Review: "Yours Until Dawn" by Teresa Medeiros

Yours Until Dawn by Teresa Medeiros

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The first part of this book was wonderful. Based on the book premise, I had expected a very angsty story with a dark and tortured hero, but it was actually a fun read - and I even laughed so much on one scene (when Beckwith, Gabriel's buttler, "described" Samantha's looks to him) that I had to stop reading for a moment. I really enjoyed the banter between Gabriel and Samantha, and I especially liked the fact that she didn't pity him - like she said, he had enough pity for himself already, so he didn't need hers too. Samantha was strong and didn't beat around the bushes when it came to making Gabriel and everyone else, including his family, deal with his blindness.

Then, out of nowhere, came the plot twist that had my head spinning... I had been warned that something "unexpected" happened in the last third of the story and I'm all for turn-the-table events when they add more "drama" to the plot, but this one was kind of strange. Suddenly, Gabriel and Samantha had some serious personality changes, and I felt like I was reading about two different characters. I understood Gabriel's change slightly better, but Samantha's new attitude made me wonder where the spunky and daredevil heroine from the first part of the book had gone.

Thankfully, the epilogue - as short as it was - made it all better again and I didn't have to close the book with that feel of disappointment. Nicely done, Ms. Medeiros!

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book and I'd gladly reread the first part (before the plot twist) and the epilogue, leaving the small intermission in between "buried" and forgotten.



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Review: "Blue Sage" by Anne Stuart

Blue Sage by Anne Stuart

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book has an interesting and unique premise. Charles Tanner, Sr. was a war veteran who, suffering from PTSD, went ballistic one day, killed sixteen innocent people and badly wounded a young girl, and then killed himself. Fifteen years later, his son Charles Tanner, Jr. comes back to Morey's Fall, the small town his father almost destroyed. He and his mother had been long gone when his father went nuts but, bearing the same name as his father, Tanner had to live with the burden of his father's doings all his life and it's high time he tried to understand the reasons behind his father's killing spree and, maybe, get some sense in his own life. Naturally, the 1st person Tanner meets when he reaches Morey's Fall is Ellie Lundquist, who happens to be the young girl who survived his father's massacre. And from this moment on, there's no turning back for either of them...

What can I say about this book? I loved it! It wasn't a "nice and cozy" read - not that I expected it to be, with a premise like that - but it grabbed me from the start and I found myself rooting for Tanner and Ellie. They were both wounded, in different ways, by what had happened fifteen years in the past, and it was only fitting they would help each other heal and move on. Granted, Tanner was downright cruel to Ellie a couple of times and I even flinched at his harsh words, but I understood why he did it and, in the end, it was for her own good. Simply put, he wasn't going to let her keep her martyr/victim act any longer. Enough was enough, and she needed to snap out of it! And so she did. :)

The mystery/suspense part of the story kept me guessing till the end. I wasn't surprised by the villain's identity, but I admit it wasn't who I was betting on. I never think it's the most obvious choice but, in this case, it was. I have nothing to complain, though. As usual, Mrs. Stuart's writing was compelling enough to keep me glued to the pages.

This was "only" my seventh book by Mrs. Stuart, and I'm happy to say it's another winner. A must-read, IMHO.



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Review: "Lord Carew's Bride" by Mary Balogh

Lord Carew's Bride (Signet Regency Romance) (Dark Angel, #2) by Mary Balogh

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This was a charming Beauty and the Beast tale, which is a favorite theme of mine, mixed with a "love at first sight" story.

Hartley Wade, the Marquess of Carew, was the self-titled "Beast". Crippled by a riding "accident" at the age of six, he walked with a limp and had a crooked and useless right hand. Despite that - or, should I say, because of that - he'd grown up to become one of the most confident and emotionally strong heroes I've met. He was nice, caring, supportive and, wonder of all wonders, didn't jump to wrong conclusions when faced with situations that could easily lead to the hatred Big Misunderstanding that plagues Romancelandia. Honestly, he was anything but a "Beast", and I fell in love with him way before I was halfway through the story.

Samantha Newman was the ton-proclaimed "Beauty". Even though she was already twenty-four years old and on her seventh - gasp! - London Season, she had her own court of steady suitors and was still single by her own choice only. She'd been deeply hurt by events that happened in Dark Angel (Dark Angel, #1), the first book in this series, so she'd chosen to live a somewhat staid life and avoid the turmoil brought by love. Even though I wanted to shake some sense into her for not seeing what was right in front of her eyes a couple of times, I did understand her insecurities - after all, there's a thin, thin line between hatred and love...

The "love at first sight" theme took me by surprise: Hartley was in love with Samantha by Chapter 1, and he loved her by Chapter 2. That made me pause and think, would I buy that? Well, I shouldn't have doubted Balogh's writing skills. I bought it all! Even the fact that it was a mutual love at first sight, though it took Samantha a lot longer to realize that what she felt for Hartley was more than friendship. She was just afraid to call it "love", since she thought that emotion only lead to dispair.

Have I mentioned that there was no Big Misunderstanding in this book? There was definitely room for it more than once - Hartley omitting to tell Samantha about his title and Lionel (Hartley's cousin and Samantha's first "love") revealing to Hartley his past relationship with Samantha, for example - but Balogh chose wisely and didn't go that way. I admit that my eyes got a little misty when I read the scene where Hartley talked to Samantha after he found out about her past with Lionel. Wonderfully done, Ms. Balogh!

Lord Carew's Bride (Signet Regency Romance) (Dark Angel, #2) was all about Hartley and Samantha, and their journey to find love and conquer each other. There was a good set of interesting secondary characters - many of them with their own books, either previous or next in the series - but Lionel Kersey, the Earl of Rushford, deserves a special mention. He was one of the most hatred villains I've met. I just hated him! Everytime he appeared on scene, I wanted to slap his handsome face and pummel his gorgeous body. I was literally cheering when Hartley did just that. :)

Bottom line, I really loved this book, and Hartley and Samantha are going to stay with me for a long time. Balogh is kind of a new author to me - yeah, I'd been living in a cave, LOL - and this is only the fourth book by her I've read, but she hasn't disappointed me yet. Quite the contrary!



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Review: "Anastasia's Style" by N.J. Walters

Anastasia's Style by N.J. Walters

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This was a disappointing read, and that's saying something considering it's a short story and all I wanted was a quick and "brainless" read. When it comes to novellas, I have to like the hero and the heroine to enjoy the story because, let's face it, there's hardly any room to develop a top-notch plot.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen here. I didn't particularly like either Mason or Anastasia, and I wanted to shake them for their "stupidity". I mean, they left a silly Big Misunderstanding keep them apart for a whole year only because they couldn't find a way to talk to each other! At one point in the story, Anastasia even told Mason, "What’s even sadder is that if we’d been able to communicate better in the first place, she (Mason's mother) wouldn’t have been able to destroy our marriage." Well, that was sad, indeed. If they knew what the problem was, why didn't they do something to solve it?

The (two) love scenes were hot as expected, but that wasn't enough to bump my rating up to 3 stars. Oh well, at least I didn't waste much time reading this very short story.



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Review: "Street Game" by Christine Feehan

Street Game by Christine Feehan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I love the GhostWalkers series, so it was a given that I had to read Street Game even if I didn’t particularly love the previous book, Murder Game. When I heard this new book was going to be about a whole new team, I was a bit wary. Why introduce a bunch of new characters when there’s still a lot of characters from previous books whose stories haven’t been told yet? Well, there was nothing for me to do but go along with Ms. Feehan’s decision and enjoy the read…

Master Gunnery Seargent Mack McKinley is the leader of this new GhostWalkers team. Jaimie Fielding is the girl that got away, and Mack wants her back – not necessarily on the team, but mainly in his life. The way he sees it, they belong together and she’d better accept that. He was taken by surprise when she took off 2 years ago, but now that he’s found her again, he’s going to keep her for good. Jaimie doesn’t want Mack and the GhostWalkers back in her life, but she hasn’t much say in the matter when it becomes clear that someone has gone to great lengths to reunite them and her life might be in danger. So Mack and his First Seargent Kane Cannon move into her house, while the rest of the team scatter themselves in her neighborhood to protect her. One woman, surrounded by several testosterone-driven men at her service… If this was a Lora Leigh book, Jaimie would be one very busy lady, LOL. Anyway, I digress…

While Mack struggles to rebuild his relationship with Jaimie, he also has to figure out who set them up and catch some terrorist who, by coincidence or not, happen to have a big load of illegal weapons stored in a warehouse near Jaimie’s. And if that wasn’t complicated enough, Jaimie’s also working "in the shadows" to find evidences against Dr. Whitney and his wrongdoings. It’s obvious that Dr. Whitney is still as powerful as ever, and it’s hard to tell who’s friend or foe – especially when it looks like their own CO Seargent Major Griffen can’t be trusted and there seems to be a traitor in the team.

So, have I enjoyed this read? Yes, absolutely. But I didn’t love it, and I "blame" Mack and Jamie for it. Their romance didn’t raise my temperature. Don’t get me wrong, their love scenes were steaming hot – except the one where he was "interrogating" her, which was kind of uncomfortable to me – and I had some fun with their banter, but there was no real conflict in their relationship. Simply put, there was no reasonable explanation for them to be apart. Jaimie was the one who left, so she should have a plausible explanation for that, right? Well, I doubt she knew why she had left... First, it was because she wanted a commitment Mack wasn’t willing to give; then, it was because she couldn’t stand the violence that surrounded the GhostWalkers way of life; later, it was because she was investigating Dr. Whitney’s dirty deeds and she didn’t want to put Mack and his team in danger; then, it was back to Mack’s commitment issues… Lather, rinse, repeat. Get it together, woman! As for Mack, he was one of those alpha males I love to hate. He had a one-track mind when it came to Jamie, and I had no problem with that. Yes, I wanted to smack him in the head a couple of times, but I ended up understanding why he had to be so dominant. His sense of humor was key to make me more sympathetic towards him. Without it, he’d be nothing more than a big bully.

Considering how disappointing I found Mack and Jaimie, you might be asking why I gave this book 4 stars. Well, the romance was meh, but the rest was great. The whole GhostWalkers concept is very fascinating to me: even though the series has become more far fetched as it progressed, it still contains some elements that I could see happening in real life and I love this mix of PNR with a twist of reality. I also love the "tech talk". I know most readers don’t care for it, but I’m a computer geek so I can’t help it. :) Last, but not least, I can’t forget to mention the action scenes: Ms. Feehan really knows how to write them. I was on the edge of my seat, even though I knew the good guys would win in the end. Great job there, Ms. Feehan!

As expected, this book introduced a lot – and I mean A LOT – of new GhostWalkers. Two of them, Kane and Brian, should be familiar to those who have been following the series, but all the others were brand-new heroes in the making. I admit I got a bit confused in the beginning of the book, having to learn all those new names and trying to remember who was who, but it didn’t take long before I saw them as longtime friends. Kane, Javier and Gideon have already claimed a piece of my heart. Hopefully, one of them will be the hero in the next book in the series. Can’t wait! ;)



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Review: "Catspaw II" by Anne Stuart

Catspaw II (Harlequin Intrigue, No 103) by Anne Stuart

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Blackheart and Ferris are back with a vengeance in this sequel to Catspaw, which I loved. Obviously!

It was wonderful to see them again, trying to overcome their feelings of mutual distrust: on one hand, she was afraid he was back to his thieving past; on the other hand, he chose to keep his whereabouts from her, thus furthering her doubts. No wonder their engagement took a serious hit. However, amidst it all, there was never any question about their loving each other. They were just too proud to be the first to cave, and it was fun to see them banter while working things out.

There was a secondary love story, involving Blackheart's sister and the cop set on getting him. It was nice, but it didn't hold my attention and it's my only "complaint" about this book.

The plot was full of action, with not only one but two mysteries to be solved. Blackheart was in serious trouble, poised to be framed for two thefts (a Van Gogh painting and some Fabergé eggs), getting reacquainted with his long-lost sister and trying to make amends with Ferris - all that at the same time! Yup, not a dull moment in sight.

As it happened in the first book of this "series" (are two books enough to make a series?), Blackheart and Ferris were the stuff that made the story work. Too bad Ms. Stuart didn't write more books with this couple. I would gladly follow their future adventures as a married couple, as I'm sure the words "sedate" and "boring" are not to be found in their dictionary. :)



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Review: "Tell It to the Marines" by Amy J. Fetzer

Tell It To The Marines by Amy J. Fetzer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This anthology contains 3 novellas that had a similar premise: the hero is a Marine who's sent to rescue the heroine in some "exotic" location, the extraction doesn't go as smoothly as planned, they get separated from his team, and they fall in love while struggling to survive whatever danger they're in until they're back to civilization. Even so, each novella had its own "flavor" and the end result was uneven.

Hot Conflict (3 stars)

This story was OK and the H/h were nice, but I didn't feel a strong love connection between them. I couldn't fully understand why he stayed away from her for so long, why she never confronted him before and, worse, why she married someone else somewhere down the road. If fate hadn't intervened and put them face to face again after all those years apart, I don't think either would have tried to find the other and finally set things "right". They didn't love each other enough, IMHO.

Hot Landing Zone (4 stars)

Very good! This story would have been perfect if it wasn't for a not-so-bright action by the heroine at the beginning and an unnecessary self-sacrificing decision by the hero at the end. Thankfully, neither came close to being TSTL, but those 2 moments made me pause a little. All in all, that was just a small bump in this fairly smooth road.

Hot Target (5 stars)

The best! Very likable H/h, great dialogue, hot lovemaking, and fast paced action with one particular nerve-racking scene that almost destroyed my fingernails... My only complaint is, I wish this story was longer.

Final note: Those novellas aren't connected in any way. You can read them all in any order you choose, or read only one (or two) as you please.



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Review: "Murder Game" by Christine Feehan

Murder Game by Christine Feehan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Yes, the GhostWalkers are back with a vengeance in this latest installment in the series! I'd been dying to read Kadan's story since I met him in Shadow Game - the cold and quite badasses never fail to attract my attention, LOL - so I was more than happy when I finally got to read his book.

As the story begins, Kadan is assigned to identify and eliminate (aka kill) the assassin(s) responsible for several murders that seem to have been commited by one (or more) GhostWalkers. He trusts his fellow teammates, but he's advised to keep his mission secret and can't enlist their help because they're all considered suspects. But Kadan knows he has to solve the case fast if he wants to catch the assassin(s) before another murder is commited, so he tracks down Tansy Meadows in order to convince her to help him.

Tansy is, unbeknown to her, a GhostWalker too and another one of those girls Dr. Whitney experimented with some 20/25 years ago in his mad quest to create the perfect "supersoldier". (Side note: At some point, I'd like to see a normal human being as the hero or heroine in this series. It would be different and interesting to shake the "formula" up a bit.) Tansy's power is, she can "reach" and track anyone by simply touching an object that has been manipulated by that person, so Kadan hopes she'll be able to identify the assassin(s) through the several objects collected as evidence at each of the crime scenes. The problem is, Tansy has just recovered from a serious breakdown caused by the extensive use of her psychic powers and doesn't want to use them ever again. Naturally, Kadan never takes no for an answer and, before she knows it, Tansy is dragged into the "murder game" and running for her life...

This book was packed with some fast-paced action that had me biting my nails. CF really knows how to write gripping military action and, even though I knew the GhostWalkers would come out as winners in every single battle, it was exciting to read those scenes. The body count in this book was high but I didn't bat an eyelash, so I'm afraid I've become too bloodthirsty, LOL. Thankfully, I have a few months to regroup before the next book in the series is released in December.

As much as I enjoyed this read, 2 things prevented me from giving it a 5-star rating:

1. Kadan's extremely dominant behavior and Tansy's submisse attitude annoyed me. Don't get me wrong, I love a strong alpha hero as much as the next gal. But he has to be paired with an equally strong heroine to make it work for me. She doesn't have to be alpha, she can even be shy and timid, but she has to be able to stand up against him if necessary. I never felt that Tansy had any real chance to ever say no to Kadan, as she always "convinced" herself she wanted the same he did.

2. Too. Much. Sex! Yes, that's right. Kadan just couldn't keep it in his pants when Tansy was around, and she was always more than happy to oblige. When I found myself skimming through the last sex scenes so I could get back to the story, I knew there was something "wrong".

All in all, I really liked this book and plan to keep reading the series.



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Review: "Night Pleasures" by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Night Pleasures by Sherrilyn Kenyon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This isn't a review, it's a rant...

I know many readers love this series, but I'm beginning to think it isn't for me. This was my second book by SK - the first was Fantasy Lover - and I still don't know what all the fuss is about. The concept and the mythology of the Dark Hunters are very interesting, but SK's writing didn't work for me again. What annoyed me the most was how all her characters were constantly cracking jokes, no matter how serious and dangerous the situation was. Everyone was a smartass and it became too much too soon. I enjoy humor, but there's a time and place for it. The way SK inserted it into every single scene was distracting and prevented me from connecting with the story and the characters. I couldn't find myself bleeding over Kyrian's tortured past and, at times, I wanted to shake silly Amanda and tell her to shut up.

Based on what I just said, one might wonder why I'm giving this book 3 stars. Well, I didn't hate it. The story was interesting and there were some good scenes, like the one where Amanda dreams/sees Kyrian's past and death. Too bad SK's writing wasn't up to that level all the time.

The strange thing is, I like SK's writing as Kinley MacGregor. How can the same author have such distinct effect on me? Oh well, the three-strike rule still applies and I'm going to give SK one last chance to win me. I'm OCD about reading series in order and I already know I'll have to work on that because it looks like the next book in the series won't be a winner either. I'll have to skip ahead and tackle either Night Play (Dark-Hunter, #6) or Acheron. Decisions, decisions...



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Review: "The Gift of Shayla" by N.J. Walters

The Gift of Shayla by N.J. Walters

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Before taking my 2-star rating at face value, you should know that I don't like ménage stories. So why have I decided to read this book, since the book blurb and cover make it clear this is a ménage story?!? Well, I don't like pointing the finger at anyone, but this was all Auntee's fault! ;) She thought the M/M angle of the story would be enough to make me overlook the ménage scenario and, to be fair, I thought so too. Sadly, it didn't work quite that way...

Adam Lancaster and Rob McKeith have been best friends since childhood. The problem is, Adam has been in love with Rob for years, but he's never acted on it because Rob has never shown any sexual interest in him (or any other men, for that matter) and Adam is afraid of jeopardizing their friendship. As if that wasn't enough to make Adam's life miserable, he's also attracted to Rob's wife Shayla. Poor Adam! Is he destined to always pretend he isn't jealous of Rob and Shayla's relationship and never let them know about his feelings? Well, it's Christmas Eve, the season of miracles, and Adam is about to get a very special gift from his friends...

I like Ms. Walter's writing style - her Jamesville series is a special favorite of mine - and that was the main reason I read this book despite its premise. As expected, she was very good at showcasing Adam's love for Rob and angst over the situation he was in. I liked him and felt his pain, which surprised me because he was basically the "intruder" in a couple's established, committed relationship and I was prone to disliking him just for that. Good job there, Ms. Walters!

Unfortunately, that was the only saving grace in this book for me. I didn't feel Adam's attraction to Shayla was that strong and his saying that he "loved" her too when they had "the talk" didn't ring true. On Rob's side, his feelings for Adam were a bit confusing and I'm not sure he really knew what he was doing. It was like he was just following Shayla's direction. She was the one pulling all the strings, but she was also the one whose character was less developed in the book. Did she love Rob as much as he loved her? I don't know. Did she love Adam? I don't know. The whole "Shayla thing" was kind of strange to me.

As it was, I finished the book wishing Adam and Rob had gotten rid of Shayla and lived as a M/M couple happily ever after. That might have made me bump my rating up to 3 stars, who knows?



Note: I received this eARC from Carina Press via NetGalley. That had no influence on my review/rating.



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Review: "Lover Unbound" by J.R. Ward

Lover Unbound by J.R. Ward

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This isn't a review, it's a rant and it's full of spoilers. There are plenty of reviews of this book all around and I don't feel like writing another one. BUT I do need to get this anger off my chest, so here I go...

First off, let me say that I was warned about the crappy ending of this book beforehand. I wasn't thrilled about it, but I was willing to give Ms. Ward the chance to prove me that she had pulled it off in a satisfying way when all was said and done. Well, she didn't... at least, not where I'm concerned. Yeah, I know this is PNR and a ghost shouldn't be that strange in this scenario, but the oops-I-didn't-see-you-and-I-stepped-through-you freaked me out. Maybe I could have gone along with that if I didn't care much for Jane, but I liked her and felt that she got the shaft. What was wrong with Ms. Ward? The 1st time she gave us a BDB heroine with a spine, she kills her in the end! Not only that, she takes her spine off first, turns her into a clingy mess, then kills her. :( Is Ms. Ward so jealous of her Brothers that she had to smash the competition? I don't care that Jane and V were more than happy with her "fate" as it was, because I didn't buy it. The whole thing felt more like settling than a true HEA.

In my mind, V and Jane's romance was doomed from the start. As the story opened, he was still pretty much in love with Butch and jealous of the other man's shellan Marissa, so it was a shock to see how fast he fell for Jane. In fact, "fast" doesn't begin to describe it. I was glad to see him getting over Butch, because the last thing I wanted was to watch V pining over Butch over and over again like he did in Lover Revealed, but I didn't like the way Ward handled that. As for V's sexual kinkiness, I admit I was leery of it after reading the previous book because I'm not into BDSM. Once again, Ward gave V an instant character change and V's alleged Dom nature fell apart in Jane's hands. I admit I didn't miss seeing V in full Dom behavior since that isn't my cuppa, but I have to say that Ward failed to deliver what she'd hinted in the previous books.

May I rant about the other characters too? Oh boy, where to start?...

The Scribe Virgin - I loathe the ground air she floats in. I'd better stop here.

Phury - I still don't like him very much - his depression is, well, depressing - but I'm starting to feel sorry for him. Sorry, not pity. He's constantly "abused" by his Brothers, IMHO. He gives and gives and gives, then gives some more - and no one reaches a hand to help him. They know he loves Z's shellan Bella, but do they care? No. Z and Bella keep haunting him, asking him to help them go through some bumps in their "marriage" (I forgot what Ward calls it) without thinking how hurtful that must be to poor Phury. No wonder he turns into drugs for relief, which is another example of how little his Brothers care about him. They just sit back and let him sink deeper and deeper. There's no intervention, no tough love, nada.

Cormia - I'm on the fence about her. She's too innocent, frail and submissive, which can be explained by her being a Chosen but is still annoying. She reminds me of Marissa in her spineless days before she mated with Butch and that isn't a good thing, but who knows, Ward can give her a character change in the next book.

JM - What's happening to him? I'm not sure I like him posttrans and I definitely don't like him with Xhex because they don't fit, IMHO. I do like the Darius' connection, though. Will we ever find out what ties them together?

Qhuinn & Blaylock - JM's buddies' sole purpose in the story is to protect JM - at least, so far. Qhuinn's a manwhore and I'm sorry he can't catch any STD. Blaylock is sweet and I really hope he can find someone else to love. A gay man, if you please. Do you hear me, Ward?

Tohr - Where is he??? Isn't it time he came back yet?

As for the overal story, this book had good and bad parts. What I liked the most was the total absence of the Omega, whatever recruiter he had in charge at the moment and the mandatory new lesser-in-training. Sure, there were lessers around doing their nasty thing just to keep the Brothers busy and set the stage for the unfortunate HEA, but their scenes were more "connected" to the story this time. They had a purpose. In the previous books, every fight scene seemed the same and it only served to show how invincible the Brothers were. That isn't so true anymore, and that was good.

I also liked the development of the overall story arc - some surprises there! - even though Ward could have given V a better mother. I felt sorry for V, but that was an interesting twist in the story. And to think that his mother didn't content herself with playing havoc with his life... *shudders*

So, am I going to keep reading this series? As of now, no, but I might change my mind in the future. I do want to read Father Mine: Zsadist and Bella's Story, though.





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