in

Saturday, July 15, 2017

ARC Review: The Darkest Sunrise by Aly Martinez


The Darkest Sunrise is the first book in Aly Martinez's new Duet and it was fantastic! Aly Martinez is an author that I have loved for awhile, yet she always blows me away with each new book she writes. Her books just seem to get better and better and that was definitely the case here. I couldn't put it down and I am anxious for The Brightest Sunset to see how everything plays out. 

Porter and Charlotte have each known tragedy, but it isn't until they meet that they find themselves finally able to start moving forward with their lives. But as they find themselves climbing out of the darkness they have known, Charlotte's past comes back threatening to destroy everything that she was starting to overcome. 

I felt for both Porter and Charlotte! Each of them had experienced so much pain and their grief had them living in darkness until each other. I wanted so much for them to find happiness, but I knew it wouldn't be an easy journey. Porter and Charlotte were real and their story felt so genuine. I felt like these weren't just characters that Aly had created but as though they could be anyone. There were easy to relate to and I felt invested in them right from the start. 

Overall, I really don't want to go into details because this is a story that just needs to be experienced. Their story is just getting started and I can't wait for more. Aly Martinez captivates with her beautiful writing and I really can't recommend her stories enough. Her stories are passionate and emotional, leaving the reader with characters and a story that won't easily be forgotten. While she might break your heart a little along the way, she always puts it back together in the end and I trust her to be true to the characters every time. This was a great start to the series and I can't wait for the next one!

**ARC Provided by Inkslinger PR**

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N




Guest Post with Author Theresa Romain and Giveaway

Historical romance author Theresa Romain pursued an impractical education that allowed her to read everything she could get her hands on. She then worked for universities and libraries, where she got to read even more. Eventually she started writing, too. She lives with her family in Wichita, Kansas.

Site | Blog | Facebook | Twitter |

Friday, July 14, 2017

ARC Review: Hello Forever by Sarina Bowen


Hello Forever is the second book in the Hello Goodbye series by Sarina Bowen, but it is a standalone story. This book was previously published under a different name by Sarina's Pseudonym Nealy Wagner. I was so excited to read this one after loving Goodbye Paradise. Fans of that story will enjoy getting to catch up with Josh and Caleb here just as I did. They are impossible not to love, so it was definitely good to see them again. But while I liked Hello Forever and Axel and Caxton, I didn't love their story or them like I did Goodbye Paradise. 

Axel and Caxton were close friends who were turning into more as teenagers when they were caught making out in the woods. Cax disappeared and wasn't to be seen again. Now six years later, Axel is shocked to spot Cax in the crowd of some basketball footage for the school he is thinking about accepting a position at. Knowing that he can't just let Cax disappear again, Axel takes the job and they find themselves face to face after years of no contact. But while Axel is out and proud, Cax is very much in the closet and his life depends on it staying that way. While Cax would love nothing more than to be with Axel and finally be himself, he knows that it can't be that way. But Axel is willing to take what he can get if it means a chance to have Cax at all. Can they find a way to be together, or will they both lose everything?

I liked Axel and Cax. They had a clear and obvious connection and the chemistry between them was strong. I felt like they really belonged together and I liked getting to know them. But I didn't feel the same passion and intensity that was between Josh and Caleb and I found myself comparing them to the other couple a lot. I just wasn't as connected to them, and I wish that there had been a bit more to draw me in when it came to their relationship. I wanted to feel invested in them, but I wasn't fully able to. 

Overall, I liked this story and it was good. It just wasn't great like Goodbye Paradise and I had been hoping for a bit more. I still think that fans of Sarina's will enjoy this story as I did, especially if they love Josh and Caleb like I did. But while I liked this book, I didn't love it. Sarina Bowen is a great writer though, and this won't be the last I read from her.

**ARC Provided by Bocci PR**

Purchase: | Amazon | B&N | iTunes





Feature and Giveaway: Survival Instinct by Janie Crouch



The voices in her head have decided to kill her.

Most people joke about hearing voices in their heads. For Chloe Jeffries, they’re real. And as the creative force behind one of the most popular shows on television, she has used the constant flood of voices in her mind to her advantage: fuel for entertainment.

But now one of the voices has decided it wants Chloe all for itself.

Ex-Special Forces soldier Shane Westman just wants to make it back to Wyoming to begin to heal from the horrors of war. The last thing he needs, even as a favor for a good friend, is to take on bodyguard duty of a flighty television writer. But once he does, he realizes there are threats at play he doesn’t understand. And the woman who has somehow begun to thaw his frozen heart is in desperate danger from a menace they can’t see, but is always close.

The voice that will never allow Chloe to escape alive.

Purchase: | Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Kobo |


*100% of proceeds until July 16 goes to Cystic Fibrosis charities – with a special $0.99 price. Help us stomp CF! Plus, buy Survival Instinct before July 16 and get a free eBook by Janie not available anywhere else!

More details here: http://www.janiecrouch.com/si-pp-0717

Thursday, July 13, 2017

ARC Review: Jilted by Sawyer Bennett


I feel like every time I write a Sawyer Bennett review I have to spend some time just fan girling the hell out. I love this author and I think she is tremendously talented and remarkably flexible at storytelling. This is an author that just does not disappoint and who you can count on to deliver strong characters and a compelling plot. Jilted is no exception to the rule that Sawyer Bennett is exceptional.

This book is a 'second chance' contemporary romance. That is not an uncommon genre but Bennett's depiction of Coop and Eden set this book apart and make it memorable. I love that when the books starts, Eden's whole situation is a hot mess. I'm all for fantasy but let's face it, no matter how rich or famous you might be, hot mess happens to all of us sometimes. And it so happens that Eden dealing with her cheating hot mess leads her back home and back to her first love, Coop. Eden encounters shock after shock. First of all, Coop is no longer Eden's high school first love. Coop is a grown man and a boss.

The really interesting thing about this book is that even though Coop has known Eden better than anyone else in the past, there are things about Eden that Coop really did not understand. I loved how Coop slowly discovered Eden as a woman and learned to appreciate what she had been through and how it contributed to the demise of their young love. Once Coop understands the woman he is dealing with, the animosity between Coop and Eden starts to dissipate and they discover that underneath it is burning hot, grown up lust. Coop is a alpha's alpha and basically takes on the whole small town to clear up a misunderstanding about Eden and give her back her home.

There is some predictable drama in this book and even some really funny drama I would not have predicted. What I love is the mutual discovery of Coop and Eden of each other and how they learn to work through whatever their issues are. I love the message of this book that anything can be traded for love and it's always a good deal. The banter between these two characters was charming and sometimes really sexy. The sex scenes were hot. The POV rotates between the characters and you get lots of context for the events in the book. This is great summer read so I suggest you go and get to reading.

**ARC provided by InkSlinger PR**

Purchase: | Amazon | B&N | iTunes |


Feature and Giveaway: The Hook Up by Tawna Fenske



Ellie Sanders is over the fairytale, thank you very much. Content with her booming career as a purveyor of Madame Butterfly pleasure aids, she doesn’t need a man for anything—except maybe marketing tips. And, okay, a few fun nights with something that doesn’t require batteries.

Love, marriage, and family aren’t in the cards for Tyler Hendrix. Period. The Navy helped Ty put his tumultuous childhood behind him, but when a sexy single mom walks through the First Impressions door looking to take her business to the next level, he feels his carefully constructed “never-get-attached” walls crack.

As Ty and Ellie maneuver through a minefield of wardrobe malfunctions, plumbing mishaps, and the world’s most awkward accidental dirty talk, discovering they have more in common than scorching sexual attraction threatens to crumble Ty’s walls for good…

Purchase: | Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Kobo |


Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Guest Post with Author Sonya Weiss and Giveaway


Sonya Weiss is a freelance writer, ghostwriter and author. She's addicted to great books, good movies, and Italian chocolates.

She's passionate about causes that support abused animals and children. Her parents always supported her bringing stray animals home although the Great Dane rescue was a surprise.

Site | Facebook | Twitter |

Tuesday, July 11, 2017

Guest Post with Author Lia Riley and Giveaway


After studying at the University of Montana-Missoula, Lia Riley scoured the world armed only with a backpack, overconfidence and a terrible sense of direction. She counts shooting vodka with a Ukranian mechanic in Antarctica, sipping yerba mate with gauchos in Chile and swilling fourex with stationhands in Outback Australia among her accomplishments.

Site | Facebook | Twitter |

Monday, July 10, 2017

ARC Review: Bad Boys After Dark: Carson by Melissa Foster


It definitely doesn't need to be said at this point if you follow my reviews, but I LOVE Melissa Foster! She writes fantastic and unique stories that are heartwarming as well as sexy. Carson's book was no exception and this just might be my new favorite of hers. I know I say that with almost every new book of hers, but she just keeps getting better and better! 

Carson and Tawny were close through college but everything changed when Tawny suddenly ended things and left him behind. She married someone else and they went years without speaking. But after the loss of her father, Tawny was forced to look at her life and realized that she had never been able to let Carson go. She got a divorce and spent a couple of years rebuilding her life, but when she saw that his family was doing an event for charity she knew it was time to find Carson again before she could move on for good. But once Carson sees Tawny he knows that he can't let her go again, and he will do whatever it takes to make her see they belong together once and for all.

I absolutely loved these two! Tawny was a character that I very easily related to. Throughout college she had some insecurities about her sexuality and desires and it kept her from really allowing herself to go after what she wanted. But after some age and maturity she really came into her own and I loved that she embraced it all. Carson was really understanding about everything that had happened and I loved that he supported her and made sure to let her know that she should always come to him with questions or concerns. I loved how he placed such importance on communication and being open with one another. It was so refreshing to read about a couple that was mature and faced things head on rather than by hiding things or just assuming the other one would just know without ever being told. They had great chemistry and were super sexy together, and their connection was so genuine and real. I just loved everything about them. 

Overall, this was another winner from Melissa Foster as are all the others I have read from her. I truly felt like this book was one that I could relate to though and I was invested right from the start. I loved the characters and their second chance at love and I couldn't get enough of them together. The more I think about this story the more I fall in love with it and I think readers should definitely check this one out. Melissa Foster is a fantastic writer, always delivering a solid story with unique and lovable characters and just enough sweet and sexy to keep her readers hungry for me. This is one of my favorites from her and I can't recommend it enough!

**ARC Provided by Tasty Book Tours**

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | iTunes | 




Feature and Giveaway: The Duke of Defiance by Darcy Burke



Difficult and defiant as a child, Bran Crowther, Earl of Knighton left England as a young man to pursue independence and adventure. He never expected to inherit the title and when duty calls him home, he still finds Society’s codes constricting and others’ expectations oppressive. Nevertheless, he needs a wife to be a mother to his young daughter, preferably a woman of intelligence and warmth who is, above all, immune to his idiosyncrasies—and to falling in love.

Widow Joanna Shaw isn’t interested in a second marriage, not after the loveless, passionless union she endured. She’d much rather dote on her young niece and nephew since they will likely be the only children in her life...until she meets a precocious girl, in desperate need of a mother. But her father, the so-called Duke of Defiance, is as peculiar as he is handsome, and Jo won’t take another risk with her heart. Their rules, however, are made to be broken, even when the consequences could destroy them both.

Purchase: | AmazonB&N | iTunes | Kobo |

Feature and Giveaway: Carson by Melissa Foster



Second chances really do exist…

As the founder of a multimillion-dollar international security business, Carson Bad exposes secrets for a living. He knows better than to forge relationships built on them. But for years he did just that with his best friend, and secret lover, Tawny Bishop. She brought a sense of calm and understanding to his life–in and out of the bedroom. Until one fateful night when a knock at the door changed everything.

Tawny is no longer a naive college student. She’s a sought-after perfumer living in Paris. She has plenty of resources at her fingertips, and lots of lonely nights to think about the only man she’s ever loved–the one she ran away from all those years ago. She needs to move forward with her life, but how can she when Carson still owns her heart?

Maybe showing up in the middle of the night unannounced isn’t the best route to unraveling the past and figuring out her future, but Tawny has played it safe for ten long years, and it’s only made her long for the man she never should have walked away from. Now she’s back in Carson’s life, and he’s determined not to make the same mistake twice. If only he knew what that mistake was…

Purchase: | Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Google | Kobo |

Sunday, July 9, 2017

ARC Review: Friend (With Benefits) Zone by Laura Brown


I really enjoyed Laura Brown's book Signs of Attraction, so when I saw that she had a new book coming out I was excited to read it. As much as I liked Signs of Attraction though, Friend (With Benefits) Zone was really hard for me to get through and I was very frustrated while reading this book. I wanted to give up several times, but ultimately I pushed through to see how things would turn out. Jasmine and Devon have been friends since they were children and both of them are deaf. 

fter her father died Jasmine's family fell apart and while Devon and his family were there for her, she quickly learned that she could only rely on herself. So when she comes home after work to find an eviction notice, the last thing she wants to do is ask her best friend for help. Devon can't help the fact that he is a helper by nature, and of course there is no one he wants to help more than Jasmine. So when he offers his place for her to crash at while she figures out what to do next, he views it as a chance to finally have her close to explore the growing attraction between them while she views it as a temporary imposition that she plans to change as soon as possible. Can Devon show her that she is exactly where she should be with him, or will Jasmine's determination to do everything alone be what destroys not only a chance at a future together but their friendship as well?

I loved Devon. He was sweet and caring, a good person to the core. He was a great friend and was always considering others before himself. Jasmine on the other hand got off to a good start but quickly grew irritating and did nothing but get on my nerves. I really loved her strong sense of independence at first, but that quickly turned into being one of the most stubborn and unlikable heroines I have ever read about. She was bullheaded to a fault and I got tired of reading about her friends trying to help her when she did nothing but push them away. She refused to accept help and often used sex to deflect actually dealing with the problem. I hated that, and I wish that Dev wouldn't have allowed her to get away with that either. I still loved him, but he should have handled that differently. 

Overall, this story was just a miss for me. While I liked Dev and this book had a ton of promise, it unfortunately just frustrated me to no end and I honestly grew so sick of Jasmine that I wished she would wind up alone in the end. She was impossible for me to like and it just got worse of the course of the book. I loved Signs of Attraction and that is definitely one I would recommend, I just wish I could say the same for Friend (With Benefits) Zone.

**ARC Provided by Publisher**

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | iTunes | 





Interview with Author's Amy Sandas and Elizabeth Michels and Giveaway


USA Today Bestselling author Amy Sandas’s love of romance began one summer when she stumbled across one of her mother’s Barbara Cartland books. Her affinity for writing began with sappy preteen poems and led to a liberal arts degree from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. She lives with her husband and children near Milwaukee, Wisconsin.



Elizabeth Michels is the award-winning author of the Tricks of the Ton series. This romance author lives in a lake-side town in North Carolina with her husband and son. She’s a fan of shoes, coffee, mimosas, laughter, hugs, things that are sparkly, and tater tots. Oh, and she likes her readers a lot too. Dive into her latest series about the members of a secret club in London, The Spare Heirs Society, today!