Guest Post with Author Karen Rock and Giveaway

Meet Karen Rock author of His to Protect.

Award-winning author Karen Rock is both sweet and spicy—at least when it comes to her writing! The author of both YA and adult contemporary books writes red-hot novels for Harlequin Blaze and small-town romances for Harlequin Heartwarming. A strong believer in Happily-Ever-After, Karen loves creating unforgettable stories that leave her readers with a smile.

She enjoys returning to her teaching roots when speaking at regional and national writing conferences and interacting with other writers. She has a Master of Fine Arts in English and has continued to learn and grow professionally through her work with YA co-author, fellow romance author, friend and sister-in-law, Joanne Rock.

When she’s not writing, Karen is an avid reader who’s typically immersed in three different books at a time, all in different genres. She also loves cooking her grandmother’s Italian recipes, baking, Christmas (no need to specify—she loves every bit of it), and having the Adirondack Park wilderness as her backyard, where she lives with her husband, daughter, dog and cat who keep her life interesting and complete.

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ARC Review: Bedmates by Nichole Chase

Bedmates was my first book by Nichole Chase, but it definitely won't be my last! This book was the first in her new American Royalty series, and I enjoyed it from start to finish. This was such a sweet and sexy story and I had a great time reading Maddie and Jake's story! 

When Maddie McGuire's latest mistake lands her in handcuffs, she knows that things are about to go from bad to worse quickly due to the fact that she is the President's daughter. When she agrees to pay for the damages and do community service, she never expects that she will find herself working alongside Jake Simmon. Not only is Jake annoying, but he ratted her out in the past. But Jake is no longer the same guy she remembers, and since returning from Afghanistan with a life changing injury he struggles with the horrors of everything that he has been through. Maddie and Jake might fight like cats and dogs, but they soon realize that there is a fine line between love and hate. Can Maddie help Jake with his demons though, or will he push her away when he needs her the most?

I really loved these characters. They had so much depth and I loved the fact that they were different yet had so much in common. They understood each other in a way that no one else could because of their circumstances, and that had them relating to one another even before things really started to change between them. They were both sweet and sexy, and the emotional connection they were forming was one I couldn't get enough of. Both Maddie and Jake wanted to make the world a better place, and their determination to do so was great to see. They weren't doing it just because of the position they were in because of their parents, but because they genuinely believed in the causes that they were passionate about. 

Overall, this was a great story and I loved it from the very beginning. There were a few times that Jake annoyed me with his pushing Maddie away, but I understood it even if I didn't like it. The only reason this one wasn't a five star book for me was because of something that is an issue for me personally. I don't know that it will bother other readers like it did for me, but Jake did hook up with a few girls in the beginning of this story, one he definitely should have known better about, and that was something I don't care for. Maddie and Jake weren't together, so he didn't cheat, but he did recognize his feelings for Maddie and it was clear that Maddie was upset about him with the one girl, so that just rubbed me the wrong way. We find out later that he had been with a few other girls as well and to me once feelings and a connection start to form, I don't want the hero or heroine to be with anyone else. Again though, that could just be something that bothers me personally and I still really enjoyed the book. It just kept me from absolutely loving this one when I think had that been different that this would have been easily five stars. I definitely can't wait to read more from Nichole Chase though, and I already can't wait for the next book in this series.

**ARC Provided by Publisher**

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ARC Review: A Matter of Time by Margaret Locke

Eliza James wants to find love, and she truly doesn't feel like she's going to find it in the twenty first century. Luckily for her, her best friend, Cat, has discovered she can write stories and they can magically become reality. Cat and Eliza don't really think it will work, but Cat writes a story where Eliza time travels back to Regency England to find love.

Deveric Mattersly thinks he is dreaming when he arrives to an odd ball. He meets a mysterious woman (Eliza) who kisses him and they land back in his study with the woman in his arms. Against his normal character he lies and claims she's an American relation who needs his family's help. His mother is very suspicious and believes Eliza is after her son and his dukedom.

Surprisingly, Eliza doesn't fit in as well as she'd hoped in Regency England. Despite reading Jane Austen's books several times, she can't quite control her way of speaking and she misses things like Facebook and pizza. There is an attraction between Deveric and Eliza, but Cat made it so that the Happily Ever After wasn't a "for sure" thing. Both parties have the freedom of mind to choose another way of life.

Deveric is dealing with his past demons that are completely ridiculous, but he is a man and men sometimes blame themselves for silly things. I was a little frustrated with Eliza for not adopting the Regency lifestyle and rules since that's what she wanted when she traveled back in time for it. Despite this (which no one can ever be perfect or there would be no conflict) the budding romance between the two is very compelling.

Margaret Locke really had an interesting idea when writing these books. I love the power that Cat has that has enabled the possibility of time travel. Her writing flows smoothly and I finished it relatively quickly. I highly suggest reading this book and its predecessor because it's so unique. I loved that and felt it was refreshing.

**ARC provided by Author**

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Feature and Giveaway: Make Me Stay by Rebecca Brooks

Samantha Kane is about to solidify her father’s legacy by developing sleepy Gold Mountain into the most profitable ski resort in the country. There’s one man standing in her way though. One very sexy, rugged man. When she shows up to convince Austin Reede to sell, she has no intention of hiding her identity. But with a body like his, she’ll take a few risks to get closer.

Austin was the fastest skier on the U.S. Olympic team, until he shattered his knee. Gold Mountain became his refuge—and now Kane Enterprises is threatening that home. When he meets Sam, he has no idea she’s the one to blame, he just knows the attraction between them is one he hasn’t felt in years. A scorching hot one-night stand is just what he needs. Little does he guess that it will change everything…

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ARC Review: Christmas in Eternity Springs by Emily March

I can’t believe it, we are already at book twelve of the Eternity Springs series. Each book can be read as a standalone, but I like knowing the background of the town and the secondary characters. Like with all of the other books in this series it’s about the power of love healing. In this book we have Jax Lancaster his son Nicholas and Miss Christmas, Claire Branham. All three have need of the healing powers of Eternity Springs. Nicholas concurred his fear of dogs with the help of Chase and Laurie in Reunion Pass and in this book he is determined to concur his fear of Christmas. Jax is determined to do right by his son to the point of moving to Eternity Springs to help the boy who thinks it will be the only way to cure his fear. Claire on the other hand moved to Eternity Springs to escape, she opened up a year round Christmas Shop to force herself into loving the holiday again. This one isn’t as dark as some of the previous ones but it’s a great holiday novel to help you get into the mood for the upcoming season. 

The story starts off with Claire finding out her fiancé is already married at Christmas Eve; then it cuts to the present, Claire already has Forever Christmas and is a success in Eternity Springs. Jax is in town picking up Nicholas from camp and meets Claire at the Angel Falls hot springs. An instant attraction makes it easy for them to start up an easy friendship and they both agree that they will write in a journal a daily affirmation, at the end of the day they will write something good about the day.  But when Nicholas and Jax get back to Seattle things get worse and Jax makes a deal with Nicholas that they can move to Eternity Springs for one year and see how it goes. Jax and Claire are thrown together by circumstances and they aren’t arguing. A fire has them sharing a house and their growing attraction just makes it easier to settle into a routine. Claire even starts to help Nicholas with his fear of Christmas by reading him Christmas stories every night. Little by little the trio all fall in love but as it always happens in these stories it must get worse before they can fully heal. Claire’s past comes up and scares Jax and Claire uses that as a convenient excuse to run. 

Overall, this was a great book to start off my holiday reading list. I love escaping into Eternity Springs.  

**ARC provided by Publisher**

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