Blog Tour: Reckless by Kimberly Kincaid

My second blog tour book of the day is the delightful Reckless by Kimberly Kincaid.  This contemporary romance was also released by Zebra on January 26th. It's the first book in Kincaid's Rescue Squad series. I've read a few good firemen romances in the last couple years, and so I was quite curious about this one when the opportunity to review came up. Stick around to find out just how good it was...

Check out the other stops on the tour at Tasty Book Tours.

Kill Without Mercy by Alexandra Ivy

The Basics:
Kill Without Mercy by Alexandra Ivy
Book One in the ARES Security series
Zebra
Romantic Suspense
Published December 29, 2015
Source: Received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Amazon Kobo Goodreads

Why I picked up this book:

I love romantic suspense, and I enjoyed the last Alexandra Ivy book that I reviewed.

Book Tour: The Daring Exploits of a Runaway Heiress by Victoria Alexander

Today I'm thrilled to be hosting a tour spot for Victoria Alexander's The Daring Exploits of a Runaway Heiress. Published by Zebra, only Victoria Alexander could get away with such a long title! This book was released on April 28th. It's the fifth book in the Millworth Manor series, and I think it looks pretty darn good!

For the rest of the stops on the tour, check out Tasty Book Tours.

Blog Tour: The Harlot Countess by Joanna Shupe

Today I'm hosting Joanna Shupe's The Harlot Countess. How's that for a controversial title? With the modern dialogue about 'slut-shaming,' I found myself intrigued as to how Shupe would handle it in the historical context.

Released by Zebra on April 28th, The Harlot Countess is the second book int he historical romance series 'Wicked Deceptions.' This is such a small thing, but I *love* that the series title is right there on the cover of this book. Do this! Everyone! Please?  

Be sure to check out other stops on the book tour, hosted by Tasty Book Tours, particularly because you can find other excerpts!

Blog Tour: Blood Assassin by Alexandra Ivy

Alexandra Ivy's Blood Assassin book tour is stopping here today with an excerpt! Blood Assassin is the second book in the Sentinels series, published by Zebra at the end of December 2014. It's an action-oriented paranormal romance that I thoroughly enjoyed! 

For other stops on the tour, check out Tasty Book Tours.

The Basics:

Against the Sky by Kat Martin

Zebra
Book Two in the Brodies of Alaska series
Romantic Suspense
Published January 27, 2015
Source: Received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Amazon Kobo Goodreads

Why I picked up this book:

I'm a Kat Martin fan - I've read a few of the Raines of Wind Canyon series and really enjoyed them.

Blog Tour: How to Plan a Wedding for a Royal Spy by Vanessa Kelly

Today I am hosting a stop on Vanessa Kelly's How to Plan a Wedding for a Royal Spy book blog tour! This is the third book in the Renegade Royals series - I reviewed the second book, Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard, in January 2014, and quite liked it. I had high hopes for this one! Released on January 6th by Zebra, How to Plan a Wedding for a Royal Spy features an all-new hero, with a few familiar supporting characters. Check out more information about the book, an excerpt, my review, an author bio and a giveaway below!

For the rest of the stops on the tour (including additional excerpts!), check out Tasty Book Tours.

Xmas in October: Season for Desire by Theresa Romain

Presenting: Christmas in October!

Each day this week, I will be reviewing a Christmas-themed book, reviewing how well the book embraces the holiday as well as giving my two cents on the book as a whole. Join me in celebrating the holiday a wee bit early and post your holiday book reviews to comments of any of this week's reviews!

The Book:

Basics

Season for Desire by Theresa Romain
Zebra
Book Four in the Holiday Pleasures series
Historical Romance
Published October 7, 2014
Source: Received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Amazon Kobo

If He's Daring by Hannah Howell

The Basics:
If He's Daring by Hannah Howell 
Zebra
Book Six in the Wherlockes series
Historical Romance, Paranormal
Published October 7, 2014
Source: Received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Amazon.ca Kobo.com

Why I picked up this book:

It seemed to be everywhere when I saw the opportunity to review pop up, so I hopped on the train!

Night's Promise by Amanda Ashley

The Basics:
Night's Promise by Amanda Ashley
Zebra
Book Six of Children of the Night
Paranormal Romance
Published February 4, 2014
Source: Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Amazon.ca Kobo.com

Why I picked up this book:

Honestly, I recognized the author's name, and combined with the cover image, thought she was one of those collection of authors who write really good historical romances. At some point, the fact this was a paranormal romance did register, but since I'm a fan of those too, I figured this would be a great fit.

Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard by Vanessa Kelly

The Basics:
Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard by Vanessa Kelly
Zebra
Book One of Renegade Royals
Historical Romance
Published Jan 7, 2014
Amazon.ca Kobo.com 

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This review is my entry for the 2014 Key Words Reading Challenge hosted by Bookmark to Blog.

Blurb:

In this witty, sensual new series, Vanessa Kelly introduces the Renegade Royals, illegitimate sons of the Royal Princes who are finding their rightful places in society…

Accomplished spy Aden St. George prefers to stay away from the frivolous ton, especially after the way his mother was used by the Prince Regent. But his latest mission compels him to guard unconventional, vibrant Lady Vivien Shaw. Rescuing her from kidnappers was easy. Resisting her beauty is not. Duty demands he keep an eye on her—and naturally, his lips soon follow. For someone who views entanglements as a weakness, this is pure, delicious folly…

Though grateful for Aden’s help, Vivien has secrets she must keep hidden. Yet with her abductors still at large, she needs Aden’s protection almost as much as she craves his touch…

Why I picked up this book:

Historical romance, beautiful big dress, a spy who can't resist a beautiful woman with secrets? I'm in.

My thoughts:

This book was as much fun to read as I hoped it would be. Now, it wasn't without flaw, but they were relatively inconsequential to my reading experience. As it was, I had a really hard time putting the book down to take care of those pesky obligations like feeding myself and my children, sleeping and what not. 

Aden's a spy coming off a tragic end to his last mission. Determined to be as emotionless as possible to protect himself from making errors, he finds himself unable to resist the charms of the beautiful and lovely-on-the-inside Vivien. For her part, Vivien has reason not to put much faith in men, but Aden saves her life and seems so solid and worthy....

Of course things don't go smoothly for anyone, and that's half the fun of the ride. 

The only thing that tweaked me about this book was that other than a few spots of action, I never really got a good feel for Aden working as a competent spy. Instead, he believed Vivien's misdirection over and over, and I wanted to kick him in the shins for it. The reason provided was his love for her (and I imagine his own feelings about the match), and that was believable, but.... I guess I just wanted him a little cleverer.

For her part, Vivien is a very competent young woman. She's ballsy, taking on responsibilities that should never have been hers. She's also got a kind heart, and seems a little naive - the dangers that face her seem much more threatening over the long term than I think she grasped. 

There's a few interesting supporting cast members - Dominic who obviously should have the last romance in the series as the spymaster himself falls for a wonderful woman. I haven't read the novella prequel that contains his childhood story (or I assume it is), but I might pick it up to get myself up to speed. Griffin Steele, another royal by-blow, is also of interest and his story is the next in the series. He's got enough (criminal?) quirks that his story should be especially fun to read!

I hadn't read Vanessa Kelly before this, but I'm quite glad to have 'met' her. Her writing is in line with Julia Quinn or Victoria Alexander in terms of the quality of it, and I hope to discover that she's a reliable read as well. I can always use new reliable romance authors (as I churn too quickly through the backlists of my current favourites!)

Bottom line:

A fun Regency romp, I'd recommend this one for an afternoon spent lazing with a cup of tea. I hated putting it down, and will look for the sequel, Confessions of a Royal Bridegroom, coming in April.

4 stars
For fans of Regency romance, spy romance

Blindsided by Fern Michaels

The Basics:
Blindsided by Fern Michaels
Zebra
Book 22 of the Sisterhood series
Mystery, Suspense
Published Dec 31, 2013
Amazon.ca Kobo.com

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Blurb:

Ladies On Fire
Myra Rutledge isn't ready to mothball the Sisterhood just yet. When Maggie Spitzer, former editor-in-chief of the Post and an honorary member of the Sisterhood, arrives with a new mission in mind, the Vigilantes are soon gathering in their war room once more. While catching up on each other's lives, they plan a brilliant campaign against a duo of corrupt judges running a moneymaking racket that sends young offenders to brutal boot camps, often on trumped-up charges. Their enemies are powerful and ruthless, but the Sisterhood have their own formidable allies--including former President Martine Connor. Once their scheme takes off, the guilty won't know what hit them. . .

My thoughts:

This book literally wasn't what I thought it was - the blurb text for the review copy I requested apparently was mixed with a different book.

Determined to do the book right, I still read it. Unfortunately, the author's style of writing didn't agree with me. 

So this is a sort of women's vigilante justice league type book. The Sisterhood is a collection of powerful, intelligent, go-getter women ranging from a former president, a retired Federal judge to an independently wealthy financier of operations and a reporter.  There's many characters in the Sisterhood itself to keep track of and I imagine that by book 22, which Blindsided apparently is, the average reader has had plenty of time to learn all of their backgrounds and personal quirks. On the plus side, there's some serious female empowerment here as the women are clearly the show while their men provide support. I appreciated the agency the women enjoyed and exercised.

This book focuses on a case in which twin judges have been abusing their power for financial gain. They've got the entire town of Baywater under their thumbs, sending off anyone guilty of a crime to rehabilitation camps located on the judges' vast properties. 

Unfortunately, the first half of the book is mostly about planning how to investigate Maggie's hunch about these two women, with very little actual action. Perhaps logical for them to come together with a solid plan (much was made of Myra's husband Charles putting together 'Legends' (covers?) for the people who would be their women and men on the ground in Baywater), said plan is never entirely clearly laid out for the reader. Instead, lots of potential ideas are thrown out, half-formed back-ups or theoreticals that are always cautioned by the characters as being simply that. I found it all a bit boring, though I imagine a fan of the series would get more out of it because they'd have an attachment to these characters already in place, as well as expectations about how all this planning would turn out.

I also had no great sense of urgency towards the case that the women were investigating. It seemed obvious that the judges were corrupt, it seemed clear that Sisterhood was far more powerful and well-connected than the twins. If there were hints early on that it was going to be more complicated than simply deciding how to mete out justice than I missed them completely.

The other problem I had was with the dialogue. It all felt a little stilted to me. There was great inner dialogue - much time is spent with Pearl, the former judge who operates an underground railroad for women and children in need, as she works to lose the agents who have been assigned to watch her (for criminal wrongdoing - I was very confused about why this stakeout was happening). Her fretting and pondering and general woolgathering was quite well-written and suited to the character and situation. I enjoyed that. Unfortunately, when everyone started talking, they felt overly formal or long winded, explaining things to each other that seemed unnecessary. In general, I wasn't impressed by the dialogue.

Now, when I break it down, I think some of my problems can be associated with being a latecomer to the series. Traditionally, I would not recommend leaping into a series at book 22 - and I take full responsibility for those problems. Some of the plot stuff, and definitely my inability to really bond with the characters I can chalk up to this. But I think the dialogue and the pacing I can fairly attribute to the book itself. Though I felt it was not a poorly written book, it also didn't engage me.  

Bottom line:

This book was simply not for me. I imagine that a fan of the series might enjoy it, though I'd caution about the pacing issues (I imagine you're accustomed to the dialogue by now if you're a fan!). If you've never read a Sisterhood book before, I'd suggest starting earlier in the series.  

2.5 stars 
For fans of Fern Michaels and the Sisterhood series.