Category Archives: Contemp. Romance

#WOTR20 – #Review – The Heartbreaker by Tricia Andersen

The Heartbreaker

Can town librarian Lily Dixon and MMA bad boy Reese Cooper keep their love affair a secret in small town Iowa? Braden, Iowa is the last place on earth Reese Cooper wanted to be but a devastating injury in the octagon forces the MMA fighter back to the small town he once called home. He barely steps foot on Main Street before he is reunited with Lily Dixon, the town librarian and the girl who possessed his heart since they were in kindergarten. Every day in Braden is the same for Lily Dixon. That is until Reese Cooper walks back into her life. With his chiseled, perfect body and dreamy blue eyes, he steals her heart just like he did when they were kids. His kisses, his touch are far better than any fantasy she’s ever had about him. Is she willing to risk everything when her preacher father finds out about her love affair with the town bad boy? And what will happen when Reese goes back to Vegas, leaving her alone in Braden without him?


Goodreads


Amazon

Extremely sweet with a helluva happy ending! I listened to this in audiobook. The narrator was good and kept the story moving with a great flow. So this sounds sort of cliche’. Sweet and meek librarian and the bad boy MMA fighter falls in love. Reese returns home from Vegas for therapy and runs into Lily, the town librarian. Right from jump the tension between these two is high. The problem is, her father is the pastor and has forbidden her to see Reese. Naturally they can’t stay away from each other and this makes the angst go through the roof. Reese has so much potential to stay in Braden and has all but promised Lily he will stay when one day, BOOM! He has to go back to Vegas for an unexpected fight. He isn’t able to talk, let alone explain why he has to leave to Lily before he has to go. Well, Lily has something she needs to tell him too but can’t bring herself to talk to him because she is heartbroken. So now we have some really big secrets being held back. So, I know I already said there is a HEA, and it is a beautiful HEA, but I had a little bit of a hard time with the way Lily acted when Reese took off. She seemed to be a stronger girl, or I was hoping for that, but I was a little turned off by her near the end of the book. However, if you are looking for a sweet, small town romance with a gorgeous HEA, this is a great book for that and I highly recommend it!

Tricia Andersen

#WOTR20 #5YearFamily #AudioReview #Family #SpinOff – Love and Pancakes (Rockland Falls #1) by Lacey Black

Love and Pancakes

Marissa Grayson’s dream went up in smoke. A devastating fire has ripped apart her family’s bed and breakfast, leaving her off-kilter and scrambling to repair the damage. What she doesn’t need, or have time for, is Rhenn Burleski. Sexy, confident, and dangerous to her heart. A man who clearly knows his way around the female body and will leave the moment the sheets start to cool. Yet that doesn’t stop her from making a deal with the devil himself.

Work hard, play harder. That’s Rhenn’s life motto. An electrician by day, Rhenn turns it up at night, always with a different lady friend in tow. He makes sure they know the score: he’s not looking for anything more than one night of fun. However, he knows the second he meets the shy daughter of the bed and breakfast’s owner that his life is never going to be the same. As hard as he tries, he just can’t resist one taste.

What happens when their time is up and Rhenn must leave, returning to his old life? Will they be able to walk away, hearts unscathed, or will their time together prove to be nothing more than a fading memory?

Goodreads 


I received this book from the author but purchased the audio book.

Ok since I am reviewing the audio book I gotta say….HEEEY Rhenn’s narrator.  Holy Sweet Baby Jesus that voice.  Imma tell ya, you will be thanking me for that right off the bat.  I don’t want to know what the narrator really looks like because my mind has his picture juuuuuust right.  LOL  Now I see he does the voice for the other 2 books…….YES is all I can say.

So this is my first Lacey book….yeah yeah I know late to the party like always but ya know what can I say. I have only known her 5 years *Face Palm*

I gotta say I loved the dynamic of quiet and shy but sassy Marissa with Rhenn.  Rhenn is all playa playa who falls for the women who embodies his exact opposite type…ya know, she isn’t an easy whore.  LOL

Marissa is devastated by her family’s business/home fire and is lost because what will they do.  When her long lost family enters the picture, she gets connected to Rhenn who will be doing the family a favor and wiring the house for them.

When Rhenn shows up, he is stunned stupid at the beautiful women he sees but knows she isn’t “his type” and a quick roll won’t be something she is interested in.  When, after getting to know him, she proposes Friends with Benefits while he is in town….he flips out.

I loved seeing them fall but fear telling the other.  They both want more but she fears she isn’t good enough and he is ashamed of his past.  When the two weeks is up and they part, I was a little bit weepy and wanted to kick Rhenn in the balls.

The end of the story is perfect and totally swoon worthy.

I gotta say Emma and Orville KILLED ME in this story.  Marissa’s long-lost aunt and uncle were to inappropriately funny in this book.  I can’t wait for more of them in the rest of the books.  I am kinda giving brother Samuel a look over because I just know the right women or even man could make that anal-retentive ass crumble.  But first up is sexy diva Harper.  I can’t wait to see who tames this wild child!!

Avid reader, writer, mother, and wife! I love to read contemporary romance. Add in a little “spice” or hot guys in uniform pants, and I’m a happy woman. There’s just something about diving into a book and engrossing in the magic of your hero and heroine getting their happily ever after.

#Review – The Golden Pecker by Penelope Bloom

The Golden Pecker

I never planned to tell Andi who I was.
Hell, I never planned to meet her.
But her grandfather’s will changes everything.
That, and the shockingly intimate to-do list he left for us.

Landon

I’ve known about Andi Wainwright my whole life. Until now, I’d done a damn good job of keeping my distance. No photos. No social media.

But that changed when I learned about the old man’s death. I had the misfortune of being his business partner, and now the keys to my future are tangled up in his ridiculous will.

First, I had to personally bring Andi down to his club, The Golden Pecker to show her some mysterious video. I may be in the dark about what’s going on, but I know one thing:

I don’t care what’s on that tape. Nothing is going to change the fact that Andi Wainwright is the enemy.


Goodreads


Amazon

Fun Rom Com with light BDSM, sure. Why not? So, I personally, am not into BDSM but I sure am of the sarcastic sort. When I saw the title of the book and the cover, I one-clicked not really knowing what I was getting myself into. I was pleasantly surprised and actually laughed quite a bit throughout the story. 

“As the saying went, when in The Golden Pecker, do as the peckers do. In this case, Landon was the Pecker King. The peckeriest pecker of all, you could say.”

Andi and her sisters are mourning their grandfather’s death and his will still needs to be read. What they didn’t know was their grandfather has secrets and has stipulations to have the will read. This where Landon comes in. Landon has it in his mind already that Andi is the enemy and that he completely hates her but now he has to escort her to have her portion of the will read. This is where Andi finds out about her grandfather’s secret of owning several BDSM clubs. And now the fun begins. These rules involve Andi and Landon in the club. Landon is very professional and brooding while Andi has a defense mechanism of being snarky and sarcastic at all the right, and wrong, moments. Pairing these together brings a ton of fun into this light BDSM world. The chemistry between the two are great while they are unraveling all the secrets. The story is intriguing but with the right amount of funny. I recommend this book to just about anyone and look forward to reading others by this author. 

Penelope Bloom

I’m a USA Today Bestselling Author and have written nearly a dozen top 50 amazon bestsellers, including four books that have hit the top 10! Despite all that, I’m still a nervous wreck before I release every new book and I still feel like I have so much more to learn about writing and publishing than I can even wrap my head around.

I’m just beyond honored and humbled that so many readers have embraced me and found enjoyment in my words, because I can’t think of any better opportunity than this.

When I’m not writing and stressing about what I’m going to write, I’m trying to wrangle my two little girls who are 2 and a half and 1 and a half. When I’m not wrangling them, I’m trying to keep my husband in line.

Writing and helping run the family aren’t easy, but I’d never trade it for anything!

#REVIEW #WOTRAUTHOR – In The Pursuit Of Charity by Alexandria Sure

He expected her to recognize him.
He expected her to be seduced by his charms.
He expected her to fall for him.
Expectations are a funny thing …

When his parents named him Herbert Lincoln James, they already had expectations that Linc would attend an ivy league university and go into politics. Linc didn’t. As captain of his swim team, he was expected to win the big relay to carry his swim team to the state championship for the first time in decades. Linc didn’t. Society expected him to walk past her. He couldn’t.

She expected him to see through her.
She expected him to make her into a joke.
She expected him to be cruel.
Expectations are a funny thing …

Twinsie Jo’s Review:

Let me start by saying that reading the sweeter and less dirty books sometimes, is a nice change.

Now for my review. So…Linc is a professional swimmer. Athletic, good looking, has all the friends and gets all the girls. Oh and he comes from money too. Alexis on the other hand is none of those things. She plus-sized and closed off. Especially when Linc starts to show interest in her. I mean, after years of being talked down, made fun of and so on, who wouldn’t shut down and put up walls to protect their heart?

Man, did I ever feel for Alexis. Linc…at times I wanted to slap him but at the same time, I got it. These feelings were new for him. What I loved most about him was that he didn’t care about Alexis’s size. He could have stood up for her a little better – he even noticed that he made some mistakes in that department – with his mother who I loathe by the way and with his friends. Harrison. That boy drove me nuts and I wanted to punch him in the face. And his mother??? These people not being supportive of Linc and his feelings for Alexis, drove me crazy. Good job on that part, Alexandria!

As I was nearing the end of the book, I was on the edge of my seat. I was hoping and chomping at the bit for their happily ever after. Do they get it? I guess you’ll have to one-click to find out!

#REVIEW – Inhale, Exhale by C.L. Matthews

“I do.”
Two words woven in love.
In sickness and in health.
For better or for worse.
Til death do us part.
And death dragged us apart.
We both said those vows.
But neither of us kept them.
This is not one of those happy stories.
Life isn’t made of simple choices
and happily ever afters.
It’s a dark place.
It’s not easy.
It’s full of mistakes and lessons.
It hurts.
And in the end, those two words said in love,
are the same ones said in hate.
“You want a divorce?”
“I do.”

Twinsie Jo’s Review:

I read the blurb, followed Cassie through her time writing this and I still wasn’t prepared for what I read.
I’m not an emotional reader but when I have to take a break and go do something else, you know the book has hit me. These characters…so messed up and beautifully broken…their love is unconditional. Even though it took quite a while for them to get back to each other, I was happy with how things turned out in the end.
Jase drove me crazy. Lo drove me crazy. Ellie? We don’t talk about her. Toby? sigh
So many things could be said about this book. The characters. The rawness. The love. The pain. The heartache. The misery. But while this happened, they grew. Together and a part.
This book will forever hold a special spot in my heart. It wasn’t an easy read and while I didn’t enjoy every moment of it (which I’m sure is what the author wanted and was rooting for), it was wonderful. I love the stories that hurt. Life isn’t all roses and puppies and kittens. Life is hard. It’s brutal and unfair. Life sucks sometimes. And we are human and make mistakes. I think through Jase and Lo’s mistakes, it was the only way they could find their way back to each other. Bravo, Cassie. Bravo. Now I really can’t wait for Breathe. xx

#NewRelease #Review #Spinoff #Contemporary Breathless With Her (Less Than 1) by Carrie Ann Ryan

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Carrie Ann Ryan comes a sexy new contemporary series.

Devin Carr likes his life. He likes his job, his family, the outlook for his future. Then he meets her. Erin. As soon as he sees her, drunk and wearing a sequined dress as her world crashes down around her and she fights to put on a brave face, he knows what he’s been missing. Her.

When Erin Taborn finds her high school sweetheart and husband banging the former head cheerleader of their graduating class at their high school reunion, she tells herself she’ll be fine. She just needs to figure out what fine means. There’s only one problem. Devin. She didn’t plan on him. And for someone who thinks they have all their plans in place, that’s a problem.

One she’ll have to find an answer to if this whole friends-with-benefits thing is going to work.
If not, she’ll fail just like with everything else. 
 I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book


Yay!! The awesome Carrie Ann Ryan has gift us with a brand new series!!!!    The Less Than Series is a spin off of the Colorado Springs Montgomery’s, as it is all about the Carr siblings who are now Thea Montgomery’s in laws.  
First up is the hot mail carrier Devon Carr.
Can I just say how this book starts is like watching a scene from a tv show.  At her high school reunion Erin Taborn finds her husband, who was her high school sweetheart, in a comprising position with the girl that was the head cheerleader.
What she yells at him is hella funny and that is what makes it like a tv show.
Devon helps her deal for the night, see she’s known Devon since high school because her older sister dated him.
Now Devon likes his life just fine, likes his job, his home, and his family.  He didn’t even realize anything is missing until he helps Erin out.
When they see each other after her divorce is final there is a crap ton of chemistry, however since she’s just gotten out of a marriage that she didn’t even know was crap until the end she is in no way wanting to enter another.  
Devon falls for Erin fast but he agrees to be “friends with benefits “ like she wishes.
What happens next is a story getting a second chance at love, a second chance at not just A life but  a  AWESOME life that is even better than the one you had.
We also get to see the other Carr siblings so we get a hint at who the next book could be about.  The Carrs are a hilarious family who fight and are nosy as heck about each other’s lives, but who also love the heck out of each other,
I can’t wait for more!! 
Carrie Ann Ryan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. Her works include the Montgomery Ink, Redwood Pack, Talon Pack, and Gallagher Brothers series, which have sold over 2.0 million books worldwide. She started writing while in graduate school for her advanced degree in chemistry and hasn’t stopped since. Carrie Ann has written over fifty novels and novellas with more in the works. When she’s not writing about bearded tattooed men or alpha wolves that need to find their mates, she’s reading as much as she can and exploring the world of baking and gourmet cooking

#WOTR20 #Review – Across From You by Amabel Daniels

Across From You

Sabbatical on men. It’s exactly what workaholic Lexi Regan needs after a viral breakup post. Serially unfortunate in the dating game, she’s seen it all. Players, moochers, all-around losers. Triple check. But one sight she can’t unsee is the model—sans clothes—in her unexpected art class. All it takes is one smirk, one hint of a smile from him for her to peg him in the category of men she needs to avoid. So imagine the double-take when she realizes he’s the groomsman opposite her in her cousin’s wedding.

Jack O’Connor has no shortage of admirers. While casual attention can be fun, it’s quality he fears he’ll never find in a woman. Yet when he’s prepared to survive a wedding out of town, he is not ready to face the blushing beauty from the drawing class he’d starred in after losing a bet. Unsure of what to expect from the feisty woman at his side, he’s tempted to learn more about her and hope that first impressions aren’t the only ones that matter…


Goodreads


I purchased this book.

First up…..super funny book.  I loved loved loved how quirky Lexi was and how she was going to do her.  Period.

Sorry Jack but Lexi was not having it.  She was not going to fall for another playboy and she was not going to be broken up again.  After her boyfriend dumps her for being a bit on the curvy side she is over men .  I felt bad for Lexi because what a dick!!  But this is what starts Lexi on her journey of Man hating..LOL

Seriously this was a funny book with me finding myself drawn to the characters.  I mean who hasn’t been epically embarrassed before???  Heartbroken?  And then have to pick up the pieces and move forward.  I though the story was awesome and I can’t wait to read the next book!!

Amabel Daniels lives in Northwest Ohio with her patient husband, three adventurous daughters, and a collection of too many cats and dogs. Although she holds a Master’s degree in Ecology, her true love is finding a good book. When she isn’t spending time outdoors, she’s busy brewing up her next novel, usually as she lets her mind run off with the addictive words of “what if…”

#WOTR20 #SeriesStarter #Review #FreeKU – Being Nobody (Witness #1) by Heather D’Agostino

Being Nobody (Witness, #1)

Samantha Connelly has been on the run since she was seven years old. Forced into Witness Protection after her father saw something he shouldn’t has caused her to learn to blend in. She’s moved, changed her name, and her appearance more times than she can count over the last nineteen years all along wondering if it will ever end. Her handler, Kevin, along with her parents have assured her that it won’t be forever, but as the years tick by she’s slowly given up hope that she’ll ever be normal.

Now at 26, Sam has moved to Chicago and is working at the Rusty Nail as a bartender calling herself Mallory. Her father passed away two years before leaving her to finish what he started…put away the ‘bad guys’. Living on the run in hiding has been harder than she ever imagined, and finding love has always been out of the question. Who would want to be with someone they couldn’t be honest with? She’s resigned herself to being alone, until… Brian walks in.

Brian Sellers is everything Sam has been trying to avoid her entire life. He’s clad in leather and torn jeans, donning several tattoos… all-in-all a bad boy. When their eyes connect one evening, everything she’s ever told herself falls to the wayside as an indescribable draw pulls her to him. He’s sexy and domineering, and something about him reminds her of a boy she used to know.

The more time she spends with Brian, the more she wants him, but…Brian is not everything he seems to be. When Sam happens to see the tat on his wrist, the same tat that her father saw all those years ago, she realizes she’s flirting with the enemy. Brian has no idea that he’s hanging out with the one girl his boss wants dead.

Can Sam hide her identity from the first man she’s had real feelings for? What will Brian do when he finds out who she really is? Can love really conquer all?

Being Nobody is the first book in The Witness series.


Goodreads

Amazon

I was lucky to beta read this for the author and offer an honest review.

I fell in love with this author reading her Shattered Series. I love that dynamics she builds with her characters. I love that she can weave a story and get you completely and utterly hooked and then *BOOM* lowers the bomb and leaves you screaming at her….yup that is what I did! I emailed her and was all shouty capsing her about this book!! I will say that she DID give me a spoiler for the next book because I MAY or MAY NOT(not denying or confirming) have threatened her with bodily injury!! LOL

So this book is a new venture for our author. She is stepping outside of her comfort zone and is writing a new series/genera. I will even say that the sex was a little bit hotter in this book too!!! *wink* Mallory aka Sam is hiding from the drug dealers who her dad testified against. The family went into the Witness Protection until the bad guys could be found. Well our Mallory has lived several lives and has had multiple personalities because the bad guys keep catching up with her family. Well her new cover is Mallory, bar tender in a locals only kinda bar. Well a hottie biker strolls in and Mallory is allll for the one night stands. She fell in love once and due to her family and their predicament, she had to leave this love of her life. Sooo no attachments, just sex is her motto. Well our hottie biker is kinda involved in bad stuff. Mallory learns that he is involved with THE BAD GUYS she is running from……yikes!!!

Our girls is freaking out. If she tells the Witness people, she will be jet setted off to another life in less than 24 hours. But she is starting to fall for our tall, dark, drink of water biker with a heart of gold. Brian is everything you could want in a boyfriend…well except for working for drug dealers that is!! LOL

The story is so solid and woven together then when we the reader start to put the pieces together it is to late….The author drops the boom and leaves us SCREAMING!!!!!

I will say, if you like a little spicy/naught fun, some suspense, hot biker, sassy female character, then this is a jackpot for you the reader!! But be warned, you will be SCREAMING at the author and you may or may not *wink* want to email her with death threats too

Heather D’Agostino is an avid reader turned Bestselling Author of the Contemporary Romance Series The Broken Series, The Shattered Series, The Second Chances Series, The Cook Brothers Series, and Romantic Suspense series The Witness Series.

She attended the University of North Carolina at Charlotte where she received a Bachelor’s of Arts in Elementary Education with a minor in Mathematics.

She currently lives in Central New York with her husband, two children, two dogs, and three cats. When she’s not writing she can usually be found at the dance studio, soccer field, or one of the many other places that she plays ‘Supermom’.

#WOTR20 #Review – When You Were Mine by Cindy Tanner

 

When You Were Mine

One letter a week. Care packages optional. Adopting a Marine seemed like the perfect extra credit project.​

Harper Evans never expected to fall in love with the Marine she adopted. She never expected to meet him in person but a surprise gave her the chance to claim who she wanted. Then life proved it can break your heart a million different ways.​

Asher Williams fought for his father and country, but he will fight hardest for the woman that stole his heart. Harper may have changed her mind about the life they planned together, but Asher wants it enough for them both.​

Will he still feel that way when he learns it all?


Goodreads

Amazon

I purchased this book.

I met this author at a book convention this summer.  She was a friend of a few friends so of course I had to buy the book when it releases.  She was super sweet and friendly to boot, so my inner blogger was all about helping this chick out.

I read the blurb and thought “Oh this sounds like a sweet romance” and what I got was like WHAT!!!!  I mean the twists and turns and darkness SHOCKED ME…….and I loved it.  Guess that is what I get for making an assumption right???

The blurb is about a couple exchanging letters and the title “When You Were Mine” makes you think of a 2nd chance love story WHICH is true buuuut the rest is totally not what you expect.  I will admit because I went in thinking one way, I was a bit thrown off at the beginning.  Asher getting a Dear John letter….what??  I was a little confused and thought it was choppy but once the story got going and I realized it was ME who was wrong, the beginning makes total sense.

Harper has been through some stuff.  She is broken both mind and body.  She is walled off and walked away from Asher because she doesn’t feel worthy anymore.  She has her dad’s shop and her drag race strip so nothing matters any more.  She will live a content life with her bestie, Nona, and maybe find love but not passion with her other bestie, Ran.

Asher is not going to let Harper go.  He has no idea everything she has been through or to the extent of what she has been through, but he remembers the hopes and dreams they had.  He is bound and determined to get his women back.

Along the way we see Harper pushing Asher away, making some not so great choices and then dealing with her past that seems to haunt her daily.  We see Asher reaffirming his love and devotion to his women along with doing all he can to protect her.

I think the book was written great and I look forward to reading more.  I kinda hope she revisits these characters because Nona and Ran need an HEA!

Cindy Tanner has been a book worm since way before it was cool. Preferring to interact with fictional characters than people in real life she began writing at a young age. She has a wild and vivid imagination that has gotten her into (and out of trouble) more than once.

Cindy lives in Southern Indiana with her family and is a proud Midwestern farm girl. She loves all books, cheesy action movies, and animals. But hates writing about herself so don’t judge her books based on a slapped together biography.

#Review, #HoP, #Contemporary, House of Payne: Styx by Stacy Gail

Sydney used to make plans. All her life she’d trained to be a ballerina, but that “plan” had turned out to be nothing more than a pipe dream. Reality now consisted of hunting down petty thieves and refusing to make any more pie-in-the-sky plans for her life. That’s why she’s never approached the sexiest man she’s ever laid eyes on. Never again would she be crushed by pointless dreams.
 
Fate, however, has plans for her.
 
Styx Hardwick isn’t big on plans. As a tattooist at House Of Payne, he’s the black sheep in a family full of pragmatic cops. Now that his twin brother’s getting hitched, all eyes turn to him, the last of the single Hardwick siblings. Getting through his twin’s wedding is gonna be hell.
 
Or so he thinks.
 
When a pocket-sized goddess crashes into him with terror in her eyes, Styx’s world turns upside-down. Even scared out of her mind, Sydney is still the hottest thing to have ever graced his life. He offers her a deal—pretend to be his girlfriend until the wedding, while he does his damnedest to protect her from the danger closing in.
 
As a plan, it’s almost foolproof.
 
Almost.
 


 I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book


OMG!! Welcome back to Chicago and the awesome House of Payne gang!!  
Styx is the “King of Coverups” as he likes to say, at the most awesomest tattoo studio in the world House of Payne.
Sydney is a secret shopper for a chain of grocery stores in town.  Their meet cute is totally crazy!!  Hint it has to do with her job, but they don’t meet in a store. I can’t get over the way they meet, it’s totally unique and crazy!
Sydney is so good at catching shop lifters at  her job as a secret shopper, that someone is trying to KILL HER and she runs into Styx literally to hide.  See totally crazy!!
What unfolds is a crazy story of a “pretend” couple, a family of cops,  and near death misses.  The only thing that I didn’t like is that we never get to see Styx let Sydney’s crappy family have it.
Crap!! I almost forgot to tell you about the most amazing scene,   a scene straight out of my daydreams with my favorite HoP artist Max and favorite ex hit an for the Bratva Polo!!!  This whole dang book is full of drool worthy moments so make sure you have a towel ready, LOL!!!  Stacy Gail makes sure that there is lots of hotness, love, and funny in this series and that is why it’s one of my favorites.
I so can’t freaking wait for Loki!!!

IBooks: https://apple.co/2lSQdQM

Kobo:http://bit.ly/2ka1mwa

B&N: http://bit.ly/2lRj8oo

A competitive figure skater from the age of eight, Stacy Gail wrote stories between events to pass the time. By fourteen, she told her parents she was either going to be a skating coach who was also a romance writer, or a romance writer who was also a skating pro. Now with a day job of playing on the ice with her students, and writing everything from PNR and cyberpunk to contemporary romance at night, both dreams have come true.