Divinity by Bryl R. Tyne

Summary:

Martin Hayes has found the perfect job for a 200-year-old vampire. As the late-shift security guard for Spire Industries, he works and hunts by night and sleeps by day, hidden away in the unused cellar. Life is all so easy—nights bleeding away, weeks and months passing . . . until a new janitor disturbs the peace. Martin finds himself consumed by memories (or are they?) of red hair, freckled skin, and a man he knows but doesn't know.

Dylan Mesmer isn’t just a hot, freckled, red-haired janitor. He’s altogether too composed around Martin and never surprised by Martin’s supernatural abilities. In fact, he seems to have a few of his own. And why does he keep feeding Martin orange lollipops?

A healthy vampire has no use for candy, yet Martin cannot resist the lure. It seems he’s being baited, but to what end? And what about those visions that assail him whenever he thinks of Dylan? Their story is centuries old, but this time around, Dylan’s playing for nothing less than immortality. Eternal life—and eternal love, after a sort—is within his reach, but can he convince Martin to change his ways and commit? They may never find their way beyond the anger and the lies, but there's no denying the draw between them, and that's very much worth fighting for—even among themselves.

Reviewer: PurpleRose
Martin is a 200 year old vampire and working as a security guard makes life easier for those late night feedings - right? Well, that all changes when Dylan shows up, and it looks like Dylan might just have some supernatural powers of his own... but what's the deal with Orange Lollipops? And who is Anton?

I went into this book hoping it would be really good. I liked the idea of the plot, it seemed intriguing. Instead, this book left me very confused! It had a lot of jumping around, making it a bit difficult to keep up with what was actually happening. Having to sift through all the memories that seem to pop up everywhere was a bit much.

I liked the story, I liked the idea behind the story, but in the end was left unsatisfied. Perhaps, simply not enough detail? I never really understood what the Orange Lollipops did or what they were for either. The chemistry was off a bit, to much love/hate happening. Maybe, if the story was longer, so more details could have been added about both the past and the present I'd have been able to get more into it.

In all I'd give this 2.5 stars. It's not bad, unfortunately it's not great either.

Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Review Courtesy Of: ManicReaders

Justice for Emily by Sandy Wolters

Summary:

Rachael Merchant is on a cross country trip running from the tragic images of her last case that are embedded deep in her soul. She is a City of Phoenix Homicide Detective that is trying to deal with the freak show her life has become.

Three days ago, she was sitting in a hospital room with a man that had just murdered his three small children because he was angry his wife had left him. After making the arrest, she let the perpetrator know that when he got out of prison she was coming after him. He would not be able to hide from her. She left the hospital, went back to work and quit on the spot.

After a great deal of persuading, her captain convinced her that an indefinite leave of absence was in order instead of quitting. She went home, packed her bags and jumped in the car. With no destination in mind, she just drove.

Rachael found herself on the side of the road, unsure of where she was and on the phone with her partner. All she wanted to do was run as fast and as far as she could from the image of those three small babies with bullets in their bodies.

Officer Patrick Sheehan pulls in front of Rachael while she is bent over the hood of her car looking at a map. He overhears the conversation between Rachael and her partner and thanks fate for dropping a homicide detective right in his lap. His good friend, Emily, was murdered just days ago and Patrick knows who killed her, her husband and his boss, the Chief of Police of Brownwood, Texas.

Boyd Campbell has taken extreme measures to cover up his wife's murder but Patrick is going to do everything in his power to put this monster away. He doesn't care what he has to do or say to get this cop to stay and work this case. He needs her help and she is just going to have to deal with it. She could just blame fate for bringing her here when he needed her expertise. After all, the only important thing at the moment is getting Justice For Emily.

Reviewer: QueenBee
This story is an interesting twist on a murder mystery, because we know who has done it and why it was covered up. When Patrick the lead officer on the case, needs help, Rachael is basically dropped into his lap! Their instant chemistry lets you know that this won't be a Harlequin romance. Plus, we get ghosts and visions which reminds me of old fashioned romances with paranormal which I enjoy.

I give it three and half stars, it's wonderful to see a well written and spell checked book from an Indie author who self-published her book. I hope and wish to see more about this couple, as they have an interesting relationship and investigating methods. The only problem I had was with Rachael's ex having powers, which seemed over the top. It made him too much of bastard as there was already enough to convince the audience of that.

One Knight in Brooklyn by Casea Major

Summary:

After signing up for a one-night stand through an exclusive matching agency, hopeless romantic Marianne Caldwell is swept away to a medieval land where she hopes to spend the night with a worthy man of honor.

Unsure of how she got from the Castillo Hotel in Las Vegas to a castle in the English countryside, Mare finds Robert, whose stunning physique and winning smile immediately convince her he's the Robin Hood she's been seeking. But despite his efforts saving her from a corrupt sheriff, his Jersey Shore accent and coarse ways unravel her romantic visions.

With her fairytale fantasies coming unhinged, Mare must decide if Robert is just a crass car salesman from Brooklyn or the chivalrous knight she's looking for.

Reviewer: Dolce Amore
Marianne Caldwell, Mare, wanted her Robin Hood, someone brave and gallant, someone romantic...handsome... her knight in shining armor. She's gotten tired of the men who are only interested in right now, not forever after. That's why she signed up to 1 Night Stand.

When she saw her date, she was impressed... until he started to speak. Then she began to question her decision:

"Where was the knight who would compose poetic verses for her? Where was the cavalier who would whisper seductive words into her ear as he made love to her? This wasn’t him."

He seemed to be just an ordinary man, who called her “chick” with no sign of seductive words or poetic verses.

Circumstances led Marianne to realize that he was a hero, although he didn’t seem to be one. After making passionate love they promised to meet the next morning. But when it came time to check-out, she didn’t see him and then she found out that her reservation had been canceled the night before and that her room didn’t exist!

Will they meet again? Or did they enjoy just a stolen moment in time?

I enjoyed the book. Yes, it's a short story, but is very well written and about something all women want: to find their knight in shining armor. I just loved her unique way of showing all of us that we should look closer before deciding that the person is not what we want. Although Robert doesn’t tell her nice words and poesies, he is a good and brave man, who is there for her when she needs him.

Some parts of the story seemed a little incomplete, so I will give it just 4 stars.

Publisher: Decadent Publishing
Review Courtesy Of: ManicReaders

Dark Vow by Shona Husk

Summary:

Jaines Cord plans to kill the man who murdered her husband, even though killing a Bounty Hunter is said to be impossible. One bullet took away her livelihood, her home and her love. One bullet made by her. Fired from the gun she completed for the Arcane Bounty Hunter.

Obsidian wears the scars of disobeying the powerful Arcane Union. He barely escaped with his life and now lives quietly, in a town the lawmen forgot. When Jaines arrives asking too many questions, he's faced with a decision. Help her or run…again. Obsidian knows that if he flees he'll always be looking over his shoulder. His name is one of the first on the Bounty Hunter's death list.

Yet when Obsidian is offered an opportunity to stop the stone taking over his body in exchange for retrieving the gun, he asks Jaines for her help. Now Jaines must choose: a dead man's vengeance or a living man's hope?

Reviewer: Fashionta
This is a science fiction book that takes place in a different world. A world where a woman is suppose to stay home, have babies, and take care of the house not be taught by her husband to be a gunsmith. When Janie's husband is killed by the weapon she worked on just the day before, she seeks revenge by going after the man who killed him.

She discovers along the way that her husband was not the man she thought he was. She goes through several trials and harrowing adventures and is helped by the one man she didn't think she could trust, an outlaw Arcane member. But in the end she not only trusts him but falls in love with him as well.

This book was a little hard to understand at first as it does not give any real background or set the stage so that you have a basic idea of where the story is taking place, whether this is taking place in a future society that is dealing with the aftermath of a catastrophe or a different world all together. I eventually got the impression that it was a different world.

The book was well written but a little lacking in detail at times. It had all the angst, heartache, and adventure that make you enjoy reading a book. Most of the story was well rounded and made you gasp and cry right along with the characters in the book.

I enjoyed the many similarities to our world so that it was not so unbelievable but yet had magic that a person would like to have if it was real. The two main characters in the book Jaine and the outlaw Obsidian work together quite well and compliment each other the way partners should. The romance was light but warm.

The book has a very good ending that leaves you wanting to read more about this world and how life is there. I kind of got the impression that the ending could lead to more books based in the Arcane World. I give this book a 4.5 for the good plot but drop it to 4 for the unclear way the book starts and leaves you wondering where this is taking place. But over all, I think a 4 is a fair score because the book leaves you wanting more and that is the point of writing, give the reader a bit of hunger to read more of your books.

Publishing Date: Nov. 14, 2011
Publisher: Carina Press
Review Courtesy Of: NetGalley

Farsighted by Emlyn Chand (Book Excerpt - Pizza Party)

Today I'd like to share an excerpt from Emlyn Chand's hot new paranormal novel, Farsighted (it just released on 10/24). Before diving in, check out this teaser for the book:

Alex Kosmitoras may be blind, but he can still “see” things others can’t. When his unwanted visions of the future begin to suggest that the girl he likes could be in danger, he has no choice but to take on destiny and demand it reconsider.

Okay, now that you're caught up, on to the excerpt! I hope you'll enjoy it.

 

Pizza Party

an excerpt from Farsighted, chapter 2

 

At Sweet Blossoms, Mom makes a huge fuss over my “becoming a ladies’ man, and with such pretty ladies too.” I keep my hands clasped on my cane to keep myself from strangling her. After making sure she’s thoroughly embarrassed me, Mom closes up shop early, swings by the pizza parlor, and delivers the three of us to an empty house.

“Dad’s out on another job interview,” Mom explains, laying out paper plates and napkins and extracting a two-liter bottle of orange pop from the fridge. “Let’s save him a couple of slices, okay?”

Shapri flips open the lid off the first pizza box. “Ick, ham and pineapple,” she says, moving on to the next box. “Now here’s what I’m talking about, pepperoni with extra cheese. Yum!”

“Pineapple and ham is Alex’s favorite,” Mom announces from the kitchen, as she pours pop into Dixie cups.

“Yes, it is,” I say, nudging Shapri out of the way, so I can plop a few slices onto my plate. I don’t care how early in the afternoon it is. I’m hungry. I shove a slice in my mouth and the grease drips down my chin.

Shapri crunches on a slice of the pepperoni and cheese.

“Are you eating the crust first?” I ask; the tip of the pizza goes in mushily, not crunchily.

“Of course,” Shapri says. Her voice is muffled since her mouth is completely full of food. “That’s how you’re supposed to eat it, save the best for last.”

“Weird,” I say, taking another huge chomp of my pizza from the intended end.

“Do they have pizza where you come from, Simmi?” Mom asks.

“Yes,” Simmi answers curtly.

“Well, why aren’t you eating anything? Don’t you like pizza?”

“Yes, I like pizza very much. But…”

I pause before tearing into my second slice. “What’s wrong?” I ask.

“Well, I don’t eat meat,” Simmi explains. “But it’s okay. I’ll just pick it off.”

“Oh no,” Mom groans. “I didn’t realize. I’m so sorry.” She comes over to the table and places a roll of paper towels in front of Simmi with a thud. “You can use this to blot at the pizza.” Mom comes up behind me and places her hands on my chair. “Okay, I’ll let you kids enjoy your party. I’m headed out to the garden to water the tomatoes. When Dad comes home, send him outside, okay?” Mom kisses me on the head and takes her leave.

Shapri and I continue eating our pizza like we’ve been starving our entire lives. Simmi blots politely at her slice, picking off the toppings and tearing it into small bits and placing them in her mouth. A few minutes later, Dad arrives through the front door.

“Hi, Alex,” he calls from the next room, while removing his shoes. “Hi, Alex’s friends.” He hangs up his jacket and makes his way over to the kitchen. “I hope you saved me a slice or two.” He stops walking all of a sudden, freezing as if he were a deer about to get hit by a semi-truck on a lonely country road.

“Hi, Dad,” I say. “Mom says she wants you to meet her outside in the garden.”

Dad clears his throat and walks back toward the front door. None of us say anything until he’s gone outside.

“That was weird,” Shapri says. “I wonder what his problem is.”

“Dad’s kind of been a bit unusual lately,” I say, hoping we can talk about something else.

“The way he was staring at me. Like I’m a ghost or something.”

From outside, Dad’s voice floats in and hangs above our conversation. I can’t quite make out the words, but I can tell he’s angry. Really angry.

“Um, I better be going,” Shapri says, shoving one last bite into her mouth and then brushing her hands off against each other, making a loud clapping noise.

“You don’t need to leave because of him,” I say. I guess Dad still ranks number one on the people I don’t like list. I don’t want him acting like this around my guests, whether I invited them of my own accord or not.

“No, I have to go,” Shapri says with tons of conviction, while throwing her paper plate away under the sink and then heading toward the door. “My dad’s here to walk me home. He told me he’d pick me up, and now here he is.” Shapri throws her coat on over her shoulders and shoves her feet into her slip-on shoes. “I’ll see you both at school tomorrow. Happy birthday again, Alex. Bye.” Only about thirty seconds pass between the time Shapri decides to leave and the time she has disappeared through the front door.

Simmi takes a sip of pop, slurping loudly. “I wonder what that was all about,” she says.

“No idea,” I whisper in case Dad is listening. “I wonder why her father didn’t even come in to say ‘hello.’ Strange.”

“Forget coming in. He didn’t come at all. No one was outside. Shapri just walked off by herself.”

 

Blog Tour Notes

THE BOOK:  Alex Kosmitoras may be blind, but he can still “see” things others can’t.  When his unwanted visions of the future begin to suggest that the girl he likes could be in danger, he has no choice but to take on destiny and demand it reconsider. Get your copy today by visiting Amazon.com’s Kindle store or the eBook retailer of your choice. The paperback edition will be available on November 24 (for the author’s birthday).

THE CASH PRIZES:  Guess what? You could win a $100 Amazon gift card as part of this special blog tour. That’s right! Just leave a comment below saying something about the post you just read, and you’ll be entered into the raffle. I could win $100 too! Please help by voting for my blog in the traffic-breaker poll. To cast your vote, visit the official Farsighted blog tour page and scroll all the way to the bottom. Thank you for your help with that.

THE GIVEAWAYS:  Win 1 of 10 autographed copies of Farsighted before its paperback release by entering the giveaway on GoodReads. Perhaps you’d like an autographed postcard from the author; you can request one on her site.

THE AUTHOR:  Emlyn Chand has always loved to hear and tell stories, having emerged from the womb with a fountain pen grasped firmly in her left hand (true story). When she’s not writing, she runs a large book club in Ann Arbor and is the president of author PR firm, Novel Publicity. Emlyn loves to connect with readers and is available throughout the social media interweb. Visit www.emlynchand.com for more info. Don’t forget to say “hi” to her sun conure Ducky!

MORE FUN: There's more fun below. Watch the live action Farsighted book trailer!

 

Beach Rental by Grace Greene

Summary:

On the Crystal Coast of North Carolina, in the small town of Emerald Isle…

Juli Cooke, hard-working and getting nowhere fast, marries a dying man, Ben Bradshaw, for a financial settlement, not expecting he will set her on a journey of hope and love. The journey brings her to Luke Winters, a local art dealer, but Luke resents the woman who married his sick friend and warns her not to hurt Ben—and he’s watching to make sure she doesn’t.

Until Ben dies and the stakes change.

Framed by the timelessness of the Atlantic Ocean and the brilliant blue of the beach sky, Juli struggles against her past, the opposition of Ben’s and Luke’s families, and even the living reminder of her marriage—to build a future with hope and perhaps to find the love of her life—if she can survive the danger from her past.

Reviewer: QueenBee
This author needs and deserves the hype coming from this review! She has written an amazing debut novel about tragedy and love. Juli is lost in this world, she's working two jobs just to survive and her future is bleak. Enter Ben, her saviour, who rescues her from her pitiful life, to bring joy to his last days on earth. Ben has terminal cancer and was enjoying life until this diagnosis. But now, he has stepped down from his business commitments and wants the rest of the world to think he is okay, letting only a few people into his new world as Juli soon learns. Her heart falls for his situation and she agrees to his wild idea and we are taken on a journey thorough Juli’s perspective. They enter a marriage as a business arrangement but as the months pass we get hints of something more.

These hints are a wonderful inclusion to the novel as we see them go about their daily lives, Juli opens up more and we watch as the once strong and resilient woman becomes a loving happy woman who is taking every opportunity that she's given from this marriage. But they are up against his family who believe that she’s trouble, especially his cousin and best friend Luke and his sister.

The author's writing makes you believe that everything is okay and then we get a tearjerker ending about Juli and Ben. The twist in the novel leaves you heartbroken as two people who are left dealing with pain and loss, look to each other for hope. The novel skips ahead and we are whisked through the next few months as Juli, Luke and the others come to deal with the loss of Ben and the miracle that is happening before their eyes.

I have to give only 4 stars because after Ben’s death, things pick up too fast for my liking, resulting in the last couple of chapters lacking. It's as if the author wanted to hurry up the book and didn’t have enough pages left to make the relationship more believable between Luke and Juli. It's hard to believe that two people who disliked each other, who only called truce in front of Ben to please him, could fall in love in just a couple of months.

Off the Record by Camryn Rhys

Summary:

Lust strikes as their eyes meet over a basket of overpriced Roquefort.

Surprised to meet chef Kit Parker at the grocery store, Emily goes undercover to Kit's restaurant that very night, only to crave more than her cooking. As a food critic, Emily finds it hard to resist the delectable cuisine or the busty, punky chef who created it.

Kit believes she's met the woman of her dreams, but her new lover is hiding something. When a scathing review hits right before grand opening, all blame points to Emily. Will their relationship fizzle before it sizzles?

Reviewer: RedHibiscus 
Kit is a chef and Emily is an undercover food reporter for a food magazine and her assignment is Kit’s Restaurant.

I could feel how hard it is for Emily and the dilemma she is facing. She has to hide her true feeling for Kit, because she will lose her son if she doesn't do her job. But she can’t fight her the feelings she has for Kit and in the end she decides she has to be truthful so that she can have her Happy Ending with Kit.

Camryn Rhys wrote the sex scenes beautifully, I could feel the attraction between the two of them and I actually blushed when I read this book! (FYI This was my first book of this genre.)
Overall, I loved this book and I give 4 stars.

Review Courtesy Of: ManicReaders

Johnny Doesn't Drink Champagne by Cody Young

Summary:

I’m seventeen and he’s twenty-one.
That’s okay … isn’t it?

He drives a Lamborghini.
So what?

He was born in 1462.
Uh-oh.
He seeks revenge, but there is one person standing in his way.
Me.
On a high school trip to London, Madison Lambourne meets seductive stranger Johnny De Vere, who believes he knows her already, and is torn between love and revenge.
Eager to learn more about this beautiful, lonely, young man, Madison agrees to go with him to a re-enactment at the Tower of London. Dressed as a highborn medieval lady in a black velvet gown, she accidentally slips through a doorway that leads to the past. Knowing she will not last long on the streets of medieval London, Johnny must follow her … with devastating consequences for them both.

A wild time-travel adventure full of love, lies, mystery and betrayal.

Reviewer: avidscribe
What if you could change the past? What if you knew something was going to happen, something really bad, and you thought you could find a way to stop it? Wouldn’t it be your duty to do something? Wouldn’t it be your duty to ... at least ... try?

Seventeen year old Madison Lambourne has come to England on a class field trip and runs into Johnny De Vere at Heathrow airport as she waits for her baggage. He seems to know her but she has never seen this embodiment of male perfection in her life and is instantly smitten by his fiercely intelligent eyes, silky dark hair, lovely angles of face and GQ garb. 'Are you Madeleine?' he asks. The name is close but not hers. When she tells him no, he is confused and crumples a note in his hand and bitterly tosses it to the floor. Curiosity compels her to scoop up the note when he is not looking and she is stunned to recognize the handwriting on it. It is undeniably her own but written on a thick vellum parchment with a pen quill that is anachronistic to modern times. The letter says ‘Forgive me, in time you will forgive me.”

The mystery is afoot.

She meets Johnny again at the Tower of London. He is a Patron of the Tower with an office there. When her best friend and fellow classmate suddenly falls ill, Madison (Maddie for short) gets lost in the Tower while looking for a water fountain to retrieve water for her. By the time she returns to where her group was, she finds herself alone and abandoned ... except for Johnny who offers to take her back to the hostel she’s staying at. Only, instead of taking her home he brings her to the Grange in Kent, wanting to see if Maddie is actually this Madeleine he believes her to be, to see if something at the Grange will trigger a moment of recognition. He is especially intent to see her reaction to a medieval barn there and when she expresses no awareness, he is downcast. Maddie spots a Model T Ford and a Lagonda from the 1920s stored with other vintage cars there in the barn and asks if he likes collecting old cars. Johnny smiles slyly and tells her he buys them new as he sees them.

He is confused and frustrated that she doesn’t seem to know him or pick up on the bread crumbs he’s laying down for her to follow. She looks the same but she is not. For her part, she is drawn to this beautiful man but wary of his intentions. He invites her to a special performance at the Tower for the next night where she can wear a medieval costume and say a few lines in the play. It is obvious he is intent to make her see a connection she doesn’t have as yet to him. After the performance, Maddie is left alone and wanders the Tower halls and finds an unguarded door and proceeds to walk through it—unwittingly into the year 1483. She is quickly joined by Johnny who explains the door is a time portal, where each month the time beyond it changes seemingly at random but the place is always the same—London, England. He is a member of a secret society that guard something called the River of Time, so called probably because time is fluid.

We get hints that Johnny is more than he appears to be. There’s the comment about the car collection. His hands are cold when she touches them. He cannot join her in her first drink of champagne and stares wistfully as he orders up a dinner of chicken and damsons for her that he says is his favorite but he gets none for himself.

Ultimately, Maddie discovers he is a vampire and should be repelled but is not. She is drawn to this man and has no explanation for it. The guardians of the time portal are all vampires, entrusted to literally bar the portal from wanderers who might walk through and upset the balance of time. Added to the story mix is Maddie's attempt to connect with her real father who lives and works in London and who she hasn't seen in 15 years. When she arrives unannounced to his office he bolts from the room and we never discover why. The mystery will undoubtedly play out in the next book.

Madison’s foray into merry olde England is fraught with danger as she’s a 21st century girl trying to fit into a time and language she has no comprehension of. She needs to fit in and even opening her mouth to speak causes raised eyebrows because she doesn't speak the native tongue. She overhears a plot to murder two small boys in the tower and decides she must, at all costs, save these two innocents. The fact that they are Edward Quintus and Richard, Duke of York and it is their uncle, King Richard III who is trying to kill them doesn’t dissuade her from wanting to intercede. But this means changing history. It is forbidden. It is dangerous. Is it even possible?

With no plan in hand, she winds up getting separated from Johnny when he is accidentally exposed to sunlight and nearly charred. As he starts to heal, he begins to rant that he that he can’t go through "it" again and must stop what is about to happen and abruptly tells her he has to leave but will catch up with her as soon as he is able. She doesn't know what he's upset about, so many things he says seem to belong to a history she doesn't share.

I found myself worried for Maddie without Johnny’s protection in this medieval era but time proves how fluid a thing it is when she meets another Johnny—one before he was turned vampire. Time is fluid, yes, but time is also a circle, much like a wedding band as Maddie discovers for herself when she falls under the spell of the human Johnny and tries to prevent his own future from happening.

I give this a four out of five star rating. The author has taken great lengths to make her tale a standout. The characters are relatable and seductively intriguing. The YA plot is Fantastic with a capital F and I can’t wait for the next book in this series to come out. On a sidenote, there are those naysayers out there that are saying vampire novels are becoming passé. This book proves them emphatically wrong.

Barely a Master (The Hunt Club Chronicles 2) by Heather Boyd

Summary:

The trappings of wealth and power give Aiden Banks, Duke of Lewes, little joy and certainly no pleasure. Tormented by grave mistakes he made with a past lover, he's determined to end it all and has a pistol ready and waiting especially for the occasion. All he needs is patience and time to educate his young heir to take his place. Once he's free, he'll end his lonely existence and escape the pain of Archer's disappearance.

Terrance Bridgewater has freedom at long last with no one to slow down his pursuit of reckless pleasure. He's in London briefly en route to a ship bound for the continent to see the things he's only read about. Running into the dark and dangerous Duke of Lewes is a complication he'd hoped to avoid. Terrance would rather forget the wicked games he played with the duke and his role as the dominant whore, Archer, at the Hunt Club.

Despite his mistrust, the volatile duke's plea for a second chance tempts Terrance to lower his guard. Yet what can come of two souls with nothing in common but lies and lust, two men with opposite desires and far different plans for the course of their life.

Reviewer: BlackTulip
Almost an Equal, the first book of The Hunt Club Chronicles was very good, but this one is even better!

Right now, all that the powerful Duke of Lewes had in mind, was to take his pistol and just pull the trigger. He's grown too tired of pretending he liked living. But he had a last duty to perform, to teach his nephew and heir how to become a duke; the quicker the better, because he couldn't wait years. It had to be very soon because he was suffocating, responsibilities and duty were dragging him irremediably to the bottom.

Once, three years ago, there has been someone and maybe some hope, but he had driven the man away and it still tortured him. Truth be told, he was utterly lost without him, Archer, his wonderful dominant whore! But he had not known how essential he was to him until it was two late. And he knew too well, there won't be a second chance.

But one night, walking in Covent Garden, he saw him again and it was a shock for both.

Archer, or rather, Terrance Bridgewater, will have none of that again. He was free now and in control of own his life. In a few days he would leave London and see the world with his own eyes, not through books anymore.

He agrees to one last night, but he won't play a part, he will just be himself, Terrance. Unfortunately or fortunately, this one night will be a revelation for both of them.

Aidan, the Duke of Lewes, was taught to guard his heart and show only indifference but those few hours with Terrance only showed him that he wanted more, he needed more from the man he didn't know anymore. But he was too afraid to share his thoughts.

Meanwhile, Terrance was in serious trouble himself. It had to stop now because last night was only a farewell, in a very short time he will be gone.

Of course, there is much more to it. First a whole range of emotions, like hope, doubts, jealousy, fear, and surprise. And then there is a very ingenious dramatic turn of events that follows which will lead to a very satisfying conclusion.

It was a wonderful book, full of intense emotions. I'm very much looking forward to reading the next one! I give it 5/5.

Winter in Paradise by T.C. Archer

Summary:

On a planet turned to ice, only a warm heart is worth dying for.

When Major Kelly Andres awakens to find Major Byron Grayson gone from the cave that has been their military base the last five months, she realizes he has disobeyed her orders. He’s gone to activate the quantum disruptor that he hopes will draw enemy fire, enabling the Provisional Army to attack the enemy armada. It’s a suicide mission. And Grayson knows it.

Kelly has no intention of letting Grayson die alone in the frozen wasteland that planet Onyx has become since the war began. She’s determined to find him and bring him back to base, because when they die, she wants him in her bed.

Reviewer: Dolce Amore
I usually don’t enjoy short stories that much, because I feel like something is missing: the characters are not strong and defined enough, the backstory is not sufficiently explained or something else is just not right. But this one was a delight to read.

The book is about Major Kelly Andres and Major Byron Grayson from Onyx’s planet. They are fighting against the Kirsovals, the result of a human genetic experiment gone wrong a century ago and who are now conquering the entire galaxy. Onyx’s salvation lay in the power of the wormhole. If their scientists could draw the wormhole’s energy to power their photon beams, they could destroy the Kirsoval armada before it strikes a heavy blow to Onyx.

Kelly wakes up to find out her lover, Byron, went on a suicide mission, trying to trick the enemy and gain some extra time for their forces to destroy the mother ship. She decides to go out and try to find him and bring him back. Then she discovers that he is a Diviner and knew about the attack before it happened!

She finds out that he had planned to come back to her, but bad weather stopped him. Together, they fight their way back in the storm that has been created by the Kirsoval probe. Not knowing if the enemy will find and kill them or they will succeed.

Like I said before, I enjoyed the book a lot. The story is excitingly unique and very interesting. The relationship between the Majors is full of passion and love and is perfectly written. I could not ask more from it. I will give it 4.5 stars as it is one of the better books I have read.

Review Courtesy Of: ManicReaders