Author Archives: Kristin

Review: The Bodyguard by Katherine Center

22 August, 2022 8:11 pm , 3 Comments ,

The Bodyguard
Katherine Center
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Publication date: July 19, 2022
Genre: Romance
Rating:

She’s got his back.
Hannah Brooks looks more like a kindergarten teacher than somebody who could kill you with a wine bottle opener. Or a ballpoint pen. Or a dinner napkin. But the truth is, she’s an Executive Protection Agent (aka “bodyguard”), and she just got hired to protect superstar actor Jack Stapleton from his middle-aged, corgi-breeding stalker.

He’s got her heart.
Jack Stapleton’s a household name—captured by paparazzi on beaches the world over, famous for, among other things, rising out of the waves in all manner of clingy board shorts and glistening like a Roman deity. But a few years back, in the wake of a family tragedy, he dropped from the public eye and went off the grid.

They’ve got a secret.
When Jack’s mom gets sick, he comes home to the family’s Texas ranch to help out. Only one catch: He doesn’t want his family to know about his stalker. Or the bodyguard thing. And so Hannah—against her will and her better judgment—finds herself pretending to be Jack’s girlfriend as a cover. Even though her ex, like a jerk, says no one will believe it.

What could possibly go wrong???
Hannah hardly believes it, herself. But the more time she spends with Jack, the more real it all starts to seem. And there lies the heartbreak. Because it’s easy for Hannah to protect Jack. But protecting her own, long-neglected heart? That’s the hardest thing she’s ever done.

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Posted in: Romance , Tagged: ,

Sneak Peek Wednesday: Jester by Brielle D. Porter (Giveaway)

10 August, 2022 9:13 am , 2 Comments ,

Jester
Brielle D. Porter
Publisher: CamCat Books
Publication date: Aug. 9, 2022
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

What happens in Oasis, stays in Oasis.

Lisette’s father killed the King. His execution leaves Lisette alone, disgraced, and without the magic he intended to pass on to her. In Oasis, that’s a problem. Glutted with enchanted performers, Oasis is a sin city where courtiers pay in gold to drink, gamble, and above all, be entertained. To survive on its competitive streets, Lisette peddles paltry illusions in place of magic.

Desperate to prove herself, Lisette enters into a deadly competition to be chosen as the highest-ranked magician in the world, the Queen’s Jester. But her rival, the irritatingly handsome Luc, possesses the one thing Lisette does not—real magic. Lisette will do anything to win, but when evidence implicating the Queen in her husband’s murder surfaces, Lisette must choose between redeeming her family name, or seizing the fame she’s hungered for her entire life.

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Posted in: Excerpt

Review: Heart Bones by Colleen Hoover

25 July, 2022 1:47 am , 3 Comments ,

Heart Bones
by: Colleen Hoover
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication date: Aug. 19, 2020
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

Life and a dismal last name are the only two things Beyah Grim’s parents ever gave her. After carving her path all on her own, Beyah is well on her way to bigger and better things, thanks to no one but herself.

With only two short months separating her from the future she’s built and the past she desperately wants to leave behind, an unexpected death leaves Beyah with no place to go during the interim. Forced to reach out to her last resort, Beyah has to spend the remainder of her summer on a peninsula in Texas with a father she barely knows. Beyah’s plan is to keep her head down and let the summer slip by seamlessly, but her new neighbor Samson throws a wrench in that plan.

Samson and Beyah have nothing in common on the surface.

She comes from a life of poverty and neglect; he comes from a family of wealth and privilege. But one thing they do have in common is that they’re both drawn to sad things. Which means they’re drawn to each other. With an almost immediate connection too intense for them to continue denying, Beyah and Samson agree to stay in the shallow end of a summer fling. What Beyah doesn’t realize is that a rip current is coming, and it’s about to drag her heart out to sea.

 

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Posted in: NA Romance, New Adult , Tagged: , ,

Review: Pirate’s Protector by Lisa Kessler

22 July, 2022 1:46 am , Leave a Comment ,

Pirate’s Protector
(Sentinels of Savannah #7)
By: Lisa Kessler
Publisher: Entangled
Publication date: June 20, 2022
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating:

This immortal might be out of his depth…

After two centuries as an immortal pirate, Duke Proctor figures he’s experienced pretty much everything. Which is exactly when he finds himself held at gunpoint…by a mermaid. But the exquisitely lush blonde—whose eyes are deeper than the sea—is here for a reason. Someone has stolen from her and she’s certain Duke is behind it.

Annika Mare knows for a fact that the Sea Dog’s crew has her comb. In the wrong hands, it places Annika under the control of whoever wields it. But the comb has been taken—and working with this unbelievably sexy human pirate to recover it poses an entirely different kind of threat.

Now these two immortals must find the thief, and fast. But there are other forces at work, bigger than Duke or Annika could possibly know. And a powerful artifact in the hands of evil isn’t nearly as dangerous as the sizzlingly-hot attraction that could engulf them both…

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Posted in: Paranormal Romance , Tagged: ,

Sneak Peek Wednesday: THE INDIGO by Heather Siegel

20 July, 2022 6:02 pm , Leave a Comment ,

THE INDIGO
by: Heather Siegel
Publisher: Stone Tiger Books
Publication date: June 1, 2022
Genre: YA Fantasy

Jett Hart, a 16-year-old girl from New Jersey, refuses to accept the diagnosis that her mother is brain-dead. Yes, Mom’s long-comatose body seems like an empty shell. But there was that split-second, weird time Jett swears she lifted out from her own body and travelled to an indigo-colored, starry space, where she felt Mom’s presence.

Now, as Jett’s caretaking Aunt threatens to pull Mom’s life support, Jett must find this mysterious indigo place again and return her mother to her body before it’s too late. The bad news is that only her schoolmate Farold — who may or may not give off a more-than-friends vibe — believes she can do this. The good news is that he’s an amateur quantum physicist in training and has some ideas about how to help Jett get back “up there.”

Even if Jett manages to find Mom in the “indigo,” can she bring her back to her body? While also staying connected to her own “empty shell” below? And, what if . . . someone is trying to stop her?

 

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Posted in: Excerpt

Review: Love and Other Things by Christina Lauren

18 July, 2022 12:54 am , 2 Comments ,

Love and Other Words
Christina Lauren
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication date: April 10, 2018
Genre: Romance
Rating:

The story of the heart can never be unwritten.

Macy Sorensen is settling into an ambitious if emotionally tepid routine: work hard as a new pediatrics resident, plan her wedding to an older, financially secure man, keep her head down and heart tucked away.

But when she runs into Elliot Petropoulos—the first and only love of her life—the careful bubble she’s constructed begins to dissolve. Once upon a time, Elliot was Macy’s entire world—growing from her gangly bookish friend into the man who coaxed her heart open again after the loss of her mother…only to break it on the very night he declared his love for her.

Told in alternating timelines between Then and Now, teenage Elliot and Macy grow from friends to much more—spending weekends and lazy summers together in a house outside of San Francisco devouring books, sharing favorite words, and talking through their growing pains and triumphs. As adults, they have become strangers to one another until their chance reunion. Although their memories are obscured by the agony of what happened that night so many years ago, Elliot will come to understand the truth behind Macy’s decade-long silence, and will have to overcome the past and himself to revive her faith in the possibility of an all-consuming love.

 

 

This story was so emotional and encompasses over a decades worth of time between characters. I really liked the way the authors wrote this story, because it gave us a better sense of the main characters. The chapters alternated between the past and the current time. So we were witness to the first time that Elliot and Macy met, all their weekends and summers together, as well as watched them grow up to young adults. We were privy to their puberty changes, the conflict of living separate lives while away from each other, as well as understanding their deep bond. I think without the past aspect of the book, the present would have felt superficial and lacking.

Because we had the history connecting everything together, Macy’s response seemed normal. Heck, even Elliot’s over the top immediately falling in love with her seemed natural. Mainly because, you realized that she was not only just his first love… but his only love. He never stopped loving her. If I’m being honest, reading about Elliot and Macy’s story was sad. Both of these characters went through a lot. You know a huge falling out happened with them eleven years ago, but when it’s revealed, it’s a bit shocking… and I won’t lie, I cried.

As always, Christina Lauren wove a beautiful story that followed two children into adulthood and showed that there can be such a thing as soul mates. While I do wish the author maybe brushed up on the big controversial part in the story (sorry, no spoilers), I still really enjoyed the story as a whole. This author duo always knows how to reel me in with a good romance filled with depth and emotion. This story was no different.

Posted in: Romance

Review: Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon

15 July, 2022 9:53 am , 1 Comment ,

Ice Planet Barbarians
(Ice Planet Barbarians #1)
by Ruby Dixon
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: April 3, 2015
Genre: Sci-fi Erotic Romance
Rating:

You’d think being abducted by aliens would be the worst thing that could happen to me. And you’d be wrong. Because now, the aliens are having ship trouble, and they’ve left their cargo of human women – including me – on an ice planet.

And the only native inhabitant I’ve met? He’s big, horned, blue, and really, really has a thing for me…

 

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Posted in: Erotic Romance , Tagged:

Already Halfway Through 2022

10 July, 2022 3:19 pm , 15 Comments ,


I’m linking this post to Sunday Post, Mailbox Monday, and It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

So, June was a little eventful. I rescued a kitten during the first week of June. I just went down the road to the local dollar store to pick up something. However, as I was in my car, waiting for the cross traffic to clear out so that I could get on the road and head home, I spotted this tiny kitten dodging the wheels of the moving vehicles. I immediately parked my car and got out to rescue it. The only problem was that it panicked and climbed up into the engine of a parked vehicle of a nearby housing complex. While I waited in the parking lot of the housing complex, a gentleman came up to probably tell me I wasn’t supposed to be hanging out there. However, once I explained that there was a kitten in the engine of one of the vehicles, and he heard it meowing, he understood why I was there and called the owner of the vehicle to see if they could come home to pop the hood. As I waited there for about an hour, seven people showed up to see what was going on, and stuck around until the kitten was rescued. Turns out that she was about 6 weeks old and, thankfully, healthy minus some fleas. After a week of having her in the house, I found her a loving forever home where she is the center of their world since they do not have other pets or children.

Other than rescuing the kitten, I haven’t really been up to much this week. It’s been the usual of catching up on reading, hanging out with friends on the beach, and just normal stuff around the house. Oh! I did start doing filming for my Youtube channel, though. I did a couple of videos about the kitten, and a few taste test videos. It’s been a lot of fun editing them. Every time I edit a new video, I try to learn a new technique to apply to them. Since it went from the rainy season straight into typhoon season, there hasn’t been a lot of opportunities to film fun things outside.

I’m hoping that July will offer more outdoor adventures and fun. However, we will see what the weather does this season. If there are a lot of tropical storms and typhoons, at least it will give me the chance to continue to catch up on my reading.

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Posted in: meme

Sneak Peek Wednesday: Spells and Slip-ups by Annie Anderson

6 July, 2022 12:25 am , 1 Comment ,

Spells and Slip-ups
(The Wrong Witch #1)
by Annie Anderson
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: June 7, 2022
Genre: Urban Fantasy

I suck at witchcraft.

Coming from a long line of famous witches, I should be at the top of the heap. Problem is, if there is a spell cast anywhere in my vicinity, I will somehow mess it up. As a probationary agent with the Arcane Bureau of Investigation, I have two choices: I can limp along and maybe pass myself off as a competent agent, or I can fail. Miserably.

Worse news? If I can’t get my act together, I may not only be out of a job, I could also lose my life.

Whose idea was this again?

 

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Posted in: Excerpt

Review: Tinkering With Love by Aliyah Burke

1 July, 2022 9:15 pm , 1 Comment ,

Tinkering with Love
(Rock Falls #1)
by Aliyah Burke
Publisher: Entangled
Publication date: June 20, 2022
Genre: Romance
Rating:

Dawson Shay could never be accused of being a bubbly ray of sunshine. Like, not ever. But her outlook on life has only gotten worse since she moved across the country for her dream job rebuilding motorcycles…only to lose the job to someone else. Now her run of bad luck includes a wilderness retreat with the entire company—including the asshat who stole her job. Fortunately, Tully Faulkner’s bearded, tattooed hotness is pretty much the perfect distraction.

Except, Tully isn’t just Mr. Hometown Hero, he’s also said asshat who stole her job. And if he thinks he can win her over with his ability to charm the pants off everybody else, he’s got another thing coming. But Dawson can’t avoid him forever… or the seriously hot sparks between them. Somewhere between the breathtaking northern lights and teaming up to win their company’s scavenger hunt, Dawson starts to think that Tully’s magic touch might be just what she’s been missing.

But even sexy gearheads have their secrets. And Dawson’s about to discover that falling for the too-perfect-to-be-true Tully might just backfire on her completely…

 

 

I loved the sound of this book. A female protagonist who works on motorcycles? Yes, please! The fact that Dawson uproots her life to move across the country to manage a motorcycle shop only to show up and find out that the job promised to her was given to someone else had me rooting for her. However, this were very rocky in this book, and I don’t just mean the relationship between Dawson and the guy who took her job, Tully.

You see, Dawson is obviously upset over the whole job situation. She was promised a job, uprooted her life, only to find out that the job was given to “the hometown hero”. So instead of working on motorcycles, she works with vehicles at a sister company. This book had a lot of “love at first sight” going on and it didn’t really work for me. On day on, Tully was saying some very inappropriate things about taking her to his bed and giving her mouth to mouth because he knows she wants it. Just things that should have resulted in him getting harassment charges. However, Dawson lets it slide because he is “hot”. Which brought up the back and forth that pops up later. She would kiss him, or sleep with him, and then immediately shut him out because she “didn’t like him”. I just wish she’d have put her foot down and not been so googly eyed over some cocky dude who gets his way. This doesn’t even brush up on the fact that Tully makes a bet with his buddies that he can get Dawson to fall in love with him by the end of summer. What’s the wager? $10k. However, it’s totally alright because the losers pay that money to a charity of the winners choice. So it’s morally alright to do that. …. I think not.

While I had a HUGE problem with the romance aspect of this book, the one thing that I LOVED was Mr. Harrellssen. He’s this crotchety old man who takes a liking to Dawson, even though he complains about her presence the whole time. She makes him food, hangs out with him, and he is just this grumpy old grandpa that would quite literally shoot someone for you and bury the body with no questions asked. Plus, it helped that he hated Tully, and refused to let him on his property when Dawson why trying to escape him. He was just the sweetest, most genuine person in the whole story.

I really with that I liked the story more than I had did. I thought I was going to fall in love with this enemies to lovers romance. Especially given that Dawson is this badass chick. However, the back and forth with Tully, the way he conducted himself towards her, and just the fact that there were red flags popping up left and right, really left me feeling creeped out the entire time.

Posted in: Romance , Tagged: