Tracy Solheim's Out of Bounds series is great!

I recently went looking for more sports romances. I loved Deirdre Martin's hockey series, and I don't even like hockey! I also loved Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Chicago Stars/Buchanan brothers series. So I really wanted some new sports romances, and I went on Amazon and looked around and found this series. I read book one, and loved it. Waited and waited... had the library get book 2 and 3.. 3 came first, waited another week before 2 came. Frustrating!! I wanted to read them in order, I cant stand reading books out of order!
So before I go on, let me give you a description of book one.

With a reputation for fast moves on the gridiron and even faster moves off the field, Shane Devlin was a player in every sense of the word. Unfortunately, his bad-boy persona has made him a risky prospect as a quarterback, and only the Baltimore Blaze are willing to give him a chance. And he’s about to take a hit he never expected.

Working for the Blaze, Carly March knows too well how jocks think—and what they think with—so she’s always made a point of keeping them at arm’s length. But when she shares a kiss with the devilishly handsome Shane, she finds it hard to play by her own rules—and even harder to resist him.

Can a football hero and a business-minded beauty take it all the way? Or will their mutual attraction cost them the big game?

Carly first runs into Shane while she is on vacation. Where he has no clue who she is, she knows exactly who he is. And that she's going to be forced to work with him. He's the new quarterback for the Baltimore Blaze. The Blaze team is very family friendly and they tell Shane has to work on his reputation. It needs to be a lot more clean. The last thing Carly wants to do is keep track of this guy, but when her friend is injured, Carly steps up to help out. 

Shane has never has a good relationship with his father. Matter of a fact, he wants absolutely nothing to do with him. But when his father and stepmother are killed, the will states that they want Shane to take care of his little brother. Shane, of course, really has a fit about it and says for the boy to go to his grandparents. Troy shows up though with a few friends from his father's coaching job at the university. Carly steps up to help the boy, who has been through quite enough already!  Can she bring Shane and Troy together, without falling completely in love with both of them?

I really enjoyed this book. I also enjoyed the next two books and I am on pins and needles waiting, because she is going to write another book set in North Carolina, where book 2 mostly took place. 

"Heir of Fire" by Sarah Mass will make you "OH MY GODS!"

Description:

Celaena has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now, she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth . . . a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever. Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. Will Celaena find the strength to not only fight her inner demons, but to take on the evil that is about to be unleashed?

Celaena has survived the salt mines, the palace, and is now on a mission. The king belives she is going to kill the royal family of Wendlyn. In reality, she goes in search of the Fae queen. She needs to find out more about the Wyrdkeys so she can take down the King of Adarlan.

In the mean time, Chael teams up with Aedion, Celeana's cousin, to help the rebels. Dorian teams up with a healer to try to understand and control his secret magic. 

Celeana is met in Wendlyn by Rowan, a prince of the fae court in service to Maeve, the Fae Queen. Maeve tells Celeana that she will not help her until she has trained with Rowan. Maeve wants to know the extent of Celeana's abilities and can't do that until Celeana even admits to all that she has. 

The king also has a devious plot in the works. The witches have come together and are becoming dragon riders. They fight amongst themselves very easily. Manon, heir to the Blackbeak clan, chooses a dragon that no one approves of, who was bait for the stronger dragons. One of the four heirs will lead the dragon squad, and Manon intends to be that person. Failure is not an option.

I can't describe how incredibly awesome this book is. And now I must wait a year or more for another. I might just cry. Celeana is an awesome, strong female character. Maas' keeps you on your toes as you read. Each character has their own milestones to overcome before they can meet again and fight together against the King. The growth of Manon Blackbeak even. This series had captivated me. I have suggested it to sooooo many people now who are as eager as myself. I wish I were better at writing reviews because this book deserves a good one!

Laura Kaye's Hard Ink series is AWESOME!

Hard As It Gets is the first book in the Hard Ink series.. Description:

Tall, dark, and lethal...

Trouble just walked into Nicholas Rixey's tattoo parlor. Becca Merritt is warm, sexy, wholesome--pure temptation to a very jaded Nick. He's left his military life behind to become co-owner of Hard Ink Tattoo, but Becca is his ex-commander's daughter. Loyalty won't let him turn her away. Lust has plenty to do with it too.

With her brother presumed kidnapped, Becca needs Nick. She just wasn't expecting to want him so much. As their investigation turns into all-out war with an organized crime ring, only Nick can protect her. And only Becca can heal the scars no one else sees.

Desire is the easy part. Love is as hard as it gets. Good thing Nick is always up for a challenge...

I got the third book from NetGalley, not realizing that it was the third book! So I tracked down book one. I am ever so glad that I did!
Nick works as a process server and occassional tattoo artist at his brother's tattoo shop, Hard Ink. (This definitely got my heart pumping as I love tattoos!) 

Becca is concerned because her brother has disappeared. Where Charlie is paranoid about everything, its not like him to just disappear. The only note she has tells her to find Rixey for help. So she finds Rixey, who absolutely is not interested in helping her. Becca's father was Rixey's commander in the Army Special Forces. The Colonel had betrayed his men and been shot in the process. Seven men died. The remaining five men were discharged from the Army, not honorably, their lives in tatters. The last thing he wants to do is help anyone from the Colonels family. 

But something about Becca sticks in his craw. He finds her address and stakes her house out. As he watches, he sees Becca come home, but he also sees someone sneaking around upstairs. He rushes to her defense. The man ran off. Becca told Rixey that her brothers place had been trashed, and Becca's house had been searched as well. Rixey decided he has to help her. Especially if it means that maybe they can repair his and his friends reputations. Charlie had found something about the Colonel that was buried deep. Something that could help him.

Rixey calls in help. He calls his friends left from their Special Forces team and all of them come to help. Becca is almost kidnapped while at work. Now they know something major is up. They set about trying to find Charlie. And in the mean time.. Rixey and Becca just can't resist each other. 

Everything about this called to me.. Special Forces... Tattoos.. Brother Jeremy's hilarious pervy t-shirts.. The puppy, oh the puppy!! Becca finds a 3 legged dog who actually helps save her from the man who tried to kidnap her at work! The naming of the puppy is absolutely hilarious!  The book just sucks me in, I read this one in a day.... and book two in a day.. and im part way through book 3 now! Loooooving it 

So, if you don't mind a bit of sex, tattoos, and hot Special Forces guys, go forth and read! 

Sharon Sala's conclusion to the Stormchaser series is finally here! Three cheers for "Going Gone"!

***********Thank You NetGalley for an Advanced Copy of this Title*********
Description:

The final storm of the season could be their last. 

After barely escaping death when her plane crashed deep in the Rocky Mountains during a snowstorm, Laura Doyle is left with a lingering fear for her life. Her lover, FBI agent Cameron Winger, reassures her that he found her then and always will. But Laura is right to be afraid, because when their engagement is announced it signals to a madman that it's time for his killing spree to begin again. 

Twice thwarted by Cameron and his partners, the Stormchaser pairs random acts of God with deliberate acts of evil. His final act of vengeance will finish his twisted vendetta by taking from Cameron the thing he loves most: Laura. 

As law enforcement struggles to connect the gruesome murders he's committed to mask his return, the Stormchaser draws closer to his true target. But Cameron and Laura don't realize they're in the eye of the storm—and this time, being unprepared for the onslaught could spell disaster.

Ms Sala went a slightly different route with her romance this time. Laura and Cameron met in previous books and at the start of this one, they are already in love.  Laura is on a business trip and on her way back to DC, her plane goes down in the Rocky Mountains. The only survivor, and forced to drastic measures so that wildlife doesn't get to her, she pulls through and Cameron is on the search team that helps find her.

After spending time in the hospital, she heads home where she has a permanent position in DC and rarely has to travel. Unbeknownst to the Stormchaser team and their women, Hershel is living large in Mexico in a retirement community. He has surgery to repair his burn scars and lost some weight. The need to kill finally gone. He makes one more trip back to New Orleans to visit his wife's grave on the anniversary of her death. During his time in Louisiana, he sees a report about the plane crash and Laura's photo. He had worked with her, his cover as a Red Cross volunteer helping him to find his previous victims. He thought they were all dead! They should have been! Now he feels he needs to even the score and heads to DC.

He chooses his victims and starts his killing spree. After the first one, the Stormchaser team thinks that Hershel is back. They can't prove it, and they all thought he was dead, but small parts of his MO are showing up on the victims.
When Cameron tells Laura he thinks the Stormchaser is back, and they all think that he is after Laura. He had tried to kill Nola and Jo. The only conclusion was he was coming for Laura. Then, there's proof that it is Hershel and the team rushes to protect Laura, who has seen him. Twice.

This book was absolutely fantastic. Heck, ALL of Ms Sala's books are fantastic, but this one, the ending brought tears to my eyes. It was so sweet. I even went and commented on her facebook page because I couldn't believe how much this book touched me. Anyways, if you haven't read the Stormchaser series, you are seriously missing out. They are a fantastic  combination of mystery and romance.

Kylie Scott's Stage Dive series is awesome!

Everyone who knows me, knows that I dislike self published books. Grammatical errors drive me absolutely batty and when books are self published, they usually do not have copy editors. However, this series, which has been picked up by St Martins in the US, was different.

Lick is the first book. Evelyn woke up in a Las Vegas hotel room, hungover as hell with a very HOT tattooed guy next to her. Wait, she got married?! She has absolutely no recollection of this very hot tattooed guy but apparently she married him. David is pissed that Evelyn doesn't remember him. He storms out of the room letting her know that annulment papers would be on the way.

What Evelyn doesn't know is that her husband is David Ferris, the hot guitarist from the major rock band Stage Dive. The press has a field day about Evelyn and pretty much stalk her like crazy. Her father is ticked about the situation she is in and that she has completely screwed up the plan. Evelyn is a college student majoring in architecture. David comes to her rescue and flies her to Los Angeles, hoping to help her keep out of the media eye until their annulment takes place and they leave her alone.

The crush of the party taking place at the house has Evelyn on edge. Mal, the drummer for the band, takes Evelyn away, which really ticks off David who comes after them. David takes her to his place on the beach. During their time together, Evelyn remembers small things about the night she married David. She can see what she saw in him. She is drawn to him like she has never been drawn to a person before. He is a caring person, sensitive. David's writing funk has gone and he is writing the best songs of his career, thanks to Evelyn.  But things kept pulling them apart. Can they work things out?

This book was awesome. Not my usual kind of read, more of a New Adult genre than the usual romance I read. And, lemme tell ya, Mal's book "Play" and Jimmy's book "Lead" were just as great. Everyone, go forth and read! The next book, Ben's book, comes out in January and I sooo cannot wait!

What's coming Fall 2014?

First and Foremost! Son of No One by Sherrilyn Kenyon!  From Amazon:
             So, I'm one of those people who is annoyed that new characters keep cropping up, but I am resigned to just let her story flow as she wants it to. I am always excited for the next book, so woohoo! Just a couple more weeks!

Next:  Sharon Sala's Going Gone

         The Stormchaser series has been awesome!  This next installment Im sure will be just as great! Ms Sala is so awesome. I adore her facebook page. She has been caring for her elderly mother for years, a lady with dementia. Ms Sala's everyday stories are a help to those us of who one day in the future will be in her shoes taking care of our own parents.

Next: Nora Robert's last installment in the Dark Witch series Blood Magick. 

    Holy WOW I cannot wait for this book!! This series has been absolutely amazing!

Next: Jill Gregory's Sunflower Lane.

   I feel I have been waiting forever for this next installment in the Sage Creek series. This has been a wonderful series. Readers of Susan Mallery and Robyn Carr would really enjoy them. Nice romances set in small towns.

Next: Larissa Ione's Revenant

  Reaver has a twin, who saw that coming! And he's not a good guy! Woohoo! Cannot wait!

Next: Sarah Maas' Heir of Fire, third in the Throne of Glass series.

   OMG, you do not realize how awesome this series is. Yes it is young adult, but it is absolutely amazing! Female Assassion, a foundling raised by the Assassin Lord but who definitely is not who she seems to be.. 

Next: Redeemed by PC Cast, the final book in the House of Night series.

  Say it isnt so! House of Night is coming to an end??  Okay, so maybe 12 books is enough. I cant wait to see how the authors end it!

Next: Talon by Julie Kagawa

  I <3 Julie Kagawa's books. All of them. Between the Iron Fey, Call of the Forgotten, and the Immortal Rules, I love them all. And I am sooooooo excited that she is writing a book about... DRAGONS! I looooove dragons!! 

Susan Elizabeth Phillips returns with "Heroes are My Weakness"

****Thank You Edelweiss for a review copy of this title****

Description:
The dead of winter.
An isolated island off the coast of Maine.
A man.
A woman.
A sinister house looming over the sea . . . 

He’s a reclusive writer whose macabre imagination creates chilling horror novels. She’s a down-on-her-luck actress reduced to staging kids’ puppet shows. He knows a dozen ways to kill with his bare hands. She knows a dozen ways to kill with laughs. 

But she’s not laughing now. When she was a teenager, he terrified her. Now they’re trapped together on a snowy island off the coast of Maine. Is he the villain she remembers or has he changed? Her head says no. Her heart says yes. It’s going to be a long, hot winter.

At one time, Theo and Annie's parents were married. All was well until Theo started terrorizing Annie, and at one point, tried to kill her. As per the agreement on the cottage, Annie must spend 2 months of the year on Peregrine Island. Right now its a godsend, because after Annie's mother dies of cancer, there are mounting bills. Supposedly, Mariah left Annie a legacy at the cottage. The trick now is to find it. But a trip up the hill to Harp House shows Theo in residence and Annie not quite sure what to do.

The last Phillips book disappointed me. I didn't even finish it. But she definitely kept me going with this book! With a tid bit of suspense.. Someone ransacks the cottage and tries to shoot Annie! But its not a deep, dark mystery, really. Except that Annie thinks Theo is a psychopath. Theo, however, tired of being blamed for the odd things happening, decides to protect Annie. But can he protect his feelings? He wishes Annie would just leave and stop dragging up old memories best left forgotten.

Another part of the story I loved were Annie's puppets. She is a ventriloquist. She has several puppets. Crumpet was my favorite, and she was a big part of the story. Annie used Crumpet to help a little girl who had gone mute after she witnesses her mother kill her her abusive husband. It was an awesome part of the story. 

All in all this was a great book! I absolutely loved it. And the epilogue as well. Sometimes I don't like those but today I did!

Melanie Scott hits a homerun with "The Devil in Denim"

*************Thank You NetGalley for an Advanced copy of this title**********

Description:

LIFE JUST THREW HER A CURVEBALL.As the team-owner’s daughter, Maggie Jameson grew up in the New York Saints’ stadium—glove, cap, hot dogs, and all. Baseball’s in her blood, and she’s always dreamed of the day when she would lead the Saints to victory herself. That was before her dad had to sell the team to Alex Winters. The fast-talking, fiercely attractive businessman has a baseball pedigree that’s distinctly minor league. Maggie wants to hate him but his skills of seduction, however, are off the charts.

WILL LOVE BE A HOME RUN?Alex could never have imagined how much this team means to Maggie. He needs her to help show the players that they’re still a family…even if he and Maggie are at the verge of exchanging blows. But her fiery determination and gorgeous looks prove irresistible to Alex. And much as he wants to relegate their relationship to the playing field—and get the Saints back in the game—Alex just can’t help himself: What he wants to win most is Maggie’s heart…in The Devil in Denim by Melanie Scott.

Maggie is absolutely TICKED that her father sold the Saints right out from under her. She was born and raised at the field, and worked her whole life towards one day taking the team over. But out of the blue, her dad sells the team. To Alex. What the heck does Alex know about baseball? He is a corporate ball buster. Yet Alex wants to hire Maggie to smooth their way with the investors and the players and other employees. Maggie desperately just wants to work with the team she was raised with and considers family, but can she work with Alex?

This was a great book! I thoroughly enjoyed it the whole way through. I loved all the crap that Maggie gave Alex, especially at the bar in the beginning. It was hilarious! This was a great read for people who enjoy Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Deirdre Martin, as well as Susan Mallery. It was just a great, fun read! 

"Return to Glory" starts a great new series for Sara Arden!

************Thank you NetGalley for an Advanced copy of this title*************

Description:

In Glory, Kansas, the best bakery in three counties not only brings together ingredients for sweet treats, but is the place where—through the powerful mix of friendship, community and a well-stocked kitchen—a wounded hero can forge a forever kind of love. 

Back in the hometown he left behind five years ago, Jack McConnell has returned battle-scarred and feeling like half a man. But Betsy Lewis only sees the hero who once saved her life and set her heart on fire. Now she's burning to save him in return. She'll use every trick she's got up her sleeve, from her generous natural assets to her talent for baking, to coax Jack out from the bottom of his whiskey bottle. At first, Jack responds to Betsy like any red-blooded man would. He's always denied his attraction to the innocent girl he used to know, but he's returned to find Betsy's grown into a full-on woman with strength enough for both of them. Until Jack realizes the only way to conquer his demons and be worthy of the hero's mantle she's pinned to his shoulders is to save Betsy one last time—from himself.

What an excellent story. Jack comes home for one reason only. He promised Betsy he would come home. His plan is to see Betsy and then leave.  After being deployed, captured, hostage, he is home but he is not the man Betsy is expecting back. 

Betsy has been waiting for Jack. She has always loved him and always will. She is determined to help him, whether he wants the help or not! But he keeps pulling away, no matter what she tries. But, as in any love story, of course true love wins!

I would recommend any readers of Susan Mallery or Robyn Carr, it is a little.. harder, but still a great romance. 

Sandra Brown's new title Mean Streak

**************Thank You NetGalley for an Advanced copy of this title***********

Description:
Dr. Emory Charbonneau, a pediatrician and marathon runner, disappears on a mountain road in North Carolina. By the time her husband Jeff, miffed over a recent argument, reports her missing, the trail has grown cold. Literally. Fog and ice encapsulate the mountainous wilderness and paralyze the search for her.

While police suspect Jeff of "instant divorce," Emory, suffering from an unexplained head injury, regains consciousness and finds herself the captive of a man whose violent past is so dark that he won't even tell her his name. She's determined to escape him, and willing to take any risks necessary to survive. 

Unexpectedly, however, the two have a dangerous encounter with people who adhere to a code of justice all their own. At the center of the dispute is a desperate young woman whom Emory can't turn her back on, even if it means breaking the law. Wrong becomes right at the hands of the man who strikes fear, but also sparks passion.

As her husband's deception is revealed, and the FBI closes in on her captor, Emory begins to wonder if the man with no name is, in fact, her rescuer from those who wish her dead - and from heartbreak.

I stopped reading Ms Brown several years ago. I loved her romantic suspense, but when she veered off into cheating husbands always out to kill their wives and whatnot, I quit reading her. For some odd reason, I requested this one from NetGalley. Not sure why, but I did end up enjoying it. 

Emory is a marathon runner. She is headed into the mountains for a training session and she and her husband have a huge fight. She leaves and says she will call him when she is settled in the hotel but she may be a date late coming home depending on how she feels after her run.

Emory runs along the path enjoying the scenery and the next thing she knows, shes waking up in some strange man's house and he won't let her leave.  Besides having a concussion, she's fine. She figures she must have tripped and fell. The Man is an odd fellow. He lives all alone, no phone no tv no anything in the middle of nowhere. Weather moves in and makes it impossible for Emory to leave. What Emory doesn't realize is that the Man found evidence that she had been attacked and that was why he was trying to keep her from leaving. 
Emory starts to realize there is more to The Man that there seems when he takes her to help a young girl with a medical problem and keeps her felon brothers away from her while she works. 

There are so many twists and turns to this story. I was really quite pleased with it! Thanks NetGalley!


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A new Thunder Point novel by Robyn Carr hits shelves Tuesday, Aug. 26th!

*************Thank You NetGalley for an Advanced Copy of this Title*******

Description:

At the age of nineteen, Seth Sileski had everything. A superb athlete and scholar, handsome and popular, he was the pride of Thunder Point. Destined for greatness, he lost it all in a terrible accident that put an end to his professional football career when it had barely begun. The people in his hometown have never forgotten what might have been. 

Seth has come to terms with the turns his life has taken. But now he's been presented with an opportunity to return home and show his father—and the people of Thunder Point—he's become a better, humbler version of his former self. 

Winning over his father isn't the only challenge. Seth must also find a way to convince his childhood neighbor and best friend, Iris McKinley, to forgive him for breaking her heart. With his homecoming, will Seth be able to convince the town, his family and especially Iris that he's finally ready to be the man who will make them all proud?

Seth has returned home after years away. Hoping to reconnect with friends and finally get back in his father's good graces after the tragic accident that ended his football career, Seth hires on as a policeman with the Thunder Point police force. But what he really wants is to see Iris again. Iris was his best friend since childhood, but sometime in high school, something happened and Iris no longer wanted to be friends with him. Seth believes that it Iris hated him because he told her he would take her to prom when he and his girlfriend broke up, but they immediately made up and he took the girlfriend instead of Iris. What Seth doesn't know is that there was more to the story, he just didn't remember it.
Iris has lived her life happily in Thunder Point. She became a high school counselor and sold her mother's flower shop after her mother passed away (becoming great friends with the new owner). And Iris wants absolutely nothing to do with Seth. But Seth is determined to find out why Iris hates him and to get back in her favor. Iris was, after all, the best friend he ever had.

The first couple books in this series I thought were lacking, but I believe they are getting much better with each new one. I liked Iris, and I liked how much she cared for her students. I laughed when she punched Seth. That was hilarious! He got what he deserved! Iris was pretty ticked that Seth didn't remember what happened between them, but in a fit of anger she told him, Seth felt absolutely awful. It was around then that Iris began to forgive him. Seth is a rather persistent fellow, so he woos her, even if she doesn't realize it. 

It was a great book!