Posted in adult, adventure, fantasy, fiction, general life, historical fiction, I spy, life, romance

I spy Fiction books for Adults

I spy adventure, romance, historical and rom com fiction books!

All the covers of these books are amazing and their stories sound so fascinating!

Check them out to see if you are going to pick one up today!

After a panic attack puts him in the hospital, charity executive Teagan Van Zijl is dragged by his sister to a wilderness therapy retreat in Montana. Lost in the woods while absconding from midafternoon meditation, Teagan is nearly eaten by a bear before his rescue by a furious angel in muddy hiking boots: the program’s handywoman, Darcy Albano, who was mostly worried for the bear. 
 
Darcy thought she was going to work as a trail guide when she was hired onto the camp staff but ended up cleaning and hauling instead—merely the latest screwing-over she’s endured since her ex stole her car and her parents ruined her credit score. Teagan becomes the silver lining she didn’t expect, a man clearly going through something yet willing to commit to Darcy’s unique brand of wilderness education as the cure for what ails him.
 
After weeks in the mountains with Darcy, Teagan doesn’t want to return to New York without her. He hires Darcy as his sober companion—a position he doesn’t actually need filled and for which Darcy is completely unqualified—hoping she can help him figure out a way to move forward. But once they get to the city, all Teagan can think of is how to confess the truth without losing her. Together, they begin to imagine what their lives might look like if they could depend on each other for help—even in outrunning a bear.

Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since they met in college—they go together like salt and pepper, honey and tea, lobster and rolls. Except, now—for reasons they’re still not discussing—they don’t.
 
They broke up five months ago. And still haven’t told their best friends.
 
Which is how they find themselves sharing a bedroom at the Maine cottage that has been their friend group’s yearly getaway for the last decade. Their annual respite from the world, where for one vibrant, blissful week they leave behind their daily lives; have copious amounts of cheese, wine, and seafood; and soak up the salty coastal air with the people who understand them most.
 
Only this year, Harriet and Wyn are lying through their teeth while trying not to notice how desperately they still want each other. Because the cottage is for sale and this is the last week they’ll all have together in this place. They can’t stand to break their friends’ hearts, and so they’ll play their parts. Harriet will be the driven surgical resident who never starts a fight, and Wyn will be the laid-back charmer who never lets the cracks show. It’s a flawless plan (if you look at it from a great distance and through a pair of sunscreen-smeared sunglasses). After years of being in love, how hard can it be to fake it for one week…in front of those who know you best?

Jasmine Randhawa likes everyone to think she has it all—great job, perfect Seattle apartment, and a handsome boyfriend. But she’s not as confident or successful as she seems, and her relationship is at a breaking point.  

When Jasmine finds herself single and tagging along on her parents’ vacation, she’s not sure her life can get any farther off course. It’s a nightmare for someone who’s been so fiercely independent to find herself on a cruise full of family friends who’ve judged her since childhood. Things only get worse once the ship leaves the harbor and she realizes that this is a seniors’ cruise, and the only other person under fifty on the entire boat is her childhood acquaintance, cocky and successful Jake Dhillon.

Jasmine and Jake clash right away, with Jasmine smarting over how their South Asian community puts him on a pedestal as the perfect Indian son, whereas her reputation as a troublemaker precedes her. Except they can’t avoid each other forever during the ten-day cruise, and they soon recognize a surprising number of similarities, especially in how many secrets they’re keeping hidden from their families. Their restlessness seems to disappear whenever they’re together, but is this relationship strong enough to last on land?

September 1896: An aspiring archaeologist, Smith College graduate Betsy Hayes travels to Athens, desperate to break into the male-dominated field of excavation. In the midst of the heat and dust of Greece she finds an unlikely ally in Charles, Baron de Robecourt, one of the few men who takes her academic passion seriously. But when a simmering conflict between Greece and Turkey erupts into open warfare, Betsy throws herself into the conflict as a nurse, not knowing that the decision will change her life forever—and cause a deep and painful rift with her oldest friend, Ava.

June 1898: Betsy has sworn off war nursing—but when she gets the word that her estranged friend Ava is headed to Cuba with Clara Barton and the Red Cross to patch up the wounded in the Spanish-American War, Betsy determines to stop her the only way she knows how: by joining in her place. Battling heat, disease, and her own demons, Betsy follows Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders straight to the heart of the fighting, where she is forced to confront her greatest fears to save both old friends and new….

Set during an electrifying era of nation-building, idealism, and upheaval, Two Wars and a Wedding is the tale of two remarkable women striving to make their place in a man’s world—an unforgettable saga of friendship, love, and fighting for what is right.  

American Josie Anderson and Parisian Arlette LaRue are thrilled to be working in the French resistance, stealing so many Nazi secrets that they become known as the Golden Doves, renowned across France and hunted by the Gestapo. Their courage will cost them everything. When they are finally arrested and taken to the Ravensbrück concentration camp, along with their loved ones, a reclusive Nazi doctor does unspeakable things to Josie’s mother, a celebrated Jewish singer who joined her daughter in Paris when the world seemed bright. And Arlette’s son is stolen from her, never to be seen again.

A decade later the Doves fall headlong into a dangerous dual mission: Josie is working for U.S. Army Intelligence and accepts an assignment to hunt down the infamous doctor, while a mysterious man tells Arlette he may have found her son. The Golden Doves embark on a quest across Europe and ultimately to French Guiana, discovering a web of terrible secrets, and must put themselves in grave danger to finally secure justice and protect the ones they love.

Known as Agent A, Alice is the top operative within the Agency of Undercover Note Takers, a secret government intelligence group that is fortunately better at espionage than at naming itself. From managing deceptive witches to bored aristocratic ladies, nothing is beyond Alice’s capabilities. She has a steely composure and a plan always up her sleeve (alongside a dagger and an embroidered handkerchief). So when rumors of an assassination plot begin to circulate, she’s immediately assigned to the case. 

But she’s not working alone. Daniel Bixby, otherwise known as Agent B and Alice’s greatest rival, is given the most challenging undercover assignment of his life— pretending to be Alice’s husband. Together they will assume the identity of a married couple, infiltrate a pirate house party, and foil their unpatriotic plans. 

Determined to remain consummate professionals, Alice and Daniel must ignore the growing attraction between them, especially since acting on it might prove more dangerous than their target.

Miss Genevieve Wilde―a magistrate’s daughter and independent heiress―is determined to meet life’s challenges all on her own, just as her late father had taught her. So when her father’s pocket watch is stolen, she will do anything to get it back, especially when the local authorities prove incompetent.

Upon reading an advertisement in the paper, she takes a chance and contacts a thief-taker to find the watch. It’s a choice Ginny regrets when former Bow Street officer Jack Travers arrives on her doorstep. He is frustratingly flirtatious, irritatingly handsome, and entirely unpredictable, and Ginny wonders if she’ll be able to resist such a man.

But after Ginny discovers that the missing watch is just a small part of a larger, more frightening plot against her, she needs Jack’s help more than ever. To protect her home and her reputation, the two enter into a risky charade―pretending Jack is her cousin so he can begin his investigation, starting with the household staff. As they work together to unravel the mystery, Ginny finds herself falling fast for her charismatic thief-taker, leaving her heart in just as much danger as her life.

Nola McCollum is the most desirable girl in Arthur’s class, and he is thrilled when they become friends. But Arthur wants far more than friendship. Unfortunately, Nola has a crush on the wrong Moses—Arthur’s older brother, Frank, who is busy pursuing his own love interest and avoiding the boys’ father, a war veteran with a drinking problem and a penchant for starting fights. When a sudden tragedy rocks the family’s world, Arthur struggles to come to terms with his grief. In the end, it is nature that helps him to understand how to go on, beyond loss, and create a life of forgiveness and empathy. But what can he do about Nola, who seems confused about what she wants in life, and only half aware of the one who loves her most?

When Emma Jansen discovers that the grand Long Island estate where she grew up is set to be demolished, she can’t help but return for one last visit. After all, it was a place filled with firsts: learning to ride a bike, sneaking a glass of champagne, falling in love.

But once Emma arrives at the storied mansion, she can’t ignore the more complicated memories. Because that’s not exactly where Emma grew up. Her mother and father worked for the family that owned the estate, and they lived over the garage like Audrey Hepburn’s character in the film Sabrina. Emma never felt fully accepted, except by the family’s grandson, Henry—a former love—and by the driver’s son, Leo—her best friend.

As plans for the property are put into motion and the three are together for the first time in over a decade, Emma finds herself caught between two worlds and two loves. And when the house reveals a shattering secret about her own family, she’ll have to decide what kind of life she really wants for herself now and who she wants to be in it.

When Gerry, the beloved Williams patriarch, dies suddenly, his grandchildren flock from across the country to the family home in Eulalia, Georgia. But when Gerry’s best friend steps up to the microphone to deliver his eulogy, the funeral turns out unlike anyone expected. The cousins, left reeling and confused, cope with their fresh grief and various private dramas. Delia, recently heartbroken, refuses to shut up about her ex. Her sister Alice, usually confident, flusters when she spots her high school sweetheart, hiding a secret that will change both of their lives. Outspoken, affable Grant is preening in the afterglow of his recent appearance on The Bachelorette and looking to reignite an old flame with the least available person in town. Meanwhile, his younger brother Red, unsure of himself and easily embarrassed, desperately searches for a place in the boisterous family.

The cousins’ eccentric parents are in tow, too, and equally lost—in love and in life. Watching over them all is Ellen, Gerry’s sweet and proper widow, who does her best to keep her composure in front of the leering small town.

n a Pacific Northwest hospital far from the Rummani family’s ancestral home in Palestine, the heart of a stillborn baby begins to beat and her skin turns vibrantly, permanently cobalt blue. On the same day, the Rummanis’ centuries-old soap factory in Nablus is destroyed in an air strike. The family matriarch and keeper of their lore, Aunt Nuha, believes that the blue girl embodies their sacred history, harkening back to a time when the Rummanis were among the wealthiest soap-makers and their blue soap was a symbol of a legendary love.

Decades later, Betty returns to Aunt Nuha’s gravestone, faced with a difficult decision: Should she stay in the only country she’s ever known, or should she follow her heart and the woman she loves, perpetuating her family’s cycle of exile? Betty finds her answer in partially translated notebooks that reveal her aunt’s complex life and struggle with her own sexuality, which Nuha hid to help the family immigrate to the United States. But, as Betty soon discovers, her aunt hid much more than that.

In a strange little home built into the branches of a grove of trees, live three robots―fatherly inventor android Giovanni Lawson, a pleasantly sadistic nurse machine, and a small vacuum desperate for love and attention. Victor Lawson, a human, lives there too. They’re a family, hidden and safe.

The day Vic salvages and repairs an unfamiliar android labelled “HAP,” he learns of a shared dark past between Hap and Gio–a past spent hunting humans.

When Hap unwittingly alerts robots from Gio’s former life to their whereabouts, the family is no longer hidden and safe. Gio is captured and taken back to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams. So together, the rest of Vic’s assembled family must journey across an unforgiving and otherworldly country to rescue Gio from decommission, or worse, reprogramming.

Along the way to save Gio, amid conflicted feelings of betrayal and affection for Hap, Vic must decide for himself: Can he accept love with strings attached?

Alejandra no longer knows who she is. To her husband, she is a wife, and to her children, a mother. To her own adoptive mother, she is a daughter. But they cannot see who Alejandra has become: a woman struggling with a darkness that threatens to consume her.
 
Nor can they see what Alejandra sees. In times of despair, a ghostly vision appears to her, the apparition of a crying woman in a ragged white gown.
 
When Alejandra visits a therapist, she begins exploring her family’s history, starting with the biological mother she never knew. As she goes deeper into the lives of the women in her family, she learns that heartbreak and tragedy are not the only things she has in common with her ancestors.
 
Because the crying woman was with them, too. She is La Llorona, the vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. And she will not leave until Alejandra follows her mother, her grandmother, and all the women who came before her into the darkness.
 
But Alejandra has inherited more than just pain. She has inherited the strength and the courage of her foremothers—and she will have to summon everything they have given her to banish La Llorona forever.

In love . . .

For twenty-six-year-old Adelaide Williams, an American living in dreamy London, meeting Rory Hughes was like a lightning bolt out of the blue: this charming Englishman was The One she wasn’t even looking for.

Is it enough?

Does he respond to texts? Honor his commitments? Make advance plans? Sometimes, rarely, and no, not at all. But when he shines his light on her, the world makes sense, and Adelaide is convinced that, in his heart, he’s fallen just as deeply as she has. Then, when Rory is rocked by an unexpected tragedy, Adelaide does everything in her power to hold him together―even if it means losing herself in the process.

When love asks too much of us, how do we find the strength to put ourselves first?

With unflinching honesty and heart, this relatable debut from a fresh new voice explores grief and mental health while capturing the timeless nature of what it’s like to be young and in love―with your friends, with your city, and with a person who cannot, will not, love you back.

There was a plan.

She had the money, the connections, even the brains. It was simple: become one of the only female necromancers, earn as many degrees as possible, get a post in one of the grand cities, then prove she’s capable of greatness. The funny thing about plans is that they are seldom under your control.

Now Aelis de Lenti, a daughter of a noble house and recent graduate of the esteemed Magisters’ Lyceum, finds herself in the far-removed village of Lone Pine. Mending fences, matching wits with goats, and serving people who want nothing to do with her. But, not all is well in Lone Pine, and as the villagers Aelis is reluctantly getting to know start to behave strangely, Aelis begins to suspect that there is far greater need for a Warden of her talents than she previously thought.

Old magics are restless, and an insignificant village on the farthest border of the kingdom might hold secrets far beyond what anyone expected. Aelis might be the only person standing between one of the greatest evils ever known and the rest of the world.

Posted in book review, fiction, paranormal, review, romance

Princess Fallen by Helen Hardt Review

I picked this book up from my local library.

Author: Helen Hardt
Pages: 316
Publisher: Self
Date: October 22, 2022
Website

SUMMARY:
She’s a reluctant vampire princess.

He’s an alpha werewolf…and a murder suspect.

Half-human Hannah Bates isn’t thrilled when her vampire king father orders her to seduce an alpha werewolf—a suspect in a recent murder—to gain his trust and then gather evidence against him. She’s a little less hesitant when she sees a photo of gorgeous Victor Rogan, but even though she must do as her father commands—her blood requires it—she still resists.

Victor Rogan finds the vampire princess intoxicating, and his reaction to her perplexes him. He doesn’t simply desire her. She’s his fated mate…at a time when fated mates among his people have become virtually non-existent. Hannah is no less mesmerized. She craves Victor’s body, his blood, even his love.

But danger and mystery lurk everywhere, and Hannah’s investigation may ultimately cost her much more than her heart.

REVIEW:
I picked this book from my local library while I was browsing the shelves. The cover caught my eye. I flipped the book over and read the description. Well….vampires and werewolves! Let’s go. (Yes I have seen all the Underworld movies and Twilight so I know how it could go down.)

It took me about two days to read this story.

Well this story took me on an adventure. I was jumped into this world with no idea what the background was which was different. I had no idea the vampires were about nor the wolves. I felt like I was shadowing Hannah which was fun.

Hannah was thrown into an investigation and one thing after another happens. I liked Hannah’s attitude towards everything. While she is in Las Vegas trying to figure it all out, the attraction happens with Victor. I loved how she got to have a huge hotel room to lavish in. I want that one day.

Well…sparks went flying when Victor and Hannah see each other. Just wow!

Vampires and wolves are not supposed to mid but somehow they did. They had some spicy moments and some of the moments felt like they were stuck in a succubus mode. Not that am I complaining but it was happening a lot. Why? I am curious. Maybe the author will explain it in book 2? And taking up on each other’s abilities during this process too? It was very interesting. There is biting..so just be warned on that if you do read this amazing story.

So may twists and turns happening in this story that even I felt frustrated like Hannah was. I got the feeling Hannah was having a hard time who to trust. Can Hannah and Victor be together or something is manipulating them? What is going on? The investigation, is it real? What lurks beneath everyone that Hannah comes face to face?

I wish there was more talking between Victor and Hannah.

I am curious to learn more about Victor as well. What about his past? What about his pack?

There are even demons in this story. I did not see that coming. Danger is everywhere! Although I thought the nurse at the end was cool. I had to mention that.

I do want to know more about her mom. Something tells me her mom will be a key to things.

I do hope Victor and Hannah actually do make it!

I will say the cliffhanger caught me off guard! I was like “Whatttttt?”

I definitely need to read the next book! Can I have it now?

(I just looked at the author’s website and she has another whole series on vampires. My to read pile is growing!)

Posted in book review, paranormal, review, romance, vampires

Filthy Rich Vampire by Geneva Lee

I bought this book for myself.

Author: Geneva Lee
Publisher: Estate Books
Date: May 2022
Pages: 392
Website
Instagram

SUMMARY:
Julian Rousseaux has a problem. He’s single, and for the world’s wealthiest vampires, the social season is about to begin. Julian would rather stake himself than participate in the marriage market. But as the eldest, eligible Rousseaux he’s expected to find a wife before the season ends-whether he likes it or not.

When cellist Thea literally stumbles into his life at a gala, he knows she’s the last person he could ever fall in love with. She’s too innocent, too kind, and way too human. But now that she knows about his world, she’s also a walking target. She needs protection. He needs a fake girlfriend to discourage overzealous vampire matchmaking.

So, Julian makes Thea an irresistible offer: pretend to be his lover and he’ll change her life. For one year, they’ll attend the season’s social events together in exchange for his protection and a way out of her mother’s crippling medical debt.

She can’t say no. But the vampire world is impossibly decadent and darker than Thea ever imagined, and Julian’s filthy rich vampire family wants her out of the way. But with each moment they share, new dangers emerge: a desire as forbidden as their stolen touches, an awakening of a long-dead heart, and secrets that could tear them both apart.

My Review
Oh I enjoyed this book. This was a different twist on vampires. I would say about 98% of vampire books that I read, I enjoy them.

Adventure begins with Julian meeting Thea. So much goes on and I’m surprised how Thea could handle everything that was sent her way. One thing after another for her to deal with along with lust between Julian and Thea. Danger lies in many places for her.

The book picks up in the middle as Thea and Julian are thrown into the mist of politics of the vampire world. Julian is not impressed and yet his mother wants him to follow the rules of it all. She even wants to remove Thea from his life. Does she get her chance?

The attraction between Julia and Thea is interesting. There are things that pop up that explain why the attraction was there. I will admit there were some spicy bits in this book such as the opera part. I was not expecting that and how it went down. Warning this book doesn’t have steamy parts 24/7 like some. So if you are looking for steamy all the time, then this book may not be for you.

I liked the story. I liked all the characters who have their own personality and quirks. Thea is cute and musically talented who is also innocent in some aspect. She also has a spot for being sassy/flirty with Julian. She also worries of her mother who is in the hospital.

Julian is a grumpy vampire but also is a tad possessive of Thea. Why is that? You gotta read the book to find out. He also is sooooo wealthy that he doesn’t have to worry about day to day struggles. I get the feeling that Julian struggles with what is right and wrong. Perhaps his human side battles within him?

His mother is one strict bad ass. She is very old and set in her ways and can switch to a killing mode if needed to be. She sounds scary and yet I wonder if you were a friend of hers in a weird way she’d fight for hell for you? That type of thing comes to mind to me.

His father, not much is known about him.

Jacqueline is cool. I like how nice she is to Thea and takes her shopping! Money is no limit. Imagine!! She is professional and kind with Julian even though they have some kind of history.

Julian’s brothers are one of the kind. One of them seems nice as the other seems cocky. Would be interesting to see the author do stories when it’s their turn to get married.

I felt like I needed to express my thoughts on some of the characters. The book does leave at a cliffhanger as I am like..”No!” I may have to buy book number 2 and I just saw there is a book 3 too. I have way too many books to read. I’m hoping more drama, action, and steamy moments in the next book. I’m glad I picked this book up.

Posted in fiction, magic, paranormal, romance, werewolves

Magic, adventure, spooky and quirky books

Time to go adventurous and spooky….

Yo soy quien soy. I am who I am.

Luna—or depending on who’s asking, Rose—is the white-passing daughter of an immigrant mother who has seen what happens to people from her culture. This world is prejudicial, and she must hide her identity in pursuit of owning an illegal jazz club. Using her cunning powers, Rose negotiates with dangerous criminals as she climbs up Kansas City’s bootlegging ladder. Luna, however, runs the risk of losing everything if the crooked city councilmen and ruthless mobsters discover her ties to an immigrant boxcar community that secretly houses witches. Last thing she wants is to put her entire family in danger.

But this bruja with ever-growing magical abilities can never resist a good fight. With her new identity, Rose, an unabashed flapper, defies societal expectations all the while struggling to keep her true self and witchcraft in check. However, the harder she tries to avoid scrutiny, the more her efforts eventually capture unwanted attention. Soon, she finds herself surrounded by greed and every brand of bigotry—from local gangsters who want a piece of the action and businessmen who hate her diverse staff to the Ku Klux Klan and Al Capone. Will her earth magic be enough to save her friends and family? As much as she hates to admit it, she may need to learn to have faith in others—and learning to trust may prove to be her biggest ambition yet.

For generations, every Frankenstein has found their true love and equal, unlocking lifetimes of blissful wedded adventure. Clever, pretty (and odd) Angelika Frankenstein has run out of suitors and fears she may become the exception to this family rule. When assisting in her brother Victor’s ground-breaking experiment to bring a reassembled man back to life, she realizes that having an agreeable gentleman convalescing in the guest suite might be a chance to let a man get to know the real her. For the first time, Angelika embarks upon a project that is all her own.

When her handsome scientific miracle sits up on the lab table, her hopes for an instant romantic connection are thrown into disarray. Her resurrected beau (named Will for the moment) has total amnesia and is solely focused on uncovering his true identity. Trying to ignore their heart-pounding chemistry, Angelika reluctantly joins the investigation into his past, hoping it will bring them closer. But when a second suitor emerges to aid their quest, Angelika wonders if she was too hasty inventing a solution. Perhaps fate is not something that can be influenced in a laboratory? Or is Will (or whatever his name is!) her dream man, tailored for her in every way? And can he survive what was done to him in the name of science, and love?

Control the past.
Save the future.

One morning, Dr. Sam Anderson wakes up to find that the woman he loves has been murdered.

For Sam, the horror is only beginning.

He and his daughter are accused of the crime. The evidence is ironclad. They will be convicted.

And so, to ensure his daughter goes free, Sam does what he must: he confesses.

But in the future, murderers aren’t sent to prison.

Thanks to a machine Sam helped invent, the world’s worst criminals are now sent to the past – approximately 200 million years into the past, to the dawn of the time of the dinosaurs – where they must live out their lives alone, in exile from the human race.

Sam accepts his fate.

But his daughter doesn’t.

Adeline Anderson has already lost her mother to a deadly, unfair disease. She can’t bear to lose her father as well.

So she sets out on a quest to prove him innocent. And to get him back. People around her insist that both are impossible tasks.

But Adeline doesn’t give up. She only works harder.

She soon learns that impossible tasks are her specialty. And that she is made of tougher stuff than she ever imagined.

As she peels back the layers of the mystery that tore her father from this world, Adeline finds more questions than answers. Everyone around her is hiding a secret. But which ones are connected to the murder that exiled her father?

That mystery stretches across the past, present, and future – and leads to a revelation that will change everything.

Rory Morris isn’t thrilled to be moving back to her hometown, even if it is temporary. There are bad memories there. But her twin sister, Scarlett, is pregnant, estranged from the baby’s father, and needs support, so Rory returns to the place she thought she’d put in her rearview. After a night out at a bar where she runs into Ian, an old almost-flame, she hits a large animal with her car. And when she gets out to investigate, she’s attacked.
 
Rory survives, miraculously, but life begins to look and feel different. She’s unnaturally strong, with an aversion to silver—and suddenly the moon has her in its thrall. She’s changing into someone else—something else, maybe even a monster. But does that mean she’s putting those close to her in danger? Or is embracing the wildness inside of her the key to acceptance?

Erin hasn’t been able to set a single boundary with her charismatic but reckless college ex-boyfriend, Silas. When he asks her to bail him out of rehab—again—she knows she needs to cut him off. But days after he gets out, Silas turns up dead of an overdose in their hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and Erin’s world falls apart.
 
Then a friend tells her about Ghost, a new drug that allows users to see the dead. Wanna get haunted? he asks. Grieving and desperate for closure with Silas, Erin agrees to a pill-popping “séance.” But the drug has unfathomable side effects—and once you take it, you can never go back.

Posted in I spy, teen, teens, YA

I spy a new YA Book

I spy this book at work today….

Stephanie Garber

For as long as she can remember, Evangeline Fox has believed in true love and happy endings…until she learns that the love of her life will marry another.

Desperate to stop the wedding and to heal her wounded heart, Evangeline strikes a deal with the charismatic, but wicked, Prince of Hearts. In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to be given at the time and place of his choosing.

But after Evangeline’s first promised kiss, she learns that bargaining with an immortal is a dangerous game ― and that the Prince of Hearts wants far more from her than she’d pledged. He has plans for Evangeline, plans that will either end in the greatest happily ever after, or the most exquisite tragedy…

Posted in book review, vampires

Lauren Smith Vampire Books Review

I came upon Lauren’s books from reading her “Midnight with the Devil” by Emma Castle (Her other name).
I asked her if she wrote any paranormal and she said yes under the name of Lauren Smith.
I ended up purchasing the vampire ones.
So let us begin the reviews.

Sorry that it has been a while, dealing with life and my mental status.

Lauren Smith
Twitter
Instagram

SUMMARY:
She is theirs to claim. They are hers to save.

Zoey Blake is about as far down on her luck as she can get. A car crash took her parents, leaving her destitute and on the street. When she’s attacked by another homeless person, her lifeblood drains away as her fading vision is filled with the face of a handsome stranger.

Ian Kennedy, a century old Irish vampire, never could resist rescuing a stray. As a few drops of his blood heals Zoey’s wounds, he realizes she’s a sweet, tempting, flesh-and-blood woman. But there’s one problem. Connor, who made Ian promise decades ago: no more mortal lovers.

After another vampire murdered his soulmate, Connor O’Shea swore never to let a mortal woman pay the price for loving him. Until he feels Zoey’s skin and tastes her lips. She makes him want to break that vow.

Zoey finds herself caught in their web of seduction. But as Christmas draws near and her grief deepens, happiness seems far out of reach. And Ian and Connor join forces to prove their love is sacred, special…and forever.

Warning: This book contains two scorching-hot Irish vampires, one lady with plenty of pluck but zero luck, naughty lingerie, and enough Christmas cheer to redeem even the darkest creatures.

MY REVIEW:
This one caught me off guard. I would have never thought of a story like this. The beginning was cute as Ian was adorable. Sensitive vampire guy! While Connor is a bit different. He shows off his tough and macho side. Two opposite ends of the spectrum. When Zoey enters the picture, things change for the two vampires. It was a sweet and simple story. I did have to chuckle at a few parts of how Zoey’s reaction to a few things. It was a really sweet book and the ending was great. Something different. I’m glad I read it!! Can I have another adventure of the trio?

SUMMARY:
Sadie Harris doesn’t like immortals. After vampires leave her an orphan, she’s raised by her grandmother at the edge of a werewolf pack’s territory. As a fox shifter she knows the rules about werewolves: Stay clear of the boundaries, never go out after dark during the full moon and take a vacation far, far away when she goes into her shifter mating heat or else she’ll attract literal “big bad wolves.” But when her flight gets cancelled and her mating heat is coming – so are the wolves. The last thing she expects is to get rescued by a tall, dark and gorgeous man…er…vampire. What’s a vixen to do? Seamus Gallagher might be immortal but his life is full of mortal problems: he’s been framed for the murder of the woman his two best friends loved; he’s on a mission to find and kill his sire; and, he has no idea what to do with the feisty red-headed vixen he just rescued from a vicious werewolf pack. He doesn’t have time to babysit a skittish shifter who hates vampires, but when he looks at her, Seamus sees trouble. Sexy, sweet, and irresistible trouble. The last thing this vamp needs is to fall in love.

MY REVIEW:
I love this one!! I ordered the book from amazon as the cover is a bit different than the kindle edition. Both covers are gorgeous! Oh by gosh, the sass between Sadie and Seamus after they literally meet! It was perfect. I did like Seamus motorcycle move. As Seamus gets involved with Sadie, the adventure builds up. Dealing with Sadie’s grandma, wolves, friends from the past, and enemy from the past, Seamus is doing the best he can. Even Sadie tries to cope with everything going around especially vampires. I literally could not put this book down due to the action, story, steamy cute moments, and everything! I just had to know what was going to happen between the two with their adventure. I like how the story builds up which is the best! Even the connection and conversation between Sadie and Seamus is just perfect. A real connection is so fun to see. You’ll have to read it how it goes down. There are a few steamy parts in the book but those steamy parts actually tie in with what was going on in the story since Sadie is in heat. She’s a fox after all!

Posted in Historical Romance, I spy, romance

I spy Romance

I spy some Romance….

Let’s get swept away….

Dream away….

Take your pick.

Perpetually cheerful and eager to please, Gracie Cooper strives to make the best out of every situation. So when her father dies just months after a lung cancer diagnosis, she sets aside her dreams of pursuing her passion for art to take over his Midtown Manhattan champagne shop. She soon finds out that the store’s profit margins are being squeezed perilously tight, and complicating matters further, a giant corporation headed by the impossibly handsome, but irritatingly arrogant Sebastian Andrews is proposing a buyout. But Gracie can’t bear the thought of throwing away her father’s dream like she did her own.

Overwhelmed and not wanting to admit to her friends or family that she’s having second thoughts about the shop, Gracie seeks advice and solace from someone she’s never met—the faceless “Sir”, with whom she connected on a blind dating app where matches get to know each other through messages and common interests before exchanging real names or photos.

But although Gracie finds herself slowly falling for Sir online, she has no idea she’s already met him in real life…and they can’t stand each other.

When Royal Academy painting student Lucy Coover trips over a naked man passed out in an East End alley, she does the decent thing. She covers him up and fetches help. Trouble is, she can’t banish his muscular form from her dreams as easily. Compelled to capture every detail, she creates a stunning portrait but is forced to sell it when the rent comes due. What could be worse than surrendering the very picture of your desire? Meeting the man himself. 

Anthony Philby, Duke of Weston, is nobody’s muse. Upon discovering the scandalous likeness, he springs into action. His infamous family has been torn apart by shame and secrets, and he can’t afford more gossip. Even a whisper may jeopardize his inheritance and his chance at independence. His plan is simple: burn the painting, confront the artist. Or rather, it’s simple until he meets Lucy and decides to offer the bewitching young artist a devil’s bargain.  He’ll help save her foreclosed home, if she’ll help repair his family’s brutal legacy.

An irresistible passion ignites between them, but when danger strikes, Lucy and Anthony must risk everything… for a love that might destroy them both.

SOMETIMES YOU’RE THE CURSE . . .

Disgraced wedding planner Zuri Davis is so relieved to be offered a job with Fairy Godmothers, Inc., she’s willing to trade the high-rise excitement of Chicago for the small-town charm of Ever After. Falling for one of her grooms, even unintentionally, was enough destroy her career—and also to prove that all men are indeed frogs. But when she meets gorgeous B&B owner Philip Charming, who definitely lives up to his name, even she is tempted to test that theory . . .

AND SOMETIMES YOU’RE THE CURE

Three hundred years as a frog by day and himself by night, is enough to test any man’s patience—even if Philip knows he deserved Petunia’s curse. It certainly taught him not to mess around when it comes to making promises. And stubborn, proud Zuri is a woman he’d like to promise his heart and everything else to—if only he weren’t a sometimes-frog. Can he hope for True Love’s Kiss from a woman whose trust has been so thoroughly broken?

Posted in update

Update on Reading

I am around — just been a tad busy. Right now I have 3 e-Arcs to read (two romance and one paranormal) and two physical books (cowboy romance and a paranormal romance) that I bought and then I just recently snagged 3 books from the library that were going to be donated to the book sale (fantasy action books). So I’m juggling books and everything else around me.

How have you been?

Posted in book review, New Adult, New Adult Fiction, paranormal, romance

Review: Midnight with the Devil by Emma Castle

I received a copy of this book from the author for an honest review!



SUMMARY:
What would you do to save a loved one’s life? Make a pact with the Devil?

In Diana Kingston’s defense, it was the middle of the night in the deserted hospital chapel… surely it was just a dream. She hadn’t really sold herself to a brooding stranger to save her father’s life, right? Then she wakes and her father is fully recovered and a mysterious letter arrives from the tall, dark, handsome—um, Devil? Yep, it was right there on the contract, Lucien Star, aka Lucifer Morningstar, that had been his name in the dream… Gulp. What would the Devil himself want with her? Sex. Three months of hot, sweaty, Friday night sex.

Breaking a pact with the Devil doesn’t seem like a smart move. So she’ll do it—but she won’t like it. Not much anyway. But she starts liking it – a lot—and every night they spend together, she likes it and Lucien a little more. Being with him allows her naughty side to come out and play, but Diana starts to see more than just a sexy-as-sin, rock-hard … er…Anyway, he might be Satan, but even he was an angel once. Kind. Noble. And she sees glimpses of that man still inside him… But how in Heaven’s name do you save the Devil from himself?

MY REVIEW:
Well this book was steamy. I honestly say it has been a while since I’ve read something this steamy. I admit I did blush at a few things! If you do not like really really steamy things then this book may not be for you. Remember I write reviews that I like and capture my attention. I ended up reading this book last night in one sitting, I could not put it down. I had to know what was going to happen.

The connection of Diana and Lucien (Lucifer) at first is what you think it would be when the deal being made, pretty straightforward deal right? They’d meet up and do the deed and be on the way right? Well, when they continue to meet each time, ,the connection between the two begin to grow for the better. It was pretty intense connection.

I did like the paranormal aspects to the story when Lucien used his powers.

There were even some funny parts that I did now see coming. Text messages back and forth was so fun to read! When Diana ends up taking Lucien grocery shopping. Just imagine! There are a few bit more scenes that had me smiling.

The ending I did not see coming!! My heart was like on a roller coaster.

When I finished the book and had a few moments to think about it, the story kind of reminded me of the tv show “Lucifer”. They are so similar and yet so different. If you liked the tv show Lucifer, you might like this book since it’s a tad steamier than the show. I really liked the book.

One word that keeps sticking out in my mind is “Pineapple.” If you read the book you know what I’m talking about. (blushes)

Well the author made an impression on me with this story.

Posted in update

Juggling books!

I have been juggling books here and there!
Here is what’s going on.

I am still reading “Second First Impressions”.

I am currently reading e- Arc “The Promise of Summer”

I bought “Dreaming of the Wolf”

I want to get “Must Love Cowboys” because Estelle from “Forever” mentioned it to be because it has a librarian in it!! My inner geek is like yessssss! So I may order this.

Then I saw this book “Pause” on my instagram! I can’t remember who posted it….the cover drew me in. I read what the story was about and it’s going in my to read pile!