure (I-Team #1)
Author: Pamela Clare
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: August 2, 2005

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book had been on my TBR pile for a really long time. I kept putting it off though, grabbing something else to read instead. Well, after hitting a dry spell where every book I read was getting on my nerves (yes, this happens to even a book addict like me), I decided to hit the romantic suspense route. I snapped up book one for my Nook and dove in. I was more than pleasantly surprised as I read. Not only is the romance steamy and the main characters fantastic, but also it is clear that the author researched the complex environmental issues that made up the conflict in the book. Ms. Clare also presented that information in a clear and concise way that added to the story and the relationship between Reece and Kara, instead of detracting from it.

From Goodreads:

Novels such as Carnal Gift and Sweet Release made Pamela Clare's rising star shine. Now, she turns her "impressive" talents to a novel of modern romance - and breathless intrigue...

It's been years since her child's father dumped her, and since then Kara McMillan has kept men at bay - although every day she aches more for a lover's touch. But to get that, the hard-boiled journalist must become vulnerable - a feeling she vowed never to have again.

With his dangerous good looks, charm, and power, Senator Reece Sheridan could have just about any woman he sets his piercing eyes on. But he's intrigued by only one. This Kara, this gutsy investigative reporter, has a sensuality that arouses him to no end. If she's a firebrand in print, he guesses, she must be just as fiery in bed...

But this is no fling. A sudden political scandal - and attempts on Kara's life - could very well drive them apart. Or maybe, just maybe, adversity could draw them into a bond even more intense than their steamy sexual embraces.

My Thoughts:

This book is an intelligent, well thought out mystery with loads of suspense. All this accompanies well written characters and a hot romance between a state senate and reporter. What I really loved about this book is that you could tell the author did great research. It wasn't thrown together with vague summaries of the conflict. There were no plot holes or places where I had to guess what was going on. By the end the loose ends were tied up and it was not only satisfying in how the bad guys were dealt with, but also sweet.

Reece was hot, sexy, strong, and a protector. Kara was a strong, independent, and smart. She struggled to balance single motherhood and her career and the romance was written realistically in how Kara had to somehow try to fit in a personal life as well.

She didn't fight Reece when he tried to help her. This I liked. So often the heroines gets pissed off and has TSTL moments because she doesn't want the Heroes help. In this case Kara was able to have her independence but also graciously accept the help offered by Reece at times.

As I mentioned above, there were no unnecessary info-dumps that took me out of the story. The information presented to the reader was placed in scenes that made sense and had a purpose. Not once did I find myself getting frustrated. This is a well-written, tightly plotted, and suspense filled novel that incorporated a whole lot of sexy in Reece and Kara. Oh and there is a epilogue! *Squeeeeeeee!* That made me so happy! I loves me a well thought out epilogue. :D

I really loved this book and have already read the second book in the series. (Review on that to come soon!) I can't wait to keep reading and see what else happens to the I-Team! Here are the purchase links for Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Book Review: On The Plus Side by Tabatha Vargo

2013-03-18T22:53:00.001-04:00

Title: On The Plus Side (Chubby Girls Chronicles #1)
Author: Tabatha Vargo
Publication Date: January 21, 2013

My rating 4.5 out of 5 stars

This book. I cannot say enough about it. First, this is a book with a REAL girl in it. I am not talking a girl with just some T and A. No, she was a real girl with a real weight issue. I see a lot of books with heroines who have the former, but you don't get many who are a size 20. So I say good for the author, for portraying a woman who isn't just plump 'in all the right places.' Lilly struggles with her weight issues and low self-esteem when it comes to men, but her heart is huge. And just like Devin, I fell in love with her.

From Goodreads:

Big girls need love, too, but at what cost?

Lilly is loaded, not only with money, but with weight. Both things she could do without. But even with her undesired millionaire status, she doesn’t hold on to false hopes of finding true love. So when a sexy stranger comes into her life dripping with seduction, she finds it hard to resist. The bigger they are the harder they fall and Lilly falls straight through the floor in love with Mr. Sexy. Too bad he’s there for all the wrong reasons.

The chance of losing it all will make you do some crazy things and Devin’s willing to do whatever it takes to keep his life together. All seems lost when out of nowhere he’s approached by a Millionaire Momma with an offer he can’t refuse. But even a womanizer like Devin has a heart and when the short, chunky girl with the carefree attitude breaks through his icy façade, he finds that losing everything takes on a whole new meaning.

***Warning: this book contains graphic language, sex, and violence. Mature readers only. Not intended for young adult readers.***

My Thoughts:

First, let me start out by saying this, I think, is new adult. The Hero is about 22 and the heroine turns 21 in the book. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong about the new adult thing). I usually don't read new adult mainly because so many are cliffhangers and I really can't handle cliffhangers. But this one is not. There is no cliffhanger and it's a full novel (Amazon says 345 pages for the Kindle). And how did I run across this book? I happened to see a Goodreads friend add it to her "to read" shelf. I saw that, read the blurb, and then checked out the price. At $2.99 for a complete novel I snapped it up and fell head over heels.

This was my update status on GR as I read: "I'm almost done with this book and it's killing me. So freaking funny in parts, but also so heartbreaking in others. I know it has to end eventually but I don't want it too! *Stomps feet*"

I rarely update my status on GR. But I had to in this case. I needed to tell someone just how much I loved the characters in this story. Or..in the beginning, loved to hate one of them. Cause I seriously did not like Devin. He was a selfish jerk. And immature. And he didn't think before he spoke! I mean, he messed up so many freaking times and some of the things he said, I don't know if I could have ever forgiven him. Ever. But Lilly. Lilly was so sweet and had such a heart of gold. And she saw how broken Devin was and stuck with him. She didn't leave like his mom had.

I think the best part is that Lilly got under his skin to the point where even when he was being an asshole he knew he couldn't live without her. He knew that she recognized the broken part of him, and instead of bailing on him, she stayed to help him work it out. And in turn, he did the same for her. She was so, so, so broken. Some of the passages in her narrative literally had me choking back tears. Lilly broke my heart. I saw so much of me at that age in who she was. After years of being bullied and picked on and with little love in her life, she finally took a chance. And that is another important lesson from this book. About bullying. What those kids in school did to Lilly was so wrong. It was criminal. The hell she was put through is unimaginable. And sadly this happens all the time in schools around the country. I was bullied when I in high school so were some of my close friends. I don't understand why or how kids learn to bully. I don't understand how it happens. Kids aren't born bad...it must be learned behavior, right? But how is it stopped? So many kids, like Lilly, like me, are so badly damaged by bullying and the effects, as is shown in this book, last a long time.

I am not going to say too much about a particular incident in the book because I don't want to spoil it for those who have not read it, but the scene with Jenny and Lilly? I was freaking shattered. There isn't any other way to explain it. My heart stopped and at that point I just cried. I know, I'm a nerd and a baby for crying over a book, but don't hate. I mean, what Lilly did to protect Jenny was seriously brave and showed just how big Lilly's heart really was.

The book wasn't all about the tears though. I laughed too. Some of the things Lilly thought or said...I was literally laughing out loud. I felt like I was reading a Bridget Jones book at times. The humor was authentic and not forced. Lilly also had a fantastic group of friends around her who I hope to find out more about later. (See below about my thoughts on future books).

Technically speaking the book was well written and I didn't run into any editing errors. This I thought was impressive since I believe this was self-published. Kudos to you Ms. Vargo for taking self-editing seriously. You are an example for writers everywhere, including me, to take the time to edit and polish. The alternating POV of Devin and Lilly was crucial to the story and I thought it was well done. If it hadn't been alternating, if I hadn't been able to "see" inside Devin's head, I likely would have hated him. But I was given that glimpse into a broken young man who just needed someone to stick by him while he got his head together.

The only real issue I had was the ending and with Devin's anger issues. Regarding the ending, I thought it was a bit rushed and I was surprised how fast Lilly forgave Devin. But then again, maybe I wasn't. I think that, once Lilly thought about what Devin said to her-about how it wasn't for the money and then the necklace, I think that showed her he was telling the truth. And the alternative to what it was would mean things were drawn out and I cannot stand it when things are over done. See how difficult I am as reader?! But seriously, the ending was good and it fit who the characters were so who am I to quibble, right? Oh and did I mention there is an epilogue? I loves me an epilogue and this one was fantastic!

As for Devin's anger issues, his point of view helped me to understand where his anger came from. And he didn't ever get violent with Lilly. But he did smash up his car. And his house. And I understand, the news was upsetting. But then he went after the guy from the party. And earlier in the book he punched Matt. (Yes he deserved it, but still.) At some point, I really wanted Devin to hit up an anger management class. (Heh...hit up...) I attributed his reactions to his unresolved mommy issues which thankfully resolved themselves and his age. So I can only hope that he grew out of this problem. And given the way he sounds in the epilogue, I am pretty confident in imagining he did.

I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future. Goodreads indicates that a second book, focusing on Shannon and Matt will be out in September. Hopefully Lilly's other friends get books too!

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Top Of The Mornin' To Ya!!

2013-03-17T10:01:00.000-04:00

And Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I love this day for a few reasons, food, beer and my proud Irish heritage being just a few. But another reason that I love this day is that it usually precedes the coming of spring. I mean, it's the 17th of March so the snow has to stop eventually, right?! The good news is that today there is no snow. The bad news is that it's only 20 degrees. I am still going to hope that spring is just around the corner though. *hopes really really hard*

And while I keep on hoping, here's one of the songs of the week I've had replaying over and over. Wait. That's a lie. It's not just a song of the week. For me this is the song of the YEAR. The band is called What Now (you can follow them on twitter at @whatnowband ) and their new album dropped on March 11th. Their song, "Move Like A Sinner", not only rocks in the musical sense, but it is also seriously hot. Here's the video (and as usual, be aware of who is around while watching this. It may not be appropriate for kids and it may also be NSFW depending on who is looking over your shoulder!):

Did I not tell you it was hot?! Now, while that is playing in the background, these are the book reviews that I was able to post this week:

Tempted by Megan Hart: I had a hard time rating this book. It was stuck in my head for weeks. I kept waffling between a 3 and 4 and after awhile, decided on 4 stars because the book just wouldn't let me go. I think that in itself is one of the marks of a good, or at least intriguing, book.

Serendipity by Carly Phillips: this was a 5 out of 5 star read for me. It's a contemporary romance that's sweet yet sexy but not over the top. I can't wait to dive into the rest of this series.

Here are some things to check out from the interwebs that caught my eye this week:

Carina Press Self Editing Chat: Angela James, the executive editor of Carina Press, held a self editing twitter chat with other Carina Press editors on Thursday. There are a ton of great tips and some links to great sources/book that every writer should know/be aware of as they go through and edit their MS for submission or self-publishing.

The #50tips Collection from @smartbitches, all storyfied for everyone's enjoyment! She started the conversation and it morphed into one of the best hashtags I have ever seen. It kept me laughing (actually cackling) for days. Trust me, it is all sorts of awesome!

The Veronica Mars Movie Project: What else is there to say other than I am going on a hunt to redeem all the soda pop and beer cans/bottles I can find so I can pledge, pledge, PLEDGE! It made 2 million bucks via kickstarter in less than 12 hours on the first day! How cool is that!! I can't wait for more LoVe!!!!

DABWAHA Tournement: This is from Dear Author's @Jane_l and Smart Bitches Trashy Books @smartbitches and it's modeled after the NCAA tourney. 64 books are nominated and then each person whittles it down until you have one winner chosen. So get over tehre, fill out your brackets and check out the awesome prizes that are up for grabs!

And last, my ROW80 update. Here's how I did this week:

Synopsis: Done. I need to actually send this stuff out now to the places I've selected. I can do this. I can. *runs off and freaks the hell out for real*
Writing: I didn't get too much done here other than reading through some old WiPs and a bit of outlining. I have so many half-finished WiPs and figuring out which one I want to focus on for Camp NaNo is easier said than done.
Minimum of 3 book reviews posted: I only was able to post 2. I had done three, but yesterday I was out of the house all day and didn't get back in time to post it. I will have to put this into next week's rotation! :) As for the 2 reviews I did do, see above for links.
Blog comments: I dropped the ball on this and only got a few comments in. I will be going around the ROW today and tomorrow to check on everyone. After all, only 10 days left of the round so we all need to cheer each other on as we get close to the finishing line! WOOT!!
Class Prep: I am all caught up on grading except for the midterms that were handed in on Friday. And with next week being spring break I have a whole week to get them done. Yay!
Workout three times: I got a few in. Two to be specific. Not perfect, but getting there.

Next week my goals remain the same except for the class prep. That will be modified to be grading and prepping the poetry section of the class so when break is over I am good to go. I hope everyone has had a great week! We are coming to the end of the Round and soon Camp NaNo will be here (along with the second ROW80 round). Gah! So much is happening all at once! Have a great week!

Book Review: Serendipity by Carly Phillips

2013-03-15T11:21:00.003-04:00

Title: Serendipity (Serendipity, #1)
Author: Carly Phillips
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: September 6, 2011

My Rating: 5 out of 5

Ethan Barron! 'Nuff said.

Okay, not really enough said. But holy heck that man is awesome.

This was a classic story of privileged girl and bad boy but there's a twist. By the time we meet the two their roles have been reversed, sort of. Faith's father has gone to jail for a ponzi scheme of epic proportions and bad boy Ethan Barron has, in the 10 years since he left town, made a name for himself and his business, making a boat load of money along the way. From their first meeting as adults you get a sweet feeling of anticipation that carries through the book and definitely pays off in the end.

From Goodreads:

Faith Harrington is a classic girl of privilege-until her father is convicted for running a Ponzi scheme. Now she's back in her hometown, where she runs into her teenage crush-dark, brooding Ethan Barron, who's no stranger to scandal himself.

My Thoughts:

Faith and Ethan have a history. They went to the same high school and Faith, when she was 16 and Ethan was 18, had an encounter on his bike that made a lasting impression on them both. And yes, we're talking motorcycle not his Schwinn. Faith was the good girl from the right side of the tracks and Ethan was the bad boy all the girls wanted. The ride home took a slight tour that included some hot kisses but went no further. This was a disappointment for Ethan and also for Faith, but at the time their disappointment was for different reasons.

As the book begins Ethan is heading to the home he just bought in a town he hasn't been back to in 10 years. And just like all those years ago, he spots a woman and that woman is Faith. We soon learn that Ethan has bought the home she grew up in. The home that was seized and then sold by the government because of her father's misdeeds. Faith has moved back to town to start her new life, to pick up the pieces and start her own business. Ethan has moved back to do the same but for different reasons. Neither expected to see the other but when they do both their lives begin to take unexpected turns neither ever could have ever imagined.

For me, this is where the book took off. And just fyi, this all happens in the first few pages, where you get the short but concise back story. The romance is sweet, not rushed and incredibly sexy. But the book goes beyond just the obvious romance elements. It has conflict other than the usual hero versus heroine and/or big baddie vs. hero/heroine. There is pronounced unhappiness within the heroes family. I often find that in many books either one of the main characters is non-existent or everyone gets along great. Or, if there is conflict, it's not really explored much. Serendipity was different. The issues between Ethan and his brothers is serious. His brothers had a right to be pissed. And even what eventually begins to bring them together, or I should say, starts to, is not in anyway used as an "insta-fix". In fact, it seems brothers still have a ways to go to be truly past, well, the past and I felt for each one of them. There are feelings of betrayal and blame that exist between them and like in real life, these feelings don't just go away by some magic. I get why they were hurt. I also understand why Ethan wanted to make things better between them and was glad to see this plot point was not swept under the rug and/or rushed to a conclusion.

The bottom line is that I loved this book and the way the author has introduced the series is intriguing. I am looking forward to finding out more about the other characters and hopefully they too will get an HEA. Ms. Phillips provides just enough of a glimpse of things to come in future books that I can't not continue with this series. The second book will focus on Nash and he needs some serious lovin it seems. I have faith that Kelly can provide that though. I hope!

Here are the purchase links for: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Book Review: Tempted by Megan Hart

2013-03-12T13:28:00.001-04:00

Title: Tempted
Author: Megan Hart
Publisher: Spice
Publication Date: December 19, 2007

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Megan Hart can write a freaking book. This book is a love story. But it is a love story involving three people and about different kinds of love. Even now I don't know what to think. The steam factor is high, and I will definitely be reading on in the series. Though I don't know if I can read book two, which is Alex's point of view for book one. I don't know if I can go through that again.

From Goodreads:

I had everything a woman could want. My husband, James. The house on the lake.

My life. Our perfect life.

And then Alex came to visit.

The first time I saw my husband's best friend, I didn't like him. Didn't like how James changed when he was around, didn't like how his penetrating eyes followed me everywhere.

But that didn't stop me from wanting him. And, surprisingly, James didn't seem to mind.

It was meant to be fun. Something the three of us shared for those hot summer weeks Alex stayed with us. Nobody was supposed to fall in or out of love. I didn't need another man, not even one who oozed sex like honey and knew all the secrets I didn't know, the secrets my husband hadn't shared. After all, we had a perfect life.

And I loved my husband.

But I wasn't the only one.

My Thoughts:

Anne and James were a seemingly happy couple, or as happy as a couple can be in today's world, and then Alex came for a visit. I knew from the first phone call that James took, the description of his reaction, that things were going to get crazy. And boy did they.

Alex, Alex, Alex. You and I need to sit down and have a serious talk. You reeled me in Alex and then, when things got hot, you bailed. And you bailed with little explanation. This was not cool.

One thing I both loved and loathed about this book was that, even at the end, I didn't know who I liked out of the three main characters. I felt the most for James, I can say that. And my heart broke for Alex. But what he did, and the way the book ended, I just don't get him. I want to like him. I really, really do. But he needs to make up for some shit that I just can't get past. And what about Anne? Well, surprisingly I did not feel all that much sympathy for her. I felt like she needed to get her crap together for James and it took her way to long to do this. And then, at the end I was all, WTF was that?! Did James know where Anne went? She said James was home, but it wasn't clear if he knew. Was it some sort of closure on her part? I mean, I want James and Anne to be okay and like they were in the beginning. But I don't know if, after the events of this book, they can be that way ever again. Sure they can be happy, I think. Maybe? I hope. But they can't change what happened.

As you can see, I was emotionally rattled by this book but in a weirdly good way. I know. It's confusing, right? But I think that's the mark of a good book. Even weeks after reading it, I keep going over what happened and trying to figure things out and figure out how I feel about it all. And also, is it wrong that a part of me was rooting for Alex and James and the two of them to boot Anne out? Cause in way, I was hoping that happened. And then I hoped it didn't. And then I did. See what I'm saying here?! GAH! This book, for me, was that much of a mind fuck.

Bottom lime is, that after reading this book I I felt like I was thrown out of a plane and the parachute didn't open until I was way too close to the ground. I was far enough away to not end up splattered on the earth, but I still hit the ground with a jarring thud that shook me to my core. And it was all worth it.

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Shampoo, Rinse & Repeat: My Week In Review

2013-03-10T10:14:00.001-04:00

This week was such a whirlwind but I somehow made time to read, do some book reviews and make progress on my ROW80 goals while also working, eating and sleeping (or trying to). I have no idea how I accomplished it all. I just kind of...did it. Hopefully this level of productivity carries over into this week cause I could seriously get used to this feeling.

Here's what happened on the blog this week:

Devoured by Emily Snow: This is a new adult book and when I purchases this (awhile ago) I had no idea it was book 1 in a continuing series. 3.75 out of 5 stars

One Night With A Cowboy by Cat Johnson: I freaking loved this book! I am so happy I found a new author who can write well developed characters and plot lines that are engaging and sexy. Can't wait for the second in this series! 5 out of 5 stars

Raid by Kristen Ashley: It's Kristen Ashley. Is there anything else to really say?! It was cracktastic as usual. 4.25 out of 5 stars

Oh, and any My So Called Life fans out there? This was my favorite show in the 90s. Jordan Catalano was my dream man and in fact, Jared Leto still is. Have you heard his band, Thirty Seconds to Mars?! They freaking ROCK! Anyways, if you were a fan (or still are), check this out: The 24 Most Important Things We All Learned From "My So Called Life". There are gifs people. GIFs OF JORDAN CATALANO aka JARED LETO! *squeeeeeeeeeeeeee!*

Okay, enough fan-girling over Jordan/Jared. Well, for now. I will be watching some eps of it later to get a fix. (Yes, I have it on DVD. I think it's also on netflix. Or was.) Anyways, here's my ROW80 update:

Synopsis: I am done with it and hope to do a final pass through this week for last minute editing errors. Then it will be ready to fly! *bites nails*
Writing: yeah, well...not so much done here. But this week, once I get midterms done and caught up on grading I will be getting back to this.
Blog a min. of 3 book reviews on blog and/or GR: Done! (see above). I also posted a couple shorter reviews on GR.
Comment on min. 5 blogs/posts: I hit 3. I will definitely work on this for next week.
Sunday Check in: Done!
Workout 3 times: 1.5 out of 3. Something is better than nothing, right?!
Grading and Midterm prep: I got halfway through the grading and I have a rough outline of the midterm questions for my students. I will be typing those out tonight and posting it to blackboard. I cannot believe it's already midterms, GAH!!!!

My goals for next week remain the same. I cannot believe we are nearing the end of the first round already! I did sign up for Camp Nano in April. My goal is to hit 30K words. I haven't decided which book I will be working on as yet. There is one that I started for NaNoWriMo in 2011 (I didn't hit the 50K mark that year. I only got to about 25K). I have been itching to get back to this as it's been almost a year since I did any work on it and I miss the world I was building. It's more UF/PNR so this would a nice change of pace, I think. I guess I have a few more weeks to figure this out for sure!

Hope you all have had a great week and see you around the ROW!

Book Review: Devoured by Emily Snow

2013-03-08T15:22:00.000-05:00

Title: Devoured (Devoured, #1)
Author: Emily Snow
Publication Date: October 9, 2012

My Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

This book was an emotional roller-coaster. Sienna had a lot going on; a lot of emotional demons to battle. Lucas had secrets of his own. But together these two were combustible.

From Goodreads:

Sienna Jensen had no plans to return home when she graduated college last spring—after all, her dreams lie in California. But when she discovers her grandmother’s Nashville home has been foreclosed, and the new owner has started the eviction process, Sienna has no other choice but go back to Music City. And she comes face to face with the flawed, gorgeous man she never thought she’d see again. The man who now holds the deed to her grandma’s estate.

When millionaire rock star Lucas Wolfe finds the outspoken redhead glaring at him from across a courtroom, he’s both infuriated and intrigued. He still can't get the night Sienna almost spent with him out of his mind, and the chemistry between them is as undeniable as it was two years ago. He craves Sienna more than ever. And just like everything Lucas hungers for, he’s determined to have her.

Now, Lucas will do whatever it takes to lure Sienna into his bed, even if that means making a deal with her: ten days with him, playing by his rules, and he’ll hand over the deed to her grandmother’s home. Though she agrees to the arrangement, Sienna is conflicted. Because of her duty to her family. Because of promises she’s made to herself and a past that still haunts her. And as Lucas’s game of seduction continues, and Sienna is introduced to his dark, erotic world and even darker background, she realizes that at any moment, she could be devoured.

My Thoughts:

As I said, this book had me all over the place. One minute I was loving the story and the characters and the next I kept getting caught up in nit-picky things. Things I usually do not get nit-picky about but for some reason bothered me with this book. I might not be making sense here, so let me explain.

First, Lucas was blazing hot. He was...just awesome. He wanted Sienna and he was going to do what he had to get her. What suprirsed me though was that it had been two years...yes two years...since he had seen Sienna. That's a long freaking time. But whatever. I got over that. But then, the house. I have a question about that. Did he know it was Sienna's grandma's house? Was that in his plan? This either wasn't explained or I totally missed it. Or, maybe that will be explored in the second book. (Yes, there is a book 2. I will get to that in a minute.) If this is going to be explained, then my concern is not a big deal. I mean, Lucas is a huge rock star so presumably he could pay an investigator to find this out. Right? I mean, creepy, but then it's Lucas so maybe not so creepy. Maybe. And then, I think he must have had someone check into Sienna because he knew about her mom. (Or at least, I got the impression he had an inkling of what had happened before she told him.) See what I mean about me picking apart things? I need to stop. Because I did like Lucas (scratch that. I loved him...hard) but I just...well there were questions and I wanted answers. But, anyways, moving on.

Let's chat about Sienna, yes? I liked her. I did. But I did not get why she had freaked out about the handcuffs. Was it because she didn't know him that well? Or that she was just freaked out because she wanted to and didn't think she should be okay with it? I was at a loss as to her explanation (or lack thereof) and again was left with more questions than answers. This might be something explored in the prequel but I didn't read that. I was able to surmise as I read that (reading through the lines a little) Sienna was afraid of giving up control. She thought being submissive was giving herself over to someone entirely and losing who she was. This of course is not what D/s is about and eventually she figures that out and ends up stronger in the end. Not to mention, for a 23 year old just trying to find herself her personality, questions about herself and her family, and who she was/is, was realistic. But again, I had to figure out this out by reading (and re-reading) a lot of internal dialogue that wasn't exactly clear.

The steam factor was high though this was mostly because of the smokin' sexual tension between the two. Although Lucas is a dominant and Sienna is submissive (though it takes time for her to embrace this), this is not a book heavy on Domination/submission at all. If you aren't sure about the subject, this might be the book to usher you in. At one point the hero blindfolds the heroine, but it has nothing to do with sex actually. And then it's used again later on in the sexual sense. There are a few mentions here and there and I think he tied her up hands once, but that's really it. The dominant and submissive aspect of their relationship was more about the personalities than the sex. And this I thought was a good thing. Don't get me wrong, I can see these two being way more into the sex aspect of it, but in this first book, as they explored their relationship and started understanding each other, I think it worked.

The "end" conflict I felt came out of the blue. There was no mention of Sam until the end and I was like, "wait, what?" And then the book ended and the epilogue started and just freaked me out. I was like, ohmygod what is happening! I was ready to scream. So thank the freaking book gods that things ended how it did or else I was going to throw a serious temper tantrum. I would have preferred more, but I had gotten so worked up I found myself, at least, content. [Note: this was also when I figured out there would be a book 2 and proceeded to get sulky. (I explain this more later).]

What about the writing and the technical aspects of the book? It was well done. I didn't find many grammer errors, or at least not enough to make the English Lit teacher in my fidget. This is a definite plus. I did have an issue with the narrative point of view however. The book is written in present tense. I really cannot get into books that are written like this. I don't know why this is. And trust me I have tried and tried and tried! I want to like these books. I want to LOVE them as so many do. But I just cannot. I don't feel as connected to the characters when books are written in this tense.

In addition, there are times in the book where the narrative it too much "tell" and not enough show. In a few of the steamy scenes in fact, we had a inner monologue type description of the scene and what happened, instead of dialogue and action between the two. There was too much "showing" what was happening. This was jarring for me since it took me too much out of the action and into Sienna's head and lessened the effectiveness of the scene. This is especially true when Sienna pours out everything to Lucas about herself. That scene I thought was (and should be) pivotal to their relationship. I wanted and needed to see more of that, to hear their conversation, in order to feel invested in Sienna and Lucas. Instead I had to try and surmise what the conversation had been.

Now. Regarding the second book in the series. If I had known there would be a HFN and somewhat cliffhanger-y(ish) ending, I might not have bought this. Granted, at the time I bought it, I was not on my current "I will not buy a cliffhanger book ever again" kick, but still, it annoyed me. Please understand, my annoyance with this literary "device" has nothing to do with this specific author nor should it reflect on the quality of the book. I liked the book. I will read more from this author. But I, myself, just do not like the way cliffhangers are used from a reader standpoint. It makes me feel ripped off in the end. [Note: I was over this with second book in the 50 Shades trilogy so, yeah...enough already!]

The story of Sienna and Lucas continues with Consumed, which I will be getting when it comes out because I really want to see what happens with Sam. A third book will explore the relationship between Kylie and Wyatt per Goodreads. (This makes me happy since it likely means Consumed will finish the story of Sienna and Lucas. I hope!)

Here are the purchase links for Amazon and Barnes and Noble. There is a prequel which I have not read and probably won't, but it might have been helpful to have that in order to know the backstory. I figured most of it out, through Sienna's thoughts and conversations with her friend and Lucas, but having it explored more here would have been cool. So, you might want to grab that first and then dive into Devoured.

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

Book Review: One Night With A Cowboy by Cat Johnson (Oklahoma Nights, #1)

2013-03-06T20:26:00.003-05:00

Title: One Night With A Cowboy (Oklahoma Nights, #1)
Author: Cat Johnson
Publisher: Kensington Books
Publication Date: February 26, 2013

My rating: 5 out of 5

Who knew that cowboys could be as heart stopping and sexy as military men and cops?! Why did I not know this sooner?! I clearly need to rectify this situation now that author Cat Johnson has introduced me to the super sexy bull-riding, army man Tucker Jenkins.

From Goodreads:

One Sweet Ride…

Oh yeah. A single look at the leggy blonde in the stands and Tucker Jenkins is ready to buck all night long. It’s time to forget all about his cheating ex and his usual hands off policy.

One Hot Night…

Becca Hart is an East Coast professor. Not a buckle bunny. But no degree can prepare her for the moves of the sexy bull rider she hooks up with at her first rodeo … Or the shock of finding him at her first Oklahoma State University staff meeting.

One Happy Ending…

Tuck knows it’s all about holding on, no matter how wild the ride. Now he just has to convince Becca that a rough start out of the chute doesn’t mean they aren’t a smokin’ combination …

My Thoughts:

First, let's look at the cover again. Isn't that pretty? Well I don't know if pretty is the right word but it's something, yeah? *sighs and gets lost in that belt buckle*

Alright, now wipe the drool from your mouth and let's get on with the review. I won't go over the plot itself other than to say that the blurb is exactly right. Becca takes a new job after her life in New York falls apart but before she does that she visits the place she will eventually take a job. There for her interview she meets a hot cowboy, Tucker Jenkins. At her sister's urging, and needing to put the past behind her, Becca and Tucker spent one hot night together. It was amazing. But the next day, she had her interview and she left.

Of course, this is romanclandia (a place I do not mind visiting, often) so the two eventually run into each other when she takes the job at OSU and finds that he teaches in the ROTC program and coach of the college's rodeo team. Drama and lots of fun between the sheets ensues. But that drama puts a kink in things. And this kink is not the fun kind of kink. It comes in the form of a non-fraternization policy. When Tucker finds out that Becca needs the job because of her debt (from being laid off and having a douche of an ex) he puts distance between them. Except in his case it's literal distance. He goes to Afghanistan to save her job.

I have to say, when he left I was all "Tucker you dumbass!" because I mean hello! Just tell Becca! Don't go to a war zone to save her position! But did he listen? Of course not. He goes anyways. There is fighting and attacks and he and Becca have little communication. And then, and then, the drama ratchets up and gosh darn you Cat Johnson I nearly cried! I mean, the tears were right there. It was stressful and I had to get up and make a frozen pizza and have a glass of wine to drown my considerable sorrows. But Ms. Johnson came through for me and I thank her for that.

And the end had my toes curling and my breath hitching a little bit because that was one of the sweetest endings I have ever read.

The writing itself was well done and I found no glaring editing errors. I look forward to reading more books by this author in the future and I really, really, really cannot wait to go back to Oklahoma when the second book in this series comes out! So if you want to read a hot romance with a well thought out plot and lots of sexy times (and creative ones too! I will never ever look at honey the same again), then you might want to check this one out. Now, I'm off to find me a bull-riding cowboy. See y'all in a few days...

Here are the purchase links for the book: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

Book Review: Raid by Kristen Ashley

2013-03-05T08:28:00.001-05:00

Title: Raid (Unfinished Hereos, #3)
Author: Kristen Ashley
Publisher: self-published
Publication Date: February 26, 2013

My Rating: 4.25 out of 5

From Goodreads:

Hanna Boudreaux has lived in the small town of Willow, Colorado all her life. The great-granddaughter of the town matriarch, she's sweet, cute and quiet.

Too quiet.

Hanna has a moment of epiphany when she realizes her crush for forever, Raiden Ulysses Miller, is not ever going to be hers. She sees her life as narrow and decides to do something about it.

Raiden Miller is the town of Willow's local hero. An ex-marine with the medal to prove his hero status, he comes home, shrouded in mystery. It takes a while but, eventually, Hanna catches his eye.

But after all these years of Raid and Hanna living in the same town, the question is, why? Is Raid interested in Hanna because she's sweet and cute? Or does Raid have something else going on?

This has some BDSM.

My Thoughts:

Okay, a couple things. First, everyone knows I love Kristen Ashley's books. But even though I await each release with breathless anticipation I try to stay objective when I review books, even hers, cause I know not everyone is a huge fan like me. So, that being said, let's get into the book. (And beware, possible spoilers ahead).

I love Hanna. She is quiet, shy, a book worm, and just the sweetest heroine ever. Some see her as weak, but not me. I think because I am quiet, shy and a bookworm I really related to her. I don't think I'm the sweetest anything though since I have a mouth on me. Anyways, Hanna was strong for the people she needed to be strong for-her friends, her family and of course, Raid. She had an unusual profession but this too I loved. It fit her well. Hanna was not someone who would fit in an office and she certainly wasn't a social butterfly. So her crocheting business was perfect. (Though I would have loved to see KA dive more into this aspect of Hanna's life. And did I mention my heart did a total flip-flop when she gave Raid one and he slept underneath it.)

Raid was amazing. He was hot, alpha, sexy and he liked to play as in play. And he did this with Hanna. And when things didn't go right (i.e. she did something she didn't really want to do), like a good dom Raid sensed it and stopped it. He then reminded Hanna she had to speak up, that she had the power and he wanted her to have it to say no. This was awesome. KC, Hanna's bff, had a similar conversation, though it was centered around alphas in general and not sex. This was good. Hanna was naive when it came to knowing how to handle a hot alpha. So the talk with Raid and KC made a world of difference.

Some have mentioned the fact that Raid called Hanna a bitch during a fight and did some other things that this behavior was abusive. No. This was not abuse. Did he act like an ass? Sure. But that is not dv. (If it is, then I've abused one of my exes when I called him a name during a fight. It was a stupid thing to do and I regretted it almost immediately. But I never saw it as abuse since we weren't, well abusing each other, emotionally or otherwise. We said what we said in the heat of the moment and then got over it after apologizing, which is what happened in Raid.) In addition to that, in the case of Raid, the whole fight started when Hanna brought up a topic he did not want to talk about. (His buddies who were killed in the war and his issues with PTSD resulting from that). Did he handle it well? Nope. Did he deserve her walking out when he acted like a dick? Yup. Was she weak for forgiving him? Nope. Not in my opinion. She loved him. He loved her. She wasn't going to give up on him because he called her a name. If he hadn't apologized (and if he doesn't eventually deal with his PTSD) my opinion would be otherwise. But he not only said sorry (which I gotta say is a hella lot more than Tate ever did in Sweet Dreams) but he also started dealing with his condition. Was it handled perfect? Did we see him going to counseling and all that? No. We're told he talked to a friend which helped. Would it have been cool to see how all this played you? Sure, but it wouldn't necessarily be practical or what I wanted. I wanted to read about Hanna and Raid, their romance. So yeah, Raid was an unmitigated ass but most of KA's heroes mess up at some point in her books and all work on redemption. Raid for me was redeemed at the end. (And let's not forget the fight between Ty and Lexi in Lady Luck. Or rather Ty's screaming rampage at Lexi, since she didn't get a word in edgewise. And what about what Chase said to Faith in the beginning of Breathe? Another asshole comment. I could go on, but I won't. I think my point has been made! :D )

So why wasn't this a 5 star read? It was shorter than most, but then I knew that going in since the Unfinished Heroes series is always shorter than her other books. So this wasn't so much a factor. I would have liked to see more of Hanna and her friend KC, and more of Hanna and Raid's sister and mom. Also, one of things I love most about Kristen Ashley's book is the descriptive writing (though I know some people don't like this) and I did feel Raid was missing this. Lastly, I would have liked to see what happened at and after the hospital from Raid's point of view. But, these were in no way deal breakers for me nor anything that would drop this rating below the 4.25 I gave it.

I can't wait to see more of these characters in Deacon's story. There is some D/s in the book but it is not anywhere near Knight levels. (And for me, Knight wasn't even that kinky.) The steamy scenes are just that and KA once again hits them out of the park. One thing I really appreciated was how the issue between Knight, Nair and Nick has weaved throughout these stories. I love going back and re-reading to see what clues Kristen has left for us and trying to speculate about what might happen. (I love me a mystery!)

So check out Raid, and if you haven't met Knight and Creed, I suggest reading those first since Raid gives us a glimpse into their lives as well. (Creed! Yay!!!!)

Here are the purchase links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This book was a self-purchase and I was not in any way compensated for, or even asked, to review this book. All opinions are my own*

RAID, Reading, RAID, Reading...With Some Writing Thrown In

2013-03-03T09:24:00.001-05:00

This was essentially my week.

And did I mention Raid?! Well let me just mention it again. Kristen Ashley's third book in her Unfinished Heroes series came out two days earlier than expected. I bought it immediately. And then I devoured it on the 27th. My review will be coming soon enough but just have to say...

IT WAS ABSOF*@#INGAMAZING.

Anyone who has read Raid will get that reference! ;D

Anyways, since it's been a been a busy week all around and I have a super busy Sunday ahead of me, I will try to keep this short.

First, this week on the blog:

Falling For The Lawyer by Anna Clifton: I received an ARC of this book and it's a solid 3.5 stars. It was cute and I look forward to reading books this author writes in the future.

Bella Andre's The Look of Love (Sullivans, #1): 4 out of 5 stars for me and I cannot wait to dive into the rest of these books. I have the next 4 in the series and seriously, the Sullivan brothers? From what I've seen, it's going to be a fun ride!

Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks: This was a solid 5 out of 5 stars and is such a well done highlander romance. To top that, the fiercely strong and amazing heroine is deaf and is such a strong, amazing, incredible heroine. Maya Banks kicks butt with this book.

Love and a Blue-Eyed Cowboy by Sandra Chastain: This was my first review of an ARC I received via Netgalley. This was published initially in 1992 and though I liked it, I had to work hard not comparing it to today's romance novels and look through the lens of an earlier time while I was reviewing it.

As for music, I am still on my Lana del Ray kick. I tried to find an official youtube video of her song "Radio" because it is so, so good but was not successful. If you get a chance, check it out on itunes, spotify, pandora, or wherever it is you use to listen to your music, especially if you're looking for something different!

And last, my ROW80 update. Here we go:

Continue working on synopsis: Still in progress. As I was revising my draft last week I went back through the novel to make sure I've hit all the important parts. I need to add a few more things and re-word a few paragraphs but it's nearing completion. I thought this would be easy. At least easier than the query letter, but yeah, I was so wrong.
Spend 2 hours on collaborative project: Nothing to see here. Literally. Once I get this darn synopsis done I can concentrate on this. One thing (and one day) at a time!
Post at least 3 book reviews here or on GR- Done! See above for links to the ones on the blog or check my GR page.
Read/comment on at least 5 blogs- Done!
Check in for ROW80 on Sunday- Done!
Workout 3 times- um, well...I've been eating healthier at least Except for one day when I did take out (and regretted it). But as for working out...*hides under desk*

Next week the goals will be the same except that I will be adding (1) to catch up on grading and (2) prepare the midterm exam by Friday. I can't believe it's that time of year already!

Lastly, I have been figuring things out here at my blog, as in how to do things that most people find pretty easy but I do not. I found a contact form I like and added that page and I also figured out how to shorten urls with google's url shortening service. (This was surprisingly easy. I really need to not be scared of this tech stuff sometimes and just do it. LOL) I moved a few widgets around, added my copyright on the bottom (since I'm doing book reviews now, this is especially important as I don't want my reviews showing up elsewhere without permission), and am trying to figure out Google+. I was also moderately busy on pinterest, which for the record, can be a time suck but it's worth it when I find a pair of shoes or quote or anything else I like!

So busy week, no? After all that I think today calls for tossing some chicken in the crock-pot for some southwest chicken and rice later and relaxing. :D I hope everyone has had a fabulous week and for those of you in ROW80, good luck with your goals!