Rating: B+

The “First Lady of the West,” #1 New York Times bestselling author Linda Lael Miller is back with a new series about Parable, Montana-where love awaits. The illegitimate son of a wealthy rancher, Sheriff Slade Barlow grew up in a trailer hitched to the Curly-Burly hair salon his mother runs. He was never acknowledged by his father-until now. Suddenly, Slade has inherited half of Whisper Creek Ranch, one of the most prosperous in Parable, Montana. That doesn’t sit well with his half brother, Hutch, who grew up with all the rights of a Carmody. Including the affections of Joslyn Kirk, homecoming queen, rodeo queen, beauty queen-whom Slade has never forgotten But Joslyn is barely holding her head up these days as she works to pay back everyone her crooked stepfather cheated. With a town to protect-plus a rebellious teenage stepdaughter-Slade has his hands full. But someone has to convince Joslyn that she’s responsible only for her own actions. Such as her effect on this lawman’s guarded heart.

What I LOVE about this author is that I feel that I can always count on her to put out a book with a story that I am extremely interested in.  Linda Lael Miller is one of those authors that has been on my Auto-Buy list FOREVER for that exact reason.  Thank Ms. Miller for yet another wonderful story.

Our heroine Joslyn is back in town after leaving after dark with her mother and their housekeeper after a MAJOR scandal broke out that put her stepfather in DEEP trouble with not only the law but the people he conned. Up until that point Joslyn had led a pretty pampered life.  Joslyn is doing pretty good for herself these days and now she’s back in town to try to make things right.

Slade Barlow is the sheriff and up until recently he’s been the illegitimate son of the wealthiest rancher in the area.  I forgot to mention the unacknowledged illegitimate son part.  With the death of his father Slade learns that he’s inherited half of his dad’s estate.  Enter pissed off 1/2 brother Hutch and you’ve got a pretty volatile situation.  Slade is also a little bit hesitant to start a new relationship after going through a divorce, especially with a woman he isn’t sure is going to stick around.

Even with all the obstacles that face Joslyn and Slade they do partake in a relationship.  I think that those obstacles really made the story for me.  There is a lot that happens in this story and I don’t want to give anything away so I’m going to start wrapping up this review.  The romance grows, relationships get worked on and then there is some figuring out what exactly the relationship is going to be as well.  Overall, I am really happy with this book and can hardly wait to get my hands on the next book in this series!

• You can set your post any way you want, simple book list, covers, pictures, vlog, sky is the limit!
• I am posting Stacking The Shelves on Saturdays, but feel free to post yours any day that fits you.
• Visit Tynga’s Reviews on Saturday and add your link so others can visit you!

• Visit other participants link to find out what they added to their shelves!

New This Week:

Goodreads

Goodreads

I’m posting about the change-up that I am making to this blog.  From now on I will be reviewing exclusively books that “go bump in the night” here on Bookish After Dark.  But because I am an eclectic reader I am going to post my reviews for all other genre’s on a new blog called Romancing the Book.  I hope you’ll drop by and say hi.  I’ve got a couple of reviews up already and a couple more scheduled and a few more in the works right now.

Title: Skin Deep
Author: Pamela Clare
Series: I-Team 5.5
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Personal E-book purchase
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Sexual Meter: Sex scenes, acts of sensuality
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Broken on the inside

Megan Hunter has worked hard to get back on her feet, leaving the nightmare of her teenage years behind. The last thing she wants or needs in her life is a man. But when she is attacked by someone from her past, a scarred stranger intervenes, saving her life and that of her little girl. Looks can be deceiving, for despite the man’s rough appearance, she feels safe with him. And for the first time in her life, she knows the stirrings of desire.

Broken on the outside

Nathaniel West paid a high price serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. He returned to his family’s ranch in the Colorado mountains to heal—and be alone. Disfigured as he is, he has put all thoughts of sex and romance aside. But something about Megan brings him back to life, heats his blood, makes him feel like a man again. As danger pursues her, and the truth about her past is revealed, he vows to protect her—and to heal her wounded spirit.

But confronting the past is never easy—especially when it’s carrying a gun. Megan will have to learn to trust Nate to survive and to claim a passion that is much more than … Skin Deep.

Includes a Bonus Story, Marc & Julian Make a Beer Run

Ride along with Marc, Julian, Zach, Gabe, Reece, Nate, and Joaquin as a beer run turns out to be more than they bargained for.

I saw this book as I checking out the lendable books that were available from my Nook Friends.  The premise of the story sounded so good that I just had to have it.  I’ve read one other book in the I-Team series and I really enjoyed it very much.  If you haven’t checked out this series I highly recommend it.

We actually meet Megan in an earlier book in the series, one that I haven’t read yet and I actually didn’t know this until I was reading reviews for this book on Goodreads.  Megan has her own set of demons that she’s dealing with most of them stem from events that happened to her when she was younger. Megan is also a single mother who is trying to do right by her little girl Emily.  But Megan does have 1 big problem and his name is Donny.

Nate West is a former Marine who is dealing with the burns that came from an IED.  He has always admired Megan from afar but when Megan is attacked in the parking lot on her way to pick up Emily from pre-school he steps in and rescues her.  After reading a little bit about Nate you learn that he’s been “burned” by women before and he really wasn’t ready to through his hat in the ring yet when it came to dating but Megan saw past his burns and he eventually gets over himself.

The romance between Nate and Megan starts off pretty slowly and escalates pretty quickly once Megan takes Nate up on his open invitation.  I really enjoyed all the secondary characters that are in the book very much.  Every character adds a little something extra to the book to make it just that much more appealing.  The drama and suspense kept building through out the story as well.  The only issue that I had with the book was you know at the beginning of the book who the bad guy is.  That slightly detracted from the story for me.

Rating: B

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga of Tynga’s Reviews.

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Guidelines resume:

• Create your own Stacking The Shelves post. You can use my official graphic or your own, but please link back to Tynga’s Reviews so more people can join the fun!

• You can set your post any way you want, simple book list, covers, pictures, vlog, sky is the limit!

• I am posting Stacking The Shelves on Saturdays, but feel free to post yours any day that fits you.

• Visit Tynga’s Reviews on Saturday and add your link so others can visit you!

• Visit other participants link to find out what they added to their shelves!

She’s always been off-limits…

Former Army Special Forces Sgt. Marco Vieri has never thought of Alyssa Scott as more than his best friend’s little sister, but her return home changes that…and challenges him to keep his war-borne demons at bay. Marco’s not the same person he was back when he protected Alyssa from her abusive father, and he’s not about to let her see the mess he’s become.

…but now she’s all grown up.

When Alyssa takes a job at the bar where Marco works, her carefree smiles wreak havoc on his resolve to bury his feelings. How can he protect her when he can’t stop thinking about her in his bed? But Alyssa’s not looking for protection—not anymore. Now that she’s back in his life, she’s determined to heal her forbidden hero, one touch at a time…

Broken on the inside

Megan Hunter has worked hard to get back on her feet, leaving the nightmare of her teenage years behind. The last thing she wants or needs in her life is a man. But when she is attacked by someone from her past, a scarred stranger intervenes, saving her life and that of her little girl. Looks can be deceiving, for despite the man’s rough appearance, she feels safe with him. And for the first time in her life, she knows the stirrings of desire.

Broken on the outside

Nathaniel West paid a high price serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. He returned to his family’s ranch in the Colorado mountains to heal—and be alone. Disfigured as he is, he has put all thoughts of sex and romance aside. But something about Megan brings him back to life, heats his blood, makes him feel like a man again. As danger pursues her, and the truth about her past is revealed, he vows to protect her—and to heal her wounded spirit.

But confronting the past is never easy—especially when it’s carrying a gun. Megan will have to learn to trust Nate to survive and to claim a passion that is much more than … Skin Deep.

Includes a Bonus Story, Marc & Julian Make a Beer Run

Ride along with Marc, Julian, Zach, Gabe, Reece, Nate, and Joaquin as a beer run turns out to be more than they bargained for.

She’s 33, unmarried, and stuffed into a Bubble Yum pink bridesmaid dress. And the whole town wants to fix her up with anyone with a dental plan… Who’s going to rescue Sadie Hollowell now? Everyone in Lovett, Texas knows Sadie has always been a ‘notional’ kind of gal. She got a notion to leave town asap , and never visit her daddy (bless his heart). Now, she’s back and got the notion to invite a good-looking, hard-muscled, total stranger to her cousin’s wedding. Better a stranger than some of the losers she’s dated. Vince Haven got his muscles the hard way—as a Navy SEAL in Afghanistan. He’s staying in Lovett to visit his crazy aunt—the proprietor of the local Gas N Go. Before he can get the heck back out of the small town, his aunt makes him an offer he can’t refuse. Maybe he’ll stick around Lovett for a while. Maybe he’ll make a ‘go’ of the Gas N Go. Maybe he’ll rescue Sadie out of that pink dress!

Return to Lovett, Texas, the setting of Daisy’s Back in Town, in this smart and sexy new story from Rachel Gibson, the New York Times bestselling author of Rescue Me and the Seattle Chinooks books.

Lily Darlington’s been called crazy in her day-and, yeah, driving her car into her ex-husband’s living room probably wasn’t the smartest move ever made-but the louse deserved it. Now Lily is happily single, and she’s turned it all around. She knows she’s a good mom, a homeowner, and a businesswoman, all wrapped up in one good-looking package.

A package that police officer Tucker Matthews is dying to unwrap. This ex-military man sure doesn’t need another woman in his life. His last girlfriend left him with nothing but memories and a cat named Pinky! But living next door to Lily has been driving him nuts. He dreams about her long blonde hair and even longer legs. And maybe it’s time to go a little crazy . . . and fall in love.

Daisy Lee Monroe thought she’d brushed the dust of Lovett, Texas, off her high-heeled shoes years ago, but she’s come back home only to find that little has changed. Her sister is still crazy, and her mom still has pink plastic flamingos in her front yard. And Jackson Lamott Parrish, the bad boy she’d left behind, is still so sexy it hurts. She’d like nothing better than to avoid this particular man, but she can’t. Daisy has something to say to Jackson, and she’s not going anywhere until he listens.

Jackson learned his lesson about Daisy the hard way, and now the only word he’s interested in hearing from Daisy’s red lips is good-bye. But she’s popping up everywhere, and he doesn’t believe in coincidence. It seems the only way to keep her quiet is with his mouth, but kissing Daisy had once been his downfall. Is he strong enough to resist her now? Strong enough to watch her walk out of his life again? Is he strong enough to make her stay?

When I first started book blogging back in January, everyone said that Goodreads.com was a great resource and that it was relatively drama-free and was just chock-full of Awesome.  Well in the beginning that may have been true.  But now I can not say the same thing.  Same goes for the book blogging community as a whole. Relatively drama-free and chock full of Awesome.  In most cases I agree with that 100% but recently there have been some cases where I feel that a small minority are making a mockery of the community as a whole.

Right now, I feel that Goodreads.com has turned into an online, book reader’s version of High School.  Complete with the “Mean Girls” and some pretty juvenile behavior lately.  I don’t know about anyone else but High School SUCKED for me and as a result of all this bad behavior on Goodreads I have become increasingly disappointed with the book blogging community.  To the point that there really hasn’t been much content here on the blog, because it’s depressing being THIS disappointed in a portion of a pretty vast community.

Recently, it seems that there is increasing tension between authors and reviewers/bloggers.  Blogger’s have taken to posting “reviews” that not only attack the book but also the author, which in turn leads to author’s behaving badly and attacking the blogger and blogger’s in general.  Then there have been all the plagiarism issues that have been coming out of the woodwork recently.  Then throw on a health dose of miscommunication which blew up into a full-blown clusterfuck and in my honest opinion you’ve got a giant shitstorm that could have easily been avoided.

I just don’t understand it.  When I was growing up I was taught the “Golden Rule,” do unto others that you would have others do unto you, and it seems that in book blogging that “rule” doesn’t apply to some people.  I don’t know if it went out the window because we’re on the ‘net and because the ‘net is such a vast impersonal place we think “hey who’s really gonna find me?” when we fire with both barrels?  Or if some on thinks because they have such a “huge” following that they can just go all “devil dog” on someone or something?  I don’t know if people just “forget” that behind every book and screen name there is an ACTUAL person with ACTUAL feelings when they post some of this nasty stuff.  But like I’ve stated before it’s depressing and very frustrating seeing all this negativity.

Personally, and I could be totally off base here, I think that the bad behavior of a select few is starting to reflect poorly on the community as a whole.  Sure, drama sells books, but I really don’t see why author’s/publisher’s/agent’s would want to put themselves in that position willingly?

Anyway, I’m going to jump off my soapbox now.  I’ve told you what I think of the recent event’s that have taken place in the book blogging community now it’s your turn to tell me what you think.  I’m open for discussion this issue but let’s keep it friendly please.

Title: Virgin River
Author: Robyn Carr
Series: Virgin River #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Personal Purchase
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Sexual Meter: sex scenes, acts of sensuality

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Synopsis

“Wanted: Midwife/nurse practitioner in Virgin River, population six hundred. Make a difference against the backdrop of towering California redwoods and crystal-clear rivers. Rent-free cabin included.”

When the recently widowed Melinda Monroe sees this ad she quickly decides that the remote mountain town of Virgin River might be the perfect place to escape her heartache, and to reenergize the nursing career she loves. But her high hopes are dashed within an hour of arriving: the cabin is a dump, the roads are treacherous and the local doctor wants nothing to do with her. Realizing she’s made a huge mistake, Mel decides to leave town the following morning.

But a tiny baby, abandoned on a front porch, changes her plans…and a former marine cements them into place.

Melinda Monroe may have come to Virgin River looking for escape, but instead she finds her home.
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Review

I downloaded the first 4 books of the Virgin River series onto my Nook a long time ago.  I just hadn’t gotten around to reading them until just recently. Then I’ve been in a reading/reviewing dry spell.  So now here is my review, better late than never

Mel Monroe moves to Virgin River after the death of her husband to help out the aging town doctor.  When she get’s there she finds that the Doc wants nothing to do with her and is trying to force her out.  She also meets Jack Sheridan, bar owner, former Marine and overall good guy.  Just watching Jack and Mel fall in love is so much fun.  Add in all the secondary characters that make Virgin River what it is and you  are in for an endearing and sometimes comical read.

The drama that is added to this story and the authenticity of the midwife scene’s really made me enjoy this book even more.  I guess my only quirk with the book was that at some points I just felt that there was a little bit too much information being provided.  I also thought that in some of the scenes with Jack and Mel there was a tich to much “cheese” added.

Overall, Virgin River is a great start to this series and I’ve already continued on.  I’m on the 6th book in the series and I’ve only found 1 book in the 6 I’ve been through that I didn’t care for at all.  Please check out this series.  It’s way worth the investment

Rating: B

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga of Tynga’s Reviews.

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Guidelines resume:

• Create your own Stacking The Shelves post. You can use my official graphic or your own, but please link back to Tynga’s Reviews so more people can join the fun!

• You can set your post any way you want, simple book list, covers, pictures, vlog, sky is the limit!

• I am posting Stacking The Shelves on Saturdays, but feel free to post yours any day that fits you.

• Visit Tynga’s Reviews on Saturday and add your link so others can visit you!

• Visit other participants link to find out what they added to their shelves!

They’re here.
They ride.
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
Born of a match between good and evil, four siblings stand between hell’s minions and everything they want to destroy. They are the Lords of Deliverance, and they have the power to ward off Doomsday . . . or let it ride . . .

LETHAL RIDER

Thanatos, the most deadly Horseman of the Apocalypse, has endured thousands of years of celibacy to prevent the end of days. But just one night with the wickedly sexy Aegis Guardian, ReganCooper, shatters centuries of resolve. Yet their passion comes with a price. And Thanatos must face a truth more terrifying than an apocalypse-he’s about to become a father.

Demon-slayer Regan Cooper never imagined herself the maternal type, but with the fate of the world hanging in the balance she had no choice but to seduce Thanatos and bear his child. Now, as the final battle draws closer and his rage at being betrayed is overshadowed by an undeniable passion for the mother of his child, Thanatos has a life-shattering realization: To save the world, he must sacrifice the only thing he’s ever wanted-a family.

If you are a follower of my blog you’ve probably noticed that there haven’t been very many reviews lately.  Well, what can I say…Real Life keeps getting in the way of my reading time.  I was recently inspired by Larissa of Larissa’s Bookish Life to include a little more personal things with my peeps so you can learn a little bit more about me.  I hope that’s alright with y’all.  I have so many things to say about certain things and I really don’t have very many other people to tell them too.

Reading wise, I’m in a big ole slump. I’ve started and put down probably close to a dozen books over the past 2 weeks.  Nothing seems to be holding my attention for very long.  Though I did pick up Dead on the Delta by Stacey Jay on Friday and it’s been holding my attention.  Maybe I’m headed for a rebound!?  Who knows.

Review wise, I’m WAY behind.  I think I’ve got 6 reviews to write and because I’m in a slump I have ZERO motivation to write them.  Bad News Bears right there!

Life wise, it’s been a hellishly stressful week.  My dog is not adjusting to the new routine that we have going on now that my sister-in-law is back at work and my parent’s are covering on days that their schedule’s overlap.  I didn’t get much sleep last week at all.  I think the best sleep I got was on Wednesday when I fell asleep at 9:20 am and didn’t get up until my alarm clock went off at 7:45 pm (I work 3rd shift).  Then to add-on top of that stress my sister-in-law had to have minor “emergency” surgery Friday night.  It’s just NOT been a very good week.  And when I’m stressed I don’t read hardly at all, which is why I’m very surprised that Dead on the Delta is holding my attention.  When I’m stressed…I knit.

Which brings me too….

This pattern is called Pine Forest Baby Blanket.  That is what it’s supposed to look like when I’m finished with it. My team lead at work is having a baby boy in September and I’m knitting them up this blanket.  I’m not very far on it or I would show you a picture but I promise to post pictures next monday.  So even though I’m stressed and I’m in a reading slump I am still being productive.

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga of Tynga’s Reviews.

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Guidelines resume:

• Create your own Stacking The Shelves post. You can use my official graphic or your own, but please link back to Tynga’s Reviews so more people can join the fun!

• You can set your post any way you want, simple book list, covers, pictures, vlog, sky is the limit!

• I am posting Stacking The Shelves on Saturdays, but feel free to post yours any day that fits you.

• Visit Tynga’s Reviews on Saturday and add your link so others can visit you!

• Visit other participants link to find out what they added to their shelves!

goodreads

goodreads

goodreads

Alright!  I’ve shown you mine now it’s your turn.  Feel free to leave me a link to your posts in the comments section below.  Happy weekend everyone!