One To Hold by Tia Louise

Adult Contemporary Romance: Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is not intended for readers under the age of 18. (M/F)

As of May 3, 2015, this book is free on ALL e-book retailers. I don't know how long this will last. Check it out!

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Derek Alexander is a retired Marine, ex-cop, and the top investigator in his field. Melissa Jones is a small-town girl trying to escape her troubled past.

When the two intersect in a bar in Arizona, their sexual chemistry is off the charts. But what is revealed during their "one week stand" only complicates matters.

Because she'll do everything in her power to get away from the past, but he'll do everything he can to hold her. 

Derek and Melissa, wow! I fell in love with these two! Their story is romantic, heartbreaking, HOT, intriguing, somewhat suspenseful, and did I mention HOT?!!

Melissa and her best friend Elaine decide to have a nice relaxing week at a spa resort in Scottsdale, AZ. This trip is meant to help Melissa get away from her past (no spoilers here!). Melissa decides to have a drink in the bar at the resort and meets Derek. Sparks fly between the two and a one week stand is offered. Melissa keeps telling herself she isn't "available" for anything, but can't seem to stay away from Derek and the mind-blowing sex between them.

But when the week is up and it is time for them to go their own ways, things get complicated.

Miss Louise does a wonderful job of creating characters that get into your head and your heart. I couldn't help but fall in love with both Melissa and Derek. I loved the way they connected, but still kept aloof. I found myself hoping that everything would turn out sunshine and roses for the two. But I loved the journey I had to go through to find out how these two fared. Miss Louise created a fantastic "bad guy". He wasn't actually "physically" in the story much, but in the time she gave him, she developed him so well that I really hated the guy!
Miss Louise did a superb job of giving all the details without dragging the story down with too much detail. All the specifics were written into the story line in such a way that details and characters were a natural progression. Her writing reached out and touched my heart and emotions. I was emotionally involved throughout the story.
When the scenes go "between the sheets", per se, it is so hot that I was afraid my e-reader was going to spontaneously combust! I will never look at a family bathroom the same!!
I enjoyed this book so much that I read it in 1 day! You will love it too!!

Happy Reading!

The Circle Complete by KM Montemayor

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Love Trust Loss Peace - The Circle Complete

Lilly and Charlie's journey reaches it's ultimate conclusion

This is the final chapter in Lily and Charlie's journey. 

Charlie has found his way back to earth and to Lily. Now he has to convince her that he truly loves her and that she still loves him. Her anger, confusion, and shell around her heart makes it hard for her to trust Charlie. So many lies, so many years.

There have been many books where the writer has gotten to the "happy ending" and then seems to run out of either story or energy to expand the ending. Not Miss Montemayor. She developed a wonderful twist that will keep you hooked until the very end.

I know this is a short review, but I can't say too much without giving away the "secrets".

I loved this whole trilogy until the very end and I think you will too!

Happy Reading!

The Circle Broken by K.M. Montemayor

Synopsis via Amazon:

Without Charlie, Lilly can find no reason to live. She throws herself into her studies and eventually becomes a doctor. But hiding behind her career doesn’t work. Despite all her efforts to forget the past, she still finds herself haunted by her memories of him. Charlie's decision to be with Lilly has cost him his freedom, and perhaps his sanity. His doctor finds his aberrant attraction to an Earthan fascinating and begins to experiment on him. The unorthodox treatment methods take a toll and Charlie finds himself questioning everything he ever believed about Lilly. A rebel group is gaining power on Sentria. The New Way promises the people more control over their own lives. Will the people finally be able to have freedom? Is that even a possibility for a planet who has been oppressed for centuries?

This is Book 2 of The Circle. Charlie and Lilly's story continues.

Lily is left on earth thinking Charlie is dead while Charlie is on Sentaria being tortured. Charlie is considered mentally ill because he thinks his One is an Earth girl. He is sentenced to 10 years in a mental hospital. His doctor and nurse utilize Charlie to try and make a name for themselves. While Charlie and Lily are miserable and trying to live without each other, a new, radical group is conspiring to overtake the Sentrian government.

Miss Montemayor keeps the momentum going in The Circle Broken. It is almost impossible not to feel sad for Lily. Here she is living with the lie that the "man" she loves is dead. She mourns, suffers, and tries hard to continue living.

Miss Montemayor's detailed description of Charlie's torture and suffering makes it impossible for the 

reader NOT to feel horror and anger at what he suffers. As a matter of fact, I wonder how she came up with everything he went through. Hmmmm.

All I can say is you can't read book 1 and not go on to book 2.

Happy Reading!

The Circle by K.M. Montemayor

Synopsis via Amazon:

He was created for only one person. She was never supposed to be the One. It is 1988 and Lilly, a shy high school senior with a non-existent social life, is forced to live out her romantic fantasies through the fictional characters of her books. That all changes when she issues a spur of the moment invitation to the strange new kid. The world Charlie comes from is much different than Earth. Almost every aspect of a Sentrian's life is under complete government control. There is only one right the intrusive authorities may not violate: that God chooses your soul mate. While on his planet, Charlie never found his One, so when he develops an attraction to Lilly, he is torn. Should he ignore his feelings for the Earthan, or pursue a doomed relationship with the only girl he has ever cared about? His contact with Lilly does not go unnoticed. Involvement with an Earthan is considered blasphemy, and Charlie is condemned as a criminal of the state. The couple is faced with a difficult choice: accept eternal separation or risk everything to stay together.

I received a copy of The Circle in exchange for an honest review.

This story caught my interest. I mean, a sci-fi (in my opinion when I read the blurb) love story that takes place right after I graduated high school, I was in! Well, it ended up being a story that crossed genres. For me it was a sci-fi, paranormal romance, YA, and contemporary romance all wrapped up in one.

Well, it took a little while for me to get into this book. It was slow going at first. Miss Montemayor started out giving the back story (or, that is what it seemed to be for me) of the two main characters. I really felt that she could have incorporated a lot of that info into other parts of the story. But, once I got into it, the story really took off! 

I like how Miss Montemayor created Charlie and the Sentrians to be different, yet the same as us Earthans. Charlie was so similar to Lily that unless you really got to know him, you wouldn't know anything about him was different. She actually took pages out of our own history to help create the Sentrian's opinion of Earthans. Prejudice is supposed to be at the core of all Sentrians. But then Charlie comes along and challenges that mandate.

Lily is a sweet, young teenager who has been forced to grow up at an early age. All she has is her single mom, a nurse who works a lot to make ends meet. She knows who she is and what she wants. She is a senior in high school who has taken a few younger students in band under her wing.
When Lily and Charlie meet, they fall in love. For Charlie, it isn't allowed. For Lily, Charlie is her first boyfriend.
Miss Montemayor does great job developing their relationship.. She keeps it on a teenage level. The ups and downs are very realistic (at first) of teen angst, and then develop as Lily learns more about Charlie. She keeps her references to the '80s constant and relevant.
I found myself rooting for Charlie and Lily. I even found myself trying to help Charlie figure out how to be more like an Earther when Lily would get mad or frustrated at him. I got so into this story, that as soon as I finished The Circle I bought the next two, The Circle Broken, and The Circle Complete.

Check this one out! Happy Reading!!

Nightfall by Ellen Connor

First of all I want to apologize for being out of the loop for awhile. I was working on a few projects at work. But thankfully I am back reading books and ready to dole out my opinion. I hope I can help you find a book or two to read and enjoy.

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Growing up with an unstable, often absent father who preached about the end of the world, Jenna never thought in her wildest nightmares that his predictions would come true. Or that he would have a plan in place to save her-one that includes the strong, stoic man who kidnaps and takes her to a remote cabin in the Pacific Northwest.

The mysterious ex-Marine named Mason owes a life-debt to Jenna's father. Skilled and steadfast, he's ready for the prophesied Change, but Jenna proves tough to convince. Until the power grid collapses and mutant dogs attack-vicious things that reek of nature gone wrong.

When five strangers appear, desperate to escape the bloodthirsty packs, Jenna defies her protector and rescues them. As technology fails and the old world falls away, Jenna changes too, forever altered by supernatural forces. To fight for their future, she and Mason must learn to trust their instinctive passion-a flame that will see them through the bitter winter, the endless nights, and the violence of a new Dark Age.

Nightfall is actually a throwback for me. I found it on my bookcase when my husband moved things around in the garage. It seemed vaguely familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. So I picked it up and delved right in. I remembered bits and pieces, but for me that is unusual. I can usually get to about the 5th page of a book I have read and it all comes back to me.

Nightfall was copyrighted in 2011. So a 4 year old book isn't that old. Berkeley Publishing cast it under their Paranormal Romance category, but for me it was more of an Urban Apocalyptic Survival story. I love to read about people surviving in a world that has gone totally wonky and haywire. (Can you guess I am an avid Walking Dead viewer?!)

Nightfall is the first in the Dark Age Dawning Series by Miss Connor. This is Jenna and Mason's story. Miss Connor has an AWESOME mind for taking our everyday world and recreating it into a living hell. She has created monsters from the ordinary people who looked each other in the eyes. I like how she took different types of people and had them effected differently by the "change".

I like how Miss Connor takes a dysfunctional family and turns it into an important survival factor. And a boy, who is raised in the typical, abusive foster system, finds his way to a "cult" and survives because of the dysfunctional way he was raised.

Miss Connor has taken the concept of yin and yang to the extreme with Jenna and Mason. Together they band a group of people into a unit and teach each other what it really takes to survive. But unlike most stories, this hero and heroine do not come out unscathed. But they do come out stronger and more balanced.

Miss Connor weaves the action, turmoil, human angst, and typical stress together to create a story that hits home with the reader. Yes, the details of the story may be a little "out there" (or could they?), but the fact that we could find ourselves in an apocalyptic event makes this story a little more "edge of your seat".

I look forward to looking into the other books in this series. Miss Connor is definitely an author that has gained my attention! 



The Hot Zone by Jayne Castle

This is a MUST READ!

synopsis via Goodreads:

The world of Harmony has its wonders, one of them being Rainshadow Island. Just beneath its surface, a maze of catacombs hides a dangerous secret...…

Halloween—with its tricks and treats—is a dust bunny’s dream come true. Just ask Lyle, Sedona Snow’s faithful sidekick. But for Sedona, it’s a nightmare. Though her new job managing a small hotel and tavern on Rainshadow is helping her move on from her tragic past, a bizarre disaster down in the catacombs has brought a pack of rowdy ghost hunters to her inn.

And now, Sedona’s ex has arrived on the island, claiming he wants to get back together, just as a newcomer appears to have a strong interest in her. Cyrus Jones is the new Guild boss in town. He has his own agenda when it comes to Sedona, but even the best-laid plans are no match for the passion that springs up on Rainshadow….

This is the 11th time Miss Castle (Krentz) has graciously allowed us to venture back to Harmony and the 3rd time she has taken us to the mysterious island of Rainshadow. She introduces us to new friends and renews old acquaintances along this adventure. We are introduced to Cyrus and Sedona. Cyrus, the new Guild boss on Rainshadow Island and Sedona, a young lady who was shunned by her parents' wealthy families as soon as she turned 18 because her parents had her outside of marriage.

Both Cyrus and Sedona have very strong para-psych talents. Cyrus has always had his talent, but Sedona's talent has recently been altered and enhanced thanks to a crazy scientist who kidnapped her, tortured her, and gave her a drug he had engineered to alter a person's psychic talent. And there is Lyle, Sedona's faithful sidekick. Lyle is a dust bunny. 

Then we have a few old friends that are still around to help out. Cameos by Rachel and Harry, Charlotte and Slade, and of course the adorable dust bunnies Darwina and Rex. 

In this Rainshadow story, there is more than one mystery going on at a time. Cyrus is sent to deal with the mysterious beasts coming out of The Preserve, but gets a little sidetracked with Sedona when she is almost kidnapped and her past comes back to haunt her, almost literally.

As always Miss Castle does an awesome job of spinning the suspense and weaving in Sedona's past with her present.

The Harmony World and Rainshadow Island stories are stories that I will always buy. Miss Castle has created a world that I love to run away to and visit. I will always find suspense, action, heat, and main characters full of intelligence and ethics. 

While this is the 3rd Rainshadow Island book and the 11th Harmony World book, it can be read as a stand alone story, Miss Castle does an excellent job of describing the back story along the way.

I loved this book and I know you will too!

The Job by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg

 

 

Synopsis via Goodreads:

 

     Charming con man Nicolas Fox and dedicated FBI agent Kate O'Hare secretly take down world’s most-wanted and untouchable felons, next job Violante, the brutal leader of a global drug-smuggling empire. The FBI doesn’t know what he looks like, where he is, or how to find him, but Nick knows his tastes in gourmet chocolate.

From Nashville to Lisbon back alleys, from Istanbul rooftops to Thames, they chase clues to lookalike thefts. Pitted against a psychopathic bodyguard Reyna holding Kate hostage and a Portuguese enforcer getting advice from an ancestor's pickled head, they again call driver Willie for ship, actor Boyd for one-eyed Captain Bridger, special effects carpenter Tom, her father Jake - retired Special Forces, and his talent - machete-wielding Somali pirate Billy Dee. This could be their biggest job - if they survive.

 

 

     This is Fox and O'Hare #3. For me it is the second Fox/O'Hare book I have read and I want to know when the next one is coming out!! This was a GREAT BOOK!!

     I actually have a secret to admit. I was having a little difficulty getting to this book to read, so I went and got the audio book. Just let me say, if you like audio books or have been wanting to try one, go get this one. The narrator is awesome! I swear, he must know every language in the universe!

 

     If you have never read a Fox/O'Hare book, you really need  to go get one right  away! Miss Evanovich and Mr. Goldberg know how to create characters that are perfect for each other. So, for those of you who are old enough to remember the TV show Remington Steele and you enjoyed it, then you will love this series.

     Kate O'Hare is an FBI agent and Nicholas Fox is an international thief. They are teamed up because of a special clandestine agreement with the FBI, Fox stays out of prison as long as he helps Kate catch thieves. But Agent O'Hare also has a little bit of a sordid past; she received a dishonorable discharge from the Navy for decking a superior when he groped her.

     This story has suspense, some action, a bit of a mystery, international crime, family, and humor.
I really enjoyed the back and forth play between Kat and Nick. They are fun and fresh to read as they have their back and forth. Nick is laid back and teasing, cocky, and of course trying his best to romance Kate. And Kate is the quintessential FBI agent: serious, tunnel vision for the case, keeping work and private life separate, not to mention keeping work and pleasure separate, all the while denying her attraction to Fox (for the most part) while outwardly showing her irritation to and for him.

     Kate's father ran covert military operations for the CIA before he retired. Now he lives with Kate's sister and helps Kate and Nick with their "missions". This mission takes them across the world to first catch an International Art thief and turns into a case that sends them off to catch a identity-changing, sadistic drug-lord. Kate and Nick enlist the help of an actor, a tree house designer/builder, a woman who can drive anything, and a mechanic. They find themselves on the ocean running a "salvage" ship.

     This book will keep you engrossed, unable to put it down, anxious to know what happens next.

     I would LOVE to see these Fox/O'Hare books made into 2 hour movies or TV movies. They definitely have what it takes to capture an audiences' full attention.

     Enjoy!!