Category Archives: Part of a Series

Part of a Series, Review, short story, Standalone

#review #partofaseries #shortstory Out of Luck in the Outback (The Traveling Calvert Sisters 4) by Tori Ross

Leave a comment

Ava Calvert thinks she’s found her dream gig as a budget travel writer until her boss tells her that her stories are bland and that she needs real travel experience if she wants to keep her job. When he offers her the trip of a lifetime to Australia to work on a story about traveling on a budget, Ava jumps at the chance for real experience.

While at a bed and breakfast in Sydney, Ava catches Maddox Brewster stealing her oatmeal packet. When he sees that Ava’s frustrated with trying to enjoy Sydney on a budget, Maddox asks Ava to come to the center of the country for a weekend to show her that they can enjoy Australia without breaking the bank.

But there’s more to Maddox than meets the eye.

This book is the fourth book in the Traveling Calvert Sisters series but can be read as a standalone.

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/123192820-out-of-luck-in-the-outback

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BXLWT7ZZ?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tkin_3&storeType=ebooks&qid=1740504023&sr=8-1

Review by Twinsie Dee

i bought this book and here is my honest review

Ava Calvert works in Chicago at a travel budget magazine but never really traveled because life isn’t cheap. And her boss can totally tell that within her articles and wants her to work on it just doing research isn’t enough he wanted her to experience travel, so he sends her on a mission, to the land down under and wants her to just go with no plans only so much money per day for meals and just to have fun. Culture shock is real for Ava, but she meets another American and her just might be able to help her and make her trip better than she ever expected.

Tori Ross is an international bestselling, Amazon bestselling, and Apple Top 100 author. Her book, The Cuffing Season Contract, won the National Indie Excellence Award for romantic comedy, and she’s written several shorts, novellas, full-length books, and serials. She lives with her family and two rescue dogs in the Midwest.

Comedy, Part of a Series, Review, short story

#review #partofaseries #shortstory Christmas on the Cruise Ship (the Traveling Calvert Sisters 3)

Leave a comment

Samantha Calvert is tired of her hospitality job at a chain hotel. When a man visits her hotel and tells her he owns a cruise ship company in need of a temporary cruise director, she jumps at the chance to spend the holiday at sea. But running a cruise ship isn’t so easy with a twisted ankle and a flasher running amok.

Cooper Rax isn’t used to being bossed around by a strong woman that gives as well as she takes. He’s arrogant, patronizing, and doesn’t take direction well. Even worse, he’s infuriatingly handsome, and Samantha can’t help but feel there’s more to him than meets the eye.

When the ship gets stranded in Jamaica, Cooper and Samantha have to work together to keep the guests happy…and it will be a true Christmas miracle if they can get along.

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60037742-christmas-on-the-cruise-ship

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09QLH33SF?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tkin_2&storeType=ebooks&qid=1740504023&sr=8-1

Review by Twinsie Dee

i bought this book here is my honest review

Samantha Calvert over worked, barely takes a long vacation was asked by a hotel guest asked if she would want to work on his cruise ship and with all her vacation time built up, she figured why not. Packed and ready to hit the open ocean, on her way another employee ran into her causing her to twist her ankle, ice from the hot bartender who caught her eye but drove Samantha absolutely insane. Will she be able to put up with him for the week while doing a good job or will he work his way into her heart and pants and can that happen while trying to catch a flasher onboard showing off his silver bells. another hilarious adventure with a Calvert sister.

Tori Ross is an international bestselling, Amazon bestselling, and Apple Top 100 author. Her book, The Cuffing Season Contract, won the National Indie Excellence Award for romantic comedy, and she’s written several shorts, novellas, full-length books, and serials. She lives with her family and two rescue dogs in the Midwest.

2nd Chance, Part of a Series, short story, Standalone, Writers on the River Attending Author, YA

#wotr #attendingauthor #YA Dear Phoebe ( Love Notes Season2 book1) by Danielle Keil

Leave a comment

Everyone at Ryder High knows what it means to have a teal envelope taped to their locker on the first day of the month.

The envelope is part of a tradition called the Secret Admirers, something the students go crazy for.

After tragedy struck, no one thought there would be an admirer this month.

However, a little late, a teal envelope shows up on Phoebe Calloway’s locker.

And with it, an ongoing playlist to use as clues toward the admirer’s identity.

It’s music to Phoebe’s ears—especially since music is her biggest passion. But she soon finds out it’s not the melody that’s important in the songs her admirer chose.

It’s the lyrics.

As the songs keep coming, she’s close to figuring out who he is—but is she prepared for the actual reveal?

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/223952665-dear-phoebe

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Phoebe-Love-Notes-Season-ebook/dp/B0DTY5X32M/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=R7WT5KHKMNHZ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.02EdpRYSxjCjS2j4EaUG4O2wF3zsUrWTTsz_Dm_vNYLY6Y9uRzBn9KLUp4Oqc2zppJlejfEMQpJpQsC2wqRI-Z00OZY6t_0BGY-aa9zL_oXq3oaaKSCkZHW9FEESBuLcfmSm88Igsnp_BmYLKv7l_aVWC4df5Pt1hYWXL6rh71fEJc19ClxMU4Lvfw0KPpnAW2_21HGZV6SwwVWTda8zhQyg2sy1H0C6C2kdtJrEs58.RRuI6WPBZk4h0tnXr4h4pGNEARMfVyOYgMpRBUhF9nE&dib_tag=se&keywords=danielle+keil&qid=1739459010&sprefix=danielle+keil%2Caps%2C263&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

Review by Twinsie Dee

i was given this book by the author here is my honest review

New Year, new group of kids to walk the halls of Ryder High. But this year we start with them at the cemetery mourning the loss of a beloved member of Ryder High, and everyone getting a teal envelope explaining the start of the running tradition at the school. the next day only one envelope was seen on Phoebe’s locker but liked every month Phoebe wonders why her, why was she picked she stayed to herself and spent extra time in the music booth perfecting her tapes for college. Well ready or not this guy took the saying “when words fail music speaks” for her clues. Will Phoebe be shocked, surprised, excited or not thrilled when her month is up, and he is revealed. Other than making me cry in the first 3 pages, this was another amazing month with a great story that makes you smile in the end.

Danielle Keil grew up and spent the majority of her life in the Chicagoland area. A recent transplant, she is enjoying the Mississippi life, especially the pool in her backyard.
Danielle is happily married for over 10 years, and has two young children, a daughter and a son, who are exact replicas of her and her husband.

Danielle’s love language is gifts, her Ennegram is a 9w1, and she loves everything purple.
The way to her heart is through coffee, chocolate and tacos (extra guac).

Part of a Series, short story, Writers on the River Attending Author, YA

#wotr #attendingauthor #partofaseries #YA You’re Invited (Love Notes 11) by Danielle Keil

Leave a comment

Everyone at Ryder High knows what it means to have a teal envelope taped to your locker on the first day of the month.
But when a teal envelope arrives to McKinnon’s house mid-December, it draws nothing but confusion.
Soon, she finds out everyone who participated in the Secret Admirer program over the last ten months also received a teal envelope.
But inside is not a letter. It’s a ticket.
All the chosen girls and their admirers have been invited to a New Year’s Eve masquerade party and encouraged to dress in couple’s costumes.
But who is putting on this party and why?
Will McKinnon and her friends finally get the answers they’ve been waiting for?

This is an extended series epilogue, and only meant to be read after all ten Love Notes books!! Do not read if you have not finished the entire series.

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75435287-you-re-invited

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BRFCTCK9?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tkin_10&storeType=ebooks&qid=1739459010&sr=8-12

Review by Twinsie Dee

i bought this book and here is my honest review

When all the past years girls and their guys got a new teal envelope, they were all very confused, but these were actually ones from the mutual party and they each got a ticked for a masquerade party. So, each couple picked out their costumes and met at the location at the said time but once they secret was revealed of why they were really there the bond between them grew even stronger. the teal envelope is a game at Ryder High that happens each year making people happy and it all started with the heart of never wanting to let love get away and a teal envelope.

Danielle Keil grew up and spent the majority of her life in the Chicagoland area. A recent transplant, she is enjoying the Mississippi life, especially the pool in her backyard.
Danielle is happily married for over 10 years, and has two young children, a daughter and a son, who are exact replicas of her and her husband.

Danielle’s love language is gifts, her Ennegram is a 9w1, and she loves everything purple.
The way to her heart is through coffee, chocolate and tacos (extra guac).

2nd Chance, Part of a Series, Standalone, Writers on the River Attending Author, YA

#wotr #attendingauthor #partofaseries #YA Dear Max (Love Notes 10) by Danielle Keil

Leave a comment

Everyone at Ryder High knows what it means to have a teal envelope taped to their locker on the first of the month.
This month is different.
This month belongs to Max Newman. Prankster, jokester, overall funny guy. And the first student to ever receive a teal envelope from a girl.
The Secret Admirers organization switched things up. They allowed a girl to be the admirer, and Max is about to make history.
One problem—he only has three weeks to complete an entire bingo board. Some of the things on it are out of his control. Some things are right up his alley, though, like serenading the principal and pranking his best friend.
Will Max finish the bingo board and get the reveal location?
Or will he become the first guy at Ryder High to fail his challenge?

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63898220-dear-max

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BNPC42GP?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tkin_9&storeType=ebooks&qid=1739459010&sr=8-12

Review by Twinsie Dee

i bought this book and here is my honest review

Dear Max, the laugh of Ryder High this month it’s your chance to shine brighter then you already do. One lovely lady picked you to forever change the history with our game, so have fun, enjoy and hope you are happy at the end of these 3 weeks. Having a teal envelope go to a guy indeed of a girl was out of the normal but it’s still fun for all involved. Max was thrilled about his envelope, his ego inflated just a bit more, and then he found out he only had 3 weeks to blackout his bingo board and get his clues. But Max hopes that the girl behind this month is the one who got away who he has never stopped loving, but he can’t get his hopes up incase it’s not her. Omg I loved Max’s month laughing so hard, enjoy all that he was giving defiantly a great one to end this series.

Danielle Keil grew up and spent the majority of her life in the Chicagoland area. A recent transplant, she is enjoying the Mississippi life, especially the pool in her backyard.
Danielle is happily married for over 10 years, and has two young children, a daughter and a son, who are exact replicas of her and her husband.

Danielle’s love language is gifts, her Ennegram is a 9w1, and she loves everything purple.
The way to her heart is through coffee, chocolate and tacos (extra guac).

Part of a Series, short story, Standalone, Writers on the River Attending Author, YA

#wotr #attendingauthor #partofseries #YA Dear Mya (Love Notes 9) by Danielle Keil

Leave a comment

Everyone at Ryder High knows what it means to have a teal envelope taped to their locker on the first day of the month.

Mya Burton received not only one envelope, but two.

The second envelope held a change to the Secret Admirer program— if she agreed, Mya would be the first girl to have two Secret Admirers.

It had never been done before. In each clue, the boys would both answer the same basic questions, followed by writing a short, non-identifying letter to Mya.

At the end of the month, she would have to choose just one without knowing who he really is.

But before she can, a shakeup hits the school. A hater slanders the game, leaving Mya feeling defeated and the other chosen girls needing to stick together.

Will Mya be able to finish her month on a happy note?

And will her blind decision be the best one for her?

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63186798-dear-mya

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BL26BC48?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tkin_8&storeType=ebooks&qid=1739459010&sr=8-12

Review by Twinsie Dee

i bought this book here is my honest review

Back in the halls of Ryder High and the school play is right around the corner. Mya is already stressed out with rehearsals and normal high school things, that’s when she’s sees the famous teal envelope on her locker, she was shocked why would anyone want to be her admirer. She wasnt that girl but she was now that girl, but this month was different Mya had not one but two guys that had put her name down and so with a new set of rules and guidelines for the month Mya makes history at Ryder. 2 guys 1 girl only to fall in love with 1 guy words will Mya be shocked with who she chooses or will she not be able to make a choice.

Danielle Keil grew up and spent the majority of her life in the Chicagoland area. A recent transplant, she is enjoying the Mississippi life, especially the pool in her backyard.
Danielle is happily married for over 10 years, and has two young children, a daughter and a son, who are exact replicas of her and her husband.

Danielle’s love language is gifts, her Ennegram is a 9w1, and she loves everything purple.
The way to her heart is through coffee, chocolate and tacos (extra guac).

Enemies to Lovers, Mystery, Part of a Series, Review, Romantic Suspense, Suspense, Thriller, Writers on the River Attending Author

#WOTR25 #Review – Seek (Project Xol #1) by Amabel Daniels/Audrey Kaye

Leave a comment



Cassidy is determined to find her mother at any cost…

It’s been months since Cassidy Shaw has heard from her mother, Rosa, a world-renown scientist. When she does, it’s in the form of an urgent edict to retrieve a key. Arriving at Rosa’s apartment in Cincinnati, Cassidy encounters strangers. One man who seems determined to silence her. The other, could he be her savior?

Luke Dixon enters the fray, believing his neighbor is being attacked. Never one to ignore someone in distress, he’s then shocked to realize he’s the one needing rescue. Bound together through violence, Cassidy and Luke must come to trust each other as they embark on a search, armed only with the key and Rosa’s cryptic directions. It’s a journey with unexpected answers and decades-old research. A search with more questions…and a lethal enemy who returns when least expected.

Seek is the first book in the thrilling Project Xol series. If you like gripping novels about seeking justice, entangled lead characters, and twisting outcomes, then you’ll love this romantic suspense series from top-selling author Audrey Kaye!

Goodreads

Amazon

Review by Twinsie Kelly

Notting Hill to Mission Impossible overnight! Holy OMG!

Reader Beware: This story ends with a major cliffhanger. I recommend being ready to dive right into the next book.

I could NOT put this book down! There was never a dull moment from the very beginning right to the very end. I started it, turned the page, it was over, I was purchasing the next in the series. Seriously, it was that good!

Cassidy is adopted. She and her mother are not super close. As both women are very independent, when Cassidy receives a letter in the mail from her mother stating, “I need your help,” it scares her deep. This letter puts so many things into motion. She is almost strangled to death and Luke saves her! Oh, and Luke. What can I say about Luke. I am still trying to figure out what he did in his past life, but he is as chivalrous as they come. However, he is definitely atoning for something. These two have a chemistry that is super intense.

These two end up needing one another more than each of them care to like at the beginning but cannot stay away from each other. The constant facing of fears can be exhausting for these two but the spiking of their heartrates and anxiety is also met with the mellowing crash of realizing survival is possible.

Seek is action packed with a lot of suspense and danger. But things are just starting to heat up!

 

Profile avatar for Audrey Kaye

Born and raised in Northwest Ohio, Audrey Kaye writes romantic suspense featuring strong, stubborn women and the men who can’t help but fall in love with them. Audrey lives with her husband, three daughters, and many pets, and has previously published under the name of Amabel Daniels. Her first novel, Better Than the Best, was written in 2015, and it’s been a wild ride of imagining the improbable ever since!

 



Apocalyptic, Paranormal, Part of a Series, Review, Sci Fi, Suspense, Vampire, Writers on the River Attending Author

#WOTR25 #Review – Reign of Blood (The Vampires of Vegas Book 1) by Alexia Purdy

Leave a comment

“Never tease anything that wants to eat you. My name is April Tate and my blood is the new gold. Vampires and hybrids have overrun my world, once vibrant with life, but now a graveyard of death shrouded in shadows. I fight to survive; I fight for my mother and brother. The journey is full of turns that I am quite unprepared for. And I’m just hoping to make it to the next Vegas sunrise…”In a post-apocalyptic world, a viral epidemic has wiped out most of the earth’s population, leaving behind few humans but untold numbers of mutated vampires. April is a seventeen-year-old girl who lives in the remains of Las Vegas one year after the outbreak. She has become a ferocious vampire killer and after her family is abducted, she goes searching for them. What she finds is a new breed of vampire, unlike any she has seen before. Unsure of whom she can trust, she discovers that her view of the world is not as black and white as she once thought, and she’s willing to bend the rules to rescue her family. But in trying to save them, she may only succeed in bringing her fragile world crashing down around her.

Goodreads

Amazon

Review by Twinsie Kelly

Ok, so, I am a sucker for post-apocalyptic, dystopian, end of the world, zombies, vampires, etc. Now this series, it mixes post-apocalyptic and vamps….I just had to read it!

When the world around you has become a graveyard and everything has been taken away from you, what do you have to live for? April is trying to live. She is a 17-year-old who has to grow up really fast and lives for her mother and brother. When they are abducted, she just has to find them.

It has been a year since a virus outbreak that didn’t cause zombies but there was an outbreak of feral vampires. I have to be honest and eyerolled a bit here because I was hoping for something a bit more original instead of a virus. However, I continued. While April is out searching for her family and during one of her rage killings of feral vampires, she is introduced to a hybrid vampire. Ultimately, an entire hive of hybrid vampires. Turns out that that she has something that this hive needs, but she also needs this hive to help her find her family. A little tit for tat. Nothing wrong with that, right? While this part of the story is unfolding, we end up getting some cliché’ vampire vibes (forever mating, being able to walk in sunlight, etc.) and I had to hide another slight eyeroll. I had a bit of problem that a year has gone by and April and her family never ran into the hybrids in Las Vegas while foraging.

While some of these things bothered me during the story, the writing was done very well. Even though some of it wasn’t as original as I had hoped, there is a lot of great writing and story telling that keeps you turning the pages. The characters are well developed and April is extremely easy to identify with. Her internal struggle is very real. If placed in a similar position, I don’t know if many people could mentally handle the situation. There is quite the plot twist that is keeping me hanging on and I do need to continue to find out what happens. I am also invested in her love interest *wags eyebrows*!

Alexia Purdy profile image

Alexia is a USA Today Bestselling author who currently lives in Las Vegas and loves spending every free moment writing or hanging out with her four rambunctious kids. Writing is the ultimate getaway for her since she’s always lost in her head. She is best known for her award-winning Reign of Blood series, and A Dark Faerie Tale Series.

Sign up for email updates and exclusive giveaways: http://smarturl.it/AlexiaPurdyNews

Follow links: https://linktr.ee/alexiapurdy

Apocalyptic, Novella, Paranormal, Part of a Series, Review, Sci Fi, Suspense, Vampire, Writers on the River Attending Author

#WOTR25 #Review – Resonant (The Vampires of Vegas Prequel) by Alexis Purdy

Leave a comment

Surviving is worse than death…

As the first days of the end of humanity tumble across the city of Las Vegas in the form of an overwhelming viral infection, turning almost everyone into vampire-like creatures, April Tate will find out what it really means to survive. What does it take to make it out alive in a place where everything is but a withered echo of its former self, and death does not come willingly?

Goodreads

Amazon

Review by Twinsie Kelly

I love Prequels! Especially after you get invested with the main character and just NEED to see what the heck they went through at the beginning. However, in this instance, I started with the prequel. Sometimes, this is a big no no because you are just not committed to the story yet. Well, Alexia Purdy is a new to me author and I am now invested in this story. I need to know what craziness April and her family are about to get into. APOCALYPTIC VAMPIRES! I read this in less than an hour and was so bummed that the story was over. But the best part is, I get to dive right into Reign of Blood like, RIGHT NOW! See ya on the flip side!

Alexia Purdy profile image

Alexia is a USA Today Bestselling author who currently lives in Las Vegas and loves spending every free moment writing or hanging out with her four rambunctious kids. Writing is the ultimate getaway for her since she’s always lost in her head. She is best known for her award-winning Reign of Blood series, and A Dark Faerie Tale Series.

Sign up for email updates and exclusive giveaways: http://smarturl.it/AlexiaPurdyNews

Follow links: https://linktr.ee/alexiapurdy

Fantasy, Part of a Series, Review, Sci Fi

#Review #GhostShip – Hull and Fire (The Wards of Minera Book 1) by James W. Cutter

Leave a comment


Levy Tren-Ulitese—Lor of the Land and gentleman of high society—is awoken in the early hours of the morning for an emergency: his father’s ship, missing for nine years now, has reappeared near the mouth of its home harbour entirely bereft of its crew. The expedition to the New World, a place they call ‘Minera’, apparently ended in tragedy. But how did the ship sail itself home? What happened to the crew? And what is the strange, dark artifact found aboard her?

Pushed by internal divisions and outside political forces, Levy and his sister are forced to refit the ship and flee the only city they’ve ever called home. Declared fugitives by their father’s old allies, they assemble a strange crew of the desperate and depraved; a turncoat imperial marine, a man that can manipulate the spirit-lines of the world, a war-hero famed for his supernatural accuracy with the musket, and a mute stow-away with mysterious powers. Together, they will follow in the wake of Levy’s father.

Together they will find a new home on the shores of Minera!

Goodreads

Amazon

Review by Twinsie Kelly

I enjoy finding stories that are truly different. When I read the blurb, I wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting myself into, but I am happy to say that I was completely engrossed by the story from start to finish. As a matter of fact, I finished the book and didn’t realize I finished the book, and that was the point I realized I needed to read more. (Boy that was a mouthful, lol)

There is a LOT going on in Hull and Fire with many complex characters and with pretty elaborate world building going on. One of my only real issues with the story itself is that there are many POVs that this story is told from. It was a little tough trying to keep everyone straight at first. But once I got into a groove, I couldn’t put the book down.

There are mysterious forces at work. A lot of lies and a lot of omissions happening at the same time. When everyone starts to turn on Levy and his kind, he takes things into his own hands. Instead of trying to change the people’s minds and face what can certainly be an awful outcome for his family, he defies the odds and moves on to a new world. It’s a compelling story that had me absolutely captivated. I look forward to finding out what happens next!

Pssst, the ghost ship is only going to be the beginning. It has to be. It was an incredible twist at the end to tie in one of the current characters with Levy’s father, the captain of the ghost ship! Kudos to the author!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

James W. Cutter profile image

James W. Cutter began writing at a young age, with a craft that was forged in the snows of Northern Ontario, quenched in the swells of the Pacific, and tempered by the misty rainforests of British Columbia.

James interrupts his writing habit with a day job. He writes from an undisclosed, cougar-free location on Vancouver Island, Canada.