Review: "Dangerous" by Amanda Quick

Dangerous by Amanda Quick

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I read somewhere that Amanda Quick's historical romance novels follow an usual "formula": a somewhat tortured hero who needs to learn how to love and laugh + a quirky heroine who marches into his life bringing said love and laughter and never takes no for an answer. Well, I happen to like that "formula" and Dangerous does follow it, so no one will see me complaining here. :)

I loved the charming and sarcastic hero (Sebastian) and the funny and indomitable heroine (Prue). Their quick banter had me laughing from the start, and it didn't take long for Sebastian to realize that he was never going to win an argument with Prue. Not because he wasn't smart or witty enough but because he just wanted to make her happy. Too melodramatic? Perhaps, but it only made me love him more.

Sebastian and Prue's relationship went kind of smoothly from the start and all the way through the end. There wasn't really any big bumps on their road to the HEA - once they got together, there was no doubt on their minds their marriage was going to work - but that doesn't mean that the journey was boring. Quite the contrary. Their common interest in investigating "unusual" things - he helped a Bow Street Runner to solve some cases as a hobby and she was an amateur ghost hunter - kept the story flowing very nicely. The whodunit mystery they ended up investigating together was actually very good. Call me naïve but I didn't guess who the killer was. Not that there were that many suspects, it was the "why" that kept escaping me.

All in all, this was a great read and my favorite book by this author. Okay, I've only read two so far, but who's counting? (LOL)



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Review: "Running with the Devil" by Lorelei James

Running with the Devil by Lorelei James

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


OMG, this was a seriously hot read! Ms. James sure knows how to write steamy love scenes, and I'll never look at a motorcycle the same way I used to do before I read this book... ;)

I'm not going to give a plot summary here because the book description does the job pretty well. The story had a good setup and the mystery/suspense part was interesting, even though I guessed who the villain was pretty easily - that's what happens when you have very few secondary characters. There were some gripping moments when Drake had to stand aside and let Kenna be mauled by some bad guys, and I really related to her "discomfort" - to put it mildly. I understood his need to keep his cover but Kenna wasn't an undercover agent, so I almost hated him for having forced her into that situation. Anyway, she made him see "the errors of his way" and they had the most sizzling make-up sex on a motorcycle... Oh boy, what a ride! *fans herself*

Drake was one hot DEA agent who had never had problems focusing on the job to be done - until he met Kenna... What I loved about him was, he wasn't a sex machine who lived his life fooling around. Granted, he enjoyed a healthy sex life as much as the next guy, but he wasn't like the popular manwhore in Romancelandia who only decides to redeem himself after he finds "the one". Kenna was sexy and funny at first, but the more I knew her, the more she grated on my nerves. I'd like to say that she was too naïve but, truth be told, she came across as a bit stupid to me. Come on, did she really think an escort service that provided only escort services was for real? Sorry but that was too far-fetched to buy.

Overall, I enjoyed Ms. James' writing and I had a great time reading this book - the sexual tension between Drake and Kenna was great and that's what I want to see when I read a romantica story. This was my 1st book by this author but it won't be my last.



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Review: "The Pagan Stone" by Nora Roberts

The Pagan Stone by Nora Roberts

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Call me a wuss, but The Pagan Stone scared the living daylights out of me. NR's description of the Big Evil was so good that my vivid imagination didn't have any problem bringing it to life. I actually had to stop reading this book last night and find something "lighter" to do, because the Big Evil was the last thing I wanted to have on my mind when I turned off all the lights.

From the publisher:

Years ago, after their blood brother ritual, Gage, Fox and Caleb emerged from the woods, each with a piece of bloodstone. Now, it will become their weapon in the final fight against the demon they awakened. Winner take all...

Shared nightmares, visions of blood and fire, and random violence plague the longtime friends and Quinn, Layla and Cybil, the women bound to them by Fate. None of them can ignore the fact that, this year, the demon has grown stronger — feeding off the terror it creates. But now the three pieces of the bloodstone have been fused back together. If only they could figure out how to use it.

A gambling man like Gage has no trouble betting on his crew to find a way. And though he and Cybil share the gift of seeing the future, that’s all they have in common. Were they to take their flirtation to the next level, it would be on their own terms, not because Fate decreed it. But Gage knows that a woman like Cybil — with her brains and strength and devastating beauty — can only bring him luck. Whether it’s good or bad has yet to be determined — and could mean the difference between absolute destruction or an end to the nightmare for Hawkins Hollow.

So it's Gage and Cybil's turn in The Pagan Stone...

Gage has been my favorite character in the trilogy since the first book. He was the loner in the group, even though his friendship with Cal and Fox was strong and undeniable. He was the one with the tortured past and the harsh demeanor. He was impatient and sometimes rude, but I never felt that he was out of line. My feelings often mirrored his while I was reading the book, and he alone got my eyes misty 3 times. Yup, one could say I felt a very strong connection with him.

I liked Cybil too. Out of the three heroines in the trilogy, she's my favorite, but that isn't saying much because I didn't really like Quinn (Blood Brothers) and Layla (The Hollow). Cybil was good for Gage and, cliché, completed him and made him a better man. The reversal was also true, and that's why their romance worked for me.

As for the war against the Big Evil, it was thrilling and scary, just like it was supposed to be. I was almost bored to tears with all the talking in the previous book and, to be fair, there's also a lot of talking about the demon in this book, but I found it more interesting this time. Probably because everything the "gang" (Cal & Quinn, Fox & Layla, and Gage & Cybil) did seemed to be more urgent and to the point, as I knew the end was coming. There were a couple of things that triggered some eye-rolling on my part, but this is a PNR novel and you have to take a leap of faith sometimes.

Overall, this was a great ending to an uneven trilogy. Blood Brothers was really good and got me hooked on it, but The Hollow was just average and slightly disappointing. I was glad to see The Pagan Stone getting the trilogy back on track and ending it on a high note.



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Review: "Partners in Crime" by Anne Stuart

Partners In Crime by Anne Stuart

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


From the book blurb:

Sandy was up to no good.

As Jane Dexter scrambled to keep a secret formula from falling into the wrong hands, her hired accomplice proved useless as a jack-of-all-illegal-trades. Convinced that a gloriously sensual woman lurked beneath Jane's ho-hum outfits and non-nonsense manner, Sandy Caldicott lost all interest in illegal activities as he singlemindedly campaigned to reform Jane.

While Jane was breaking and entering with Sandy in Princeton, New Jersey, the awful truth penetrated her muddled brain. The way things were going, she was bound to end up in the arms of the law - or in the arms of a lawless, dashing, dangerously deluded criminal.

**********

Alexander "Sandy" Caldicott was a rich and successful lawyer who was feeling a bit bored with his current life. Not even the prospect of a nice vacation in the tropics was exciting him. When mousy and plain Jane Dexter approached him with her "unusual" proposal, it was like a godsend gift. Goodbye, boredom! The thing is, due to a misprint by the newspaper, Jane believed he was Jimmy the Stoolie, an arsonist Sandy had just gotten acquitted of more-than-deserved charges. You see, she was in dire need of an arsonist because she wanted him to help her commit arson! The right thing for Sandy to do was set her straight and advise her against her criminal plan, but it had been a long time since he had so much fun so he kept the charade going. Before he knew it, he was falling in love with Jane and couldn't not help her.

I really liked Sandy and Jane. They were smart, entertaining and had great lines. He kept the deception about his true identify a little longer than I liked, but it was funny to see him try and cover his slips of the tongue - after all, he wasn't an accomplished liar... Oh wait, he was a lawyer! (LOL)

The plot twist at the end came as no surprise to me, and I still don't understand how Jane didn't see it coming. Maybe I've read too many books and I'm jaded. The villain's final act was also a bit of a disappointment. After everything that he'd done, I was braced for a big showdown, but all I got was a dull resolution.

All things considered, this was a very fun and enjoyable read marred by a somewhat unsatisfying ending.



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Review: "The Hollow" by Nora Roberts

The Hollow by Nora Roberts

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


As the second book in the Sign of Seven trilogy, The Hollow continues the battle against the Big Evil that started in Blood Brothers. It helps to read the 1st book before jumping into this one, but you don't really have to because NR does a good job recapping the previous events - and she does it without making it sound like info dumping.

I'm not going to write a plot summary here because, quite frankly, the basic storyline of this book is similar to Blood Brothers's and I've already written a full review on that one. All the "gang" (Cal, Fox, Gage, Quinn, Layla and Cybil) is still trying to find the key to defeat the evil demon that plays havoc in the otherwise peaceful town of Hawkins Hollow every seven years. The only difference is, we have another main H/h working on their HEA this time: charming small town lawyer Fox O'Dell and annoying (former) big city boutique manager Layla Darnell.

Unfortunately, the romance between Fox and Layla didn't spark my interest. I didn't feel a strong emotional connection between them, which was strange considering the "psychic gift" they shared, and the sexual tension was close to nonexistent. There was no build-up to it: they acknowledge the attraction between them, he says he wants to sleep with her, she replies saying that they need to focus on vanquishing the Big Evil so he shouldn't pressure her, he agrees, yada yada yada, then she changes her mind out of the blue and decides to sleep with him after all. It was all so... unromantic.

I liked Fox well enough, but Layla grated on my nerves big time. I know I complained about Quinn, the heroine in Blood Brothers, being too assertive and I feel like I should be eating crow now. Layla was Quinn's complete opposite, and her I-don't-know-what-to-do-with-my-life attitude bugged me to the point that I wished she had been more like Quinn. NR just went from one extreme to the other when "drawing" them, and neither was very likeable.

As for the suspense/PNR part of the story, it was good but not too thrilling. At times, all they did was sit and talk, talk, talk... until my eyes started to glaze and I had to take a break. Thankfully, the sporadic demon's attacks were entertaining and scary, and kept me from being bored to tears. Overall, the "gang" made some progress in their battle against the Big Evil, but there was no resolution in sight yet - which was expected, considering there's still one more book to go in this trilogy.

All in all, this was just an OK read. It was kind of disappointing because I expected more from it, but it wasn't bad. I feel the next and last book, The Pagan Stone, will be better - not only because Gage and Cybil are more interesting than Fox and Layla, but also because I'll finally find out how the Big Evil will be defeated. Or will he?



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Review: "Wishing for Grace" by Inez Kelley

Wishing for Grace by Inez Kelley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Twenty-six amazing pages filled with emotion. I'm amazed at the impact Ms. Kelley was able to deliver in such a short story. I even cried! Not only once, but twice! Have I mentioned that this story has only twenty-six pages? Fan-tas-tic!

Note: This story is a follow-up to Turn It Up and I highly recommend that you read that book before diving into this little emotional rollercoaster. You won't regret it.




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Review: "Turn It Up" by Inez Kelley

Turn It Up by Inez Kelley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I decided to read this book for two reasons: (1) I liked the premise - how often do you see a romance book where the hero withholds sex to convince the heroine about his good intentions towards her? - and (2) I loved, loved, loved Sweet as Sin, my introduction to Ms. Kelley's work.

So, did it live up to my expectations? I'm glad to say it did, even though it didn't reach the 5-star rating. :)

Dr. Sebastian "Bastian" Talbot and radio host Charlie (that's her name, not a nickname) Pierce have been best friends for years, always there for each other through thick and thin. Somewhere down the road, she roped him into guest speaking on her late night radio talk show and their flirty banter was such a hit with listeners, she invited him to co-host a radio talk show with her. Now he can be found either working gruelling shifts at the ER day and night, at the mercy of whoever defines the department work schedule, or co-hosting Let’s Talk about Sex with Dr. Hot and the Honeypot with Charlie, three nights a week.

Dr. Hot and the Honeypot:



Bastian's friendship is Charlie's anchor, the one thing she values the most in her life. He feels the same about her, but can't help wanting more than just being her best friend. His feelings for her have changed over the years and now he wants to marry her and make love with her - in that order! Unfortunately for him, she doesn't believe in love, HEA is just a myth to her and, worse, she gets angry at him for threatening their friendship with his "love and marriage" talk. She thinks that it's only lust and he just wants to have sex with her, like every guy she's met since her boobs made an appearance in her early teens.

Decided to prove to her that he's serious about his marriage proposal and having sex with her, while it's definitely part of the package, isn't what's moving him, Bastian comes up with the ultimate plan: he won't have sex with her (or anyone else, for that matter) until she accepts to marry him! On her part, Charlie bets she can make him change his mind, therefore proving that sex is really what's driven him to confess his love for her. And so the battle of wills begins... Who will cave first and lose the bet? Well, I've found out, but I can't tell you. ;)

What I can tell is, I wanted Bastian. To win the battle, that is. *lusty grin* He wasn't the kind of hero I'm used to find in Romancelandia and that was refreshing. He was very open about his feelings and had no qualms about putting his heart on the line - over and over again, no matter how many times Charlie tried to step on it. That didn't mean he was a pushover, of couse. He was just determined to win her heart in return, something he was sure he was going to get as soon as she stopped running from her own feelings.

Charlie was more difficult to like. What woman in the world wouldn't want to be loved by Bastian? Okay, I'm kidding. That isn't the reason I didn't quite connect with Charlie. My main "problem" with her was, her conflicting emotions drove me a little nuts. She loved him. She didn't love him. She wanted him. She didn't want him. She truly loved him. Or maybe not. Ack! As much as I understood her awareness of getting emotionally involved with Bastian, she took a bit too long to overcome it - and when she did, it seemed rushed. I know, I'm not making much sense here, but that's how I felt. I mean, she'd had all those relationship hang-ups because of her mother's behavior since she was only a child, so I didn't believe that a "simple" conversation with her mother was all it took to get her over them. That was too close to a Big Misunderstanding for comfort.

Besides that, I still don't know what to think of Charlie's morals... I mean, she wasn't loose or slutty, but she did something in the early stage of her friendship with Bastian that is a big no-no in my book. Bastian was married at the time but his marriage was about to crash and burn, so he was an emotional wreck. In order to give him some solace, Charlie offered herself to him. Sexually, with no strings attached. Heck no, woman! The man was married. Married! Ugh, I did not like that and I'm afraid it tainted my perception of her throughout the book.

Regardless, I liked Bastian and Charlie together. Sure, I still think he deserved better, but she was the one he loved and she was nice and fun when she wasn't struggling with herself. They had great chemistry, their banter as Dr. Hot and the the Honeypot was funny and endearing at the same time, and the sexual buildup was hawt!

If you like friends-to-lovers stories, you'll most certainly enjoy this book. If it wasn't for Charlie, this would have been a 5-star read to me.

Note 1: I received this eARC from Carina Press via NetGalley. That had no influence on my review/rating.

Note 2: Pictures were taken from Inez Kelley's website, where you can find some very interesting free stuff, like Bastian's brother Caz's short story.



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