Monthly Archives: July 2011

RomCon Tuesday

Posted on July 19, 2011 by TBRG| Leave a comment

Well, Heather talked last week about RomCon so I guess it is my turn today.

I clearly remember her calling me all excited about signing up to judge a book contest and I had to find out what this was for and get involved. That is when we learned about RomCon. Within days we were planning on attending. Than we had this brilliant idea; let’s try to read something from all the authors coming. Have to admit did not make it through the whole list but I fell in love with some authors I had never heard of before. My biggest fangirl moment was meeting Anna Campbell who is the nicest lady ever, just so happened I not only ran into her in the hall at midnight but we were able to go in the back and help her organize her giveaways. That is when we also determined there would be no sleep for us for the next few days. That same night is when we started creating our business cards in the hotel computer room at 2 in the morning, they were great if I do say so myself. There were so many other wonderful moments and so many memories made. Decision was made we will be there every year!

Challenge did not go as well this year either but it has still been tons of fun – tip for next year, start reading in August as soon as we leave to come home. Now that the first year is done ,with the stress of getting to everything and seeing everything, this year is just for fun and getting to know people. FYI, it might come as a surprise to some, but I am a little shy and I know there are more of you out there so let’s get out of our comfort zone and have a good time! See you all in a couple weeks!

Melanie

Posted in RomCon Tuesday

Tagged posted by Melanie, RomCon Tuesday

Red Night

Posted on July 18, 2011 by TBRG| 2 Comments

Title: Red Night

Series: Chronicles of the Taken bk 1

Author: Michelle Callahan

Genre: Paranormal/Time Travel

Stolen from Death… Slaves to the gods…Given incredible gifts… Dark passions…and Impossible odds. They are The Taken

When Alexa is Taken from her home and sent through time her orders are clear, to stop the “Red Death” from escaping its laboratory prison and killing billions of people. Able to bend light and walk unseen among us, she has four days to find and annihilate all traces of the virus. No sacrifice is too great if she can prevent the horrible events of the Red Night, even if it means eliminating the sexy scientist destined to destroy the world.

Luke Harrison created a monster then locked it away. But destiny, greed and betrayal will collide to unleash it. Now Luke must find a way to cheat death and save the sassy temptress sent to kill him. Everyone is keeping secrets and choices must be made. Unfortunately for Alexa and Luke, the price of trusting another, or falling in love, are much too high…

Okay I am going to put this out there before I even start this review. I love Michelle. She has to be one of the funnest people I have ever met and I absolutely loved hanging out with her at RomCon last year and can hardly wait to hang with her again this year.

From the moment that this book began I was hooked. It is unlike anything I have read lately and I found that really refreshing.

Alexa has always known her destiny and that she would one day have a mission what she didn’t realize was that the man that she is sent to eliminate is her destined mate. Luke has always known who his future was going to be spent with as he has dreamed of her every night from the time that was sixteen.

Luke and Alexa worked for me so well on so many levels. They are both strong and capable characters by themselves. However when they work together and open up to each other they are so much better. And the sexual tension is just the right amount.

This is a really quick read as it is a novella but it sets up the premise for the series beautifully and leaves you wanting more of this series. The action is non-stop and the chemistry between Alexa and Luke is fun to watch.

If you are looking for a fun new author than you can’t go wrong with Michelle.

Grade A

You can purchase the book here

Posted in Review

Tagged Chronicles of the Taken Series, Grade A, Michelle Callahan, Reviewed by Heather

WoW Sunday

Posted on July 17, 2011 by TBRG| Leave a comment

This week-end I was able to reconnect with 2 of my high school best friends. It was an awesome time. It has been almost twenty years since I have seen them. For a few hours I wasn’t a 36 year old wife and mom, I was that seventeen year old girl again. The thing that I loved was that it didn’t matter how long it has been since we have seen each other we fell back into those friendships. That is the great thing about good friendships, it doesn’t matter how long it has been since you see each other you fall back into those friendships as if no time had lapsed.

Posted in WOW Sunday

Tagged WOW Sunday

Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Posted on July 15, 2011 by TBRG| 2 Comments

Title: Retribution

Series: Dark-Hunter bk 23

Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon

Genre: Paranormal

Harm no human…

A hired gunslinger, William Jessup Brady lived his life with one foot in the grave. He believed that every life had a price. Until the day when he finally found a reason to live. In one single act of brutal betrayal, he lost everything, including his life. Brought back by a Greek goddess to be one of her Dark-Hunters, he gave his immortal soul for vengeance and swore he’d spend eternity protecting the humans he’d once considered prey.

Orphaned as a toddler, Abigail Yager was taken in by a family of vampires and raised on one belief—Dark-Hunters are the evil who prey on both their people and mankind, and they must all be destroyed. While protecting her adoptive race, she has spent her life eliminating the Dark-Hunters and training for the day when she meeting the man who killed her family: Jess Brady.

A gun in the hand is worth two in the holster…

Jess has been charged with finding and terminating the creature who’s assassinating Dark-Hunters. The last thing he expects to find is a human face behind the killings, but when that face bears a striking resemblance to the one who murdered him centuries ago, he knows something evil is going on. He also knows he’s not the one who killed her parents. But Abigail refuses to believe the truth and is determined to see him dead once and for all.

Brought together by an angry god and chased by ancient enemies out to kill them both, they must find a way to overcome their mutual hatred or watch as one of the darkest of powers rises and kills both the races they’ve sworn to protect.

I have to say that I did some serious stalking to get a review copy of this book and I am so glad that I did. I used to be the kind of fan that would rush to the bookstore the day that a book was released to get it, but for some reason I stopped. I don’t know why. Then I found out about this book and I new that I would jumping back on that bandwagon as it was about Sundown Brady. Now if you have read this every book in this series you know that the only person that Z (Dance with the Devil) considered a friend was Sundown, and he helped Z keep Astrid safe. There is also the running joke about some of the squires and hunters trying to figure out how he got the name Sundown, this was mentioned in a couple of books.

So I started my campaign to get this book and let me tell you I almost shouted out loud at work when I was informed that I had gotten the review copy. I then waited in anticipation of the day it would come. So when Mel called the other day and said that I might want to stop by the house and pick up something that came in the mail I didn’t even hesitate I went straight there after work.

For the last two days I have been consumed by this book and reading it. As soon as I started reading it I remembered why I loved this series so much. It is the characters. They have depth, are snarky, and love to banter while they are going to into battle about the dumbest things. The nice thing about this book is that if you haven’t read the last couple of books you are okay. The only books that you need to have read is Devil May Cry (Sin and Katya) and Acheron.

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SOME SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW BUT I WILL TRY MY BEST NOT WRITE THEM

I have always been intrigued with Sundown first of all he was a gunslinger and I absolutely love wild west romances where the hero is a former gunslinger, he is also a Native American, (this isn’t revealed until this book however), I also love romances where the hero is Native American. When he thinks back on his mortal (something he prefers not to do) it was a really crappy mortal life. The only good thing about it was Mahtilda.

When he and Ren (other on of those mysterious Dark-hunters) are transfered to Vegas he can feel something coming and he isn’t exactly sure what. Then Z, any book that has that bad-ass in it is just plan good, shows up to give him a rather cryptic message about what is coming and why Ash can’t come help, and why he can’t stay to help, and with what is coming..a)Tory is in labor, yes you read that right Ash and Tory are having a baby and b) Z can’t go into another Pantheon’s territory during a battle for that pantheon.

This leaves him rather unsettled but off he goes to do battle with the Damions, and he meets the new breed of them. Oh and to find the person that is killing Dark-Hunters

Angela has hated Sundown ever since he killed her parents in a very brutal murder. Ever since then she has trained and worked towards the time when she will be ale to kill him. So when the trap is laid and her and her friends ambush Sundown she is all set to kill him. That is until he knocks her out and escapes with her.

When she wakes up in Sundown’s house the world that she knew and the truths that she believed came crashing down around and she is faced with the consequences of her actions and the fact that because of them she may well have brought on the next Apocolypse. Of course being a woman she needs to find out the truth for herself and at the first opportunity she escapes and heads home.

Where she discovers that she had been lied to her entire life and now has to face a new reality. One where Sundown isn’t her enemy but the other half of her soul, and that her sacrifice is the only thing that will stop what she started.

One of the things that I liked about this book was the legends and pantheon in this book. They are all about balance in the universe. As the story unfolds you find out that there is more to the story of Sundown and Angela and their past. Then there is the bad guy Coyote and his relationship to Ren. Oh and don’t let me forget about Sasha. In a fit of anger at Angela he reveals somethings about his past that we never knew before.

Okay so I decided no spoilers because I think it will take away some of the magic of this book. Because this book is magic in the way that it completely swept me away into the story. I was completely invested in their race to stop what Angela had been tricked into doing, and how she and Sundown would finally be allowed to be together.

There is a bonus scene at the end of the book that has absolutely nothing to do with Sundown and Angela. It is the scene where Tory deliver’s her baby. It is a very gut wrenching and emotional scene with a surprise heroine. It was a very fitting way to end the book I thought.

If you are a fan of this series you won’t want to skip this book. I know I am glad that I didn’t.

Grade A

Other books in this series…

Please visit www.sherrilynkenyon.com for the complete list

Posted in Review

Tagged Dark-Hunter Series, Grade A, Reviewed by Heather, Sherrilyn Kenyon

Daring

Posted on July 14, 2011 by TBRG| Leave a comment

Title: Daring

Series: A-Tak (e-novella) this book comes between books 3 and 4

Author: Dee Davis

Genre:Contemporary Romantic Suspense

As the former medical officer for A-Tac, an elite CIA unit masquerading as faculty at an Ivy League college, Lara Prescott saved many lives. But the memory of the one person she couldn’tsave has brought her back into harm’s way—and into the sights of a formidable adversary . . .

NOWHERE IS SAFE

Lara thought working a world away would heal her. Yet volunteering to treat the sick and injured in revolution-torn central Africa can’t stop the shattering memories of losing the man she loved. A night with sexy security officer Rafe Winters seems the perfect temporary escape—until insurgents attack her clinic and Rafe becomes her only way to survive . . .

Rafe knows all too well that this beautiful young doctor is the insurgents’ real target: her knowledge of America’s espionage system makes her a valuable prize. Helping her flee jeopardizes his hidden agenda—but her unexpected trust in him sparks a desire to protect that he can’t ignore. Now as their merciless pursuers close in, Rafe and Lara’s only chance for escape will put everything they’ve sworn to protect—and their newfound love—on the line . . .

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book as I had enjoyed but not loved the other books in this series. I have to say that I really enjoyed this book. So much that I can’t wait for the next book. I will say this that if you haven’t read the first three books in the series you may be lost in regards to Lara’s past.

When we last saw Lara she was grieving the loss of Jason, the man that she had planned on being with for the rest of her life. It was never explained if they were married or not but I am going to say yes just because I want to J. That was at the end of Desperate Deeds. It has been almost a year since then and she has completely removed herself from that life.

While she isn’t exactly happy she is content with her work in Africa. With the exception of Rafe the local player, her life is getting back on track. Then she loses a patient and Rafe is there to comfort her.

Then all hell breaks loose and she doesn’t know who to trust.

There is a lot in this little novella. And the twists and turns keep coming at Lara. Just when she thinks that she is safe she gets another blow.

In the midst of all this is Rafe who is more than he seems but on which side is he playing? That is the question that plagues Lara throughout the book, and I have to admit me as well. When he tells Lara what he feels is one of the best parts of the book I think.

This is one of those really quick and easy reads. It is perfect to read on your e-reader at the pool (if you dare).

Grade B+

Other Books in the Series

Dark Deceptions

Dangerous Desires

Desperate Deeds

Deep Disclosure (coming in Aug 2011)

Posted in Review

Tagged A-Tak Series, Dee Davis, Grade B, Reviewed by Heather

My Favorite Countess

Posted on July 13, 2011 by TBRG| Leave a comment

My Favorite Countess

Vanessa Kelly

Spirited, stubborn, and entirely irresistible…

She is difficult, demanding, and at times, quite fierce. And Dr. John Blackmore can’t take his eyes off her. The Countess of Randolph is the most striking woman he has ever seen…and the most infuriating patient he has ever tended.

Mired in responsibility, Bathsheba doesn’t have time to convalesce in the country. She should be in London, hunting for a wealthy new lover to pay off her late husband’s vast debts, not dallying with a devastatingly handsome doctor.

But it is only a matter of time until the good doctor and the obstinate countess will have to contend with the sparks that fly between them. Once their bodies surrender, their hearts may follow…

Bathsheba, thought this was an unusual name, needs to find herself a wealthy husband, even though she really does not want to be wed again, her responsibilities are forcing her into this situation. The one person she seems to be attracted to though is John, she knows he is not the one she needs to be feeling any type of feelings for but he seems to have other ideas.

John, who is a man-midwife – interesting occupation at the time, will do whatever is needed to get Bathsheba to marry him. He has his own ways for getting her to agree to be his wife, and the patience of a saint.

I loved watching their relationship unfold. A good combination of give and take while also learning how to trust and rely on one another. We also get to see what is going on with Meredith and Silverton from Mastering the Marquess, they both play an important role in the book.

Have to say, another great one from Vanessa Kelly!

Grade B+

Posted in Historical, Review

Tagged Grade B, My Favorite Countess, Reviewed by Melanie, Vanessa Kelly

RomCon Tuesday…Heather’s thoughts on RomCon

Posted on July 12, 2011 by TBRG| 1 Comment

With less than a month till RomCon I thought that it would cool if Mel and I told you why we love RomCon and will always support it. It was a year and half ago when I got an invite to be a judge in a new award the Readers Crown Award. I mentioned it to Mel and she did some research about it and found out that it was a brand new convention. We loved the concept and the fact that some of our personal favorite authors were going to be there and we were all on board.

When we went last year we didn’t know a single person and had told Michelle and Elaine that we would help out this lead to us hanging with some amazing authors..Julia Quinn, Anna Campbell and Elizabeth Hoyt.

That week-end was one of the best week-ends we have ever had. When we sat down to talk to people we could talk about our favorite books and characters they all know exactly who and what they are talking about, and we had great conversations about them. We hung out in the bar with Lila DiPasqua, Jessa Slade and Delilah Marvelle to name a few…ate dinner with Carly Phillips, Janelle Denison and Erin Kellison.

And then there was the swag…oh the swag, books books and more books. What more can two book lovers want, authors we love, people that speak our language and free books. We were in seventh heaven. When we left that week-end we knew that we would be back.

As soon as the dates were announced for this year I started planning. I informed my family that I would be gone that week-end and then I started preparing. There was a lot of new authors coming that I didn’t know which meant more books to read. I then started talking on twitter about RomCon and how much I was looking forward to it.

This year I am super excited to return because not only are we going to reconnecting with authors that we connected with last year, but also I get to meet in person the people that I have come to know on twitter, get to know new authors and meet new people as well.

When it comes down to I think the reason that I will always support RomCon is because it is a setting where we get to sit around and talk to our favorite authors and like minded readers in a relaxed atmosphere. For as long they are doing this I will be attending.

Posted in RomCon, RomCon Tuesday

Tagged posted by Heather, RomCon 2011, RomCon Tuesday

Savor the Danger + giveaway

Posted on July 11, 2011 by TBRG| 4 Comments

Title: Savor the Danger

Series: Men Who Walk the Edge of Honor bk 3

Author: Lori Foster

Genre: Contemporary

The one woman he couldn’t have was the only woman he desired…

She may be aloof, and more pretty than gorgeous, but Alani Rivers is the kind of woman a hot-blooded mercenary can’t forget, no matter how hard he tries. So when Jackson Savor wakes up next to the naked, sleeping beauty—with no memory of what happened—he knows he’s been drugged… even if Alani doesn’t.

After she was kidnapped, Alani swore she’d never trust another man again. Still, something about this strong, sexy hero with the tender touch makes her want to believe him. As Jackson hunts downs a mysterious intruder, he swears he’ll move heaven and earth to keep Alani safe. But what really happened that night? And will the truth bring them closer than they ever thought possible—or put Alani squarely in harm’s way again?

From the way that Jackson behaved in Trace of Fever I knew that he would be an irreverent hero. A lot like Joe from from Just Say Joe (one of my personal favorite books of Lori’s) and Michael from My Man Michael. Jackson is a perfect mix of Joe and Micheal in his humor and his intensity, which ahs made him one of my top 3 favorite of Lori’s hero.

He has had a thing for Alani for awhile and it drives him nuts that he ca’t remember what happened between them the night where he finally got her in bed. Some of my favorite parts of this book are are when he is trying to tell her what happened between them.

When he asks her in the grocery store if she have him a hummer to get her over her mad I laughed out loud. The rest of hat conversation is just mean on her part but I have to say that Jackson deserved it.

What I liked about this book is that we get to know Jackson and Alani better. We get Alani’s side of what happened when she was kidnapped by the human traffickers. She is a strong woman and now that she has decided that she wants Jackson and her feelings for him she is all in. What she doesn’t count on is the people that are after Jackson and now after her.

Now that Jackson has finally gotten Alani into his bed he should be celebrating, but it appears that it has put her in the crosshairs of someone that is after him. Now he not only has to deal with Alani’s brother dealing with him and Alani, but Arizona, and someone that is trying to kill him.

There wasn’t anything I didn’t like about this book. The interactions between all the characters was at times funny, and other times intense. The dialogue was probably the thing that I loved the most about this book. The interaction between Jackson and Alani spoke of a couple that had known each other a while and had finally decided to act on the feelings that they had for each other, which is where us the reader came into the relationship.

There is also a secondary relationship that we see start to develop between the mysterious Arizona and a bounty hunter Spencer. We just get the beginnings of this potential relationship and it sets up for the next book in the series which is Arizona’s book. Just from what we get in this book I am excited to read this book.

If you have read the other books in this series then you won’t want to miss this book as I think it is the best book in the series so far.

Grade A

**Now here is the really good part we have a copy of When You Dare, Without a Trace and Savor the Danger to one lucky commenter. All you have to do is tell us what makes you love a male character like Dare, Trace and Jackson. Open to US only. Contest ends Friday July 15th.***

Other books in this Series

The Guy Next Door (Anthology)

When You Dare

Without a Trace

The Perfect Storm (coming 2012)

Posted in Giveaway, Review

Tagged Giveaway, Grade A, Lori Foster, Men Who Walk the Edge Series, Reviewed by Heather

WoW Sunday

Posted on July 10, 2011 by TBRG| Leave a comment

The other day I had Mat in the car with me and we were talking about something that we are thinking about doing and he didn’t like it and no lie this is exactly what he said..

Well that is just shitty, it is shit shit shitty…

The ironic part of this is that he hates swearing and gets on my case every time I swear.

Posted in WOW Sunday

Tagged WOW Sunday

With No Remorse

Posted on July 8, 2011 by TBRG| 1 Comment

Title: With No Remorse

Series: Black Ops Inc. bk 6

Author: Cindy Gerard

His quiet vacation in the Peruvian Andes turns deadly when a Black Ops, Inc. operative rescues a stunning stranger from a mysterious train robbery and discovers she’s the target of a vengeful manhunt.

A DANGEROUS MAN
For Luke Colter, down time is an illusion. He should know better than to ever leave his gun behind. Especially since he risks his life to save world-famous supermodel Valentina.

A REBELLIOUS WOMAN
Val thought traveling incognito through the mountains would be the perfect cure for her bruised heart . . . until someone tries to kill her. Without knowing who is after her—and why—does she dare trust her irresistible protector?

A PERILOUS MISSION THAT COULD SEAL THEIR FATE
Luke’s elite military training offers little defense against his feelings for Val. When his BOI team links her ruthless enemy to the cutthroat global weapons trade—and to a man from her troubled past—he’ll do anything to save her. So when Val offers herself as bait, will he make the right call . . . or surrender to the hold she has on his heart?

I have read every single book in this series and I liked each of them, but there is has always been one character that I have liked more than the other guys, and that was Luke. When I got Luke’s book I was so afraid that I wouldn’t like it that I left it on my counter for a couple of weeks before I finally picked it up.

I absolutely LOVED this book! The things that both Luke and Val said at the beginning of each chapter were awesome. Here are some of my favorites…

Luke – Stick a Fork in him he was done

Luke was going insane…break-out-the-anti-psychotic-drugs, dust-off-the lobotomy-kits and lace-up-the-straightjackets-insane

Vas was past caring that she was one note shy of a full-blown hysteria opera

Okay back to the characters..

When Luke and Val met they are both at a crossroads in their lives. Trying to figure out how to go on as they both have been dealing with some personal demons. Then someone tries to kill Val (so they think) and Luke happens to be right there and his training kicks in full force.

As Luke and Val race across Peru outrunning the bad guys they have to face their fears and learn how to re-enter their lives.

Luke has been a member of BOI since the beginning and has the nickname Doc, he is a highly trained killing machine that is also their medic. He has also been in full blown lust with Val since he was a teen-ager and saw her on a billboard. Having her close at hand is a dream come true.

Val is super model. She has no clue why someone would try and kill her. She has been traveling in disguise in a bid to reclaim herself after the mess of her divorce. When she meets Luke she is very gun shy about almost everything. However she is in serious trouble and Luke is the only one that is able to help her.

The issues that these two have are very believable. I completely understood and empathized with the emotions of both of them, and the decisions that they made before they had all the facts of who and why someone is trying to kill Val.

The action is non-stop and the dialogue is one of my favorite parts of this, both the verbal and the internal dialogue.

Then there is the cliff hanger. It begins when they are looking to find out why someone is trying to kill Val and deals with Sierre Leone. If you have this series from the beginning you know that that is where everything happened to make them join Nate in the BOI’s. As Cindy is close friends with my other favorite black ops author Tara Janzen and we all know what happened in THAT series my mind immediately started racing and hasn’t stopped. So now I can’t wait for the next and final book in this series so that I can find out what happened in the cliff hanger.

If you love awesome dialogue, hot former SEAL’s, steamy sexual tension and lots of non-stop action then you will not want to miss this book. Even though it is a part of a series it can be read as a stand alone book.

Grade A

Other books in this series…