Review: Don't Look (Pike, Wisconsin #1)

Don't Look (Pike, Wisconsin #1)

by Alexandra Ivy 

Blurb:

IF YOU'RE ON HIS LIST

A woman's naked body is discovered, cold and pale as the surrounding snow--except for the crimson scarf around her neck. The weeks that follow bring more victims and evidence of a terrifying pattern. The killer has a list. And every woman on it will get what she deserves . . .

YOU'RE AS GOOD

Dr. Lynne Gale followed in her father's footsteps to become a vet in Pike, Wisconsin. For years, she's had little contact with Kir Jansen, son of the town's late sheriff. Suddenly he's back, insisting that Lynne's in danger. She can't believe anyone would target her, but someone is hunting the women of Pike, savoring every last moment.

AS DEAD

Kir hoped that his father's frantic calls about a serial killer were just an old man's delusions. But the body count doesn't lie. In this quiet town, a monster stalks and kills. And soon, Lynne's will be the last name on his list . . .

Themes:  Contemporary

Rating:  4 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

 A serial killer, two childhood friends turned lovers, and one small town—what more could you ask for in an all new series from best-selling author Alexandra Ivy. I began my love affair with Ms. Ivy’s writing in her paranormal world, but when she branched into these romantic suspense novels I jumped at the chance to read them and have never looked back.  This new series is set in the small town of Pike Wisconsin, a little town with a lot of big secrets it seems.  Former Sherriff Jansen has died and his son, Kir,  has returned to town to lay his to rest and handle his affairs, but he runs into the sweet and sexy town veterinarian, Lynne Gale.  When he decides to try to strike up a friendship with Lynne, they are quickly both pulled into a dangerous and deadly game of cat and mouse.  A serial killer is on the loose, one who’s identify Kir’s father had been trying to uncover for decades, and he has Lynne in his crosshairs.  As the bodies continue to pile up, Kir and Lynne are fighting against time, the lack of evidence, and the local law enforcement, all of whom think they are either to blame or are interfering with the hunt for the killer.  The closer they get to the killer, and to one another, the more they have to come to trust and depend on one another, or Lynne might well be the killer’s big finale.  This story was intriguing in many ways, with a lot of suspense, and intrigue as we watched the killer strike again and again, despite Kir and Lynne’s best effort to thwart him, but the connection between Kir and Lynne developed beautifully and you could watch them fall in love as they grew closer together.  Kir has a lot of baggage from his youth, his relationship with his father, and the choices he made to leave his hometown, but coming back and reconnecting with Lynne is opening his eyes and making him see that he can chose to change.  I enjoyed watching him find his way, flexing his mind as he investigated and of course kicking butt as they took down the killer in the end, but my favorite part of Kir’s characters was his sweetness and the way he nurtured and cared for Lynne as he saw how much she gave of herself.  He truly was a man who appreciated her for the woman she was inside and out. Lynne has spent so many years wearing herself to the bone, caring for those around her and the animals in her care, that she has let taking care of herself become the least priority for her.   When Kir comes into her life, she immediately tries to care for him and give him the love and support he needs, but when he reciprocates she is beyond surprised and the love that develops as they care for one another surprises her I think. She was strong, smart, and brave when faced with several unknown situations, and she never let anyone take advantage of her once she knew their secrets.  I could imagine a woman like her becoming a great friend.  The passion between these two was more of a slow burning fire than a bright and blazing spark, which is better to keep them warm long into the future in those freezing WI nights. I am looking forward to seeing what comes next for this small town, and seeing who falls in love next.  I personally am definitely ready for another whirlwind masterpiece.

*ebook provided by publisher (via NetGalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

ARC Mini-Review: Heart of Gold (Dark Kings #18.6)

 Heart of Gold (Dark Kings #18.6)

by Donna Grant

Blurb:

He’s loved her for eons, wanted her forever, and a day never passes without her at the forefront of his mind. 

The only way Con could pass the time as his fellow Dragon Kings slept away the centuries was to record his thoughts in journals: one for his responsibilities as King of Dragon Kings, and another for the object of his desire. Now that she’s finally back in his life and his arms, it’s time she learns the truth. He played a part all those eons—maybe a little too well—but he never stopped loving her, and his journal will show her just how much.

But Con is the one in for a surprise as his mate turns the tables on him and leads him on a merry chase. If he can find her, he knows he’s in for something special. But then again, every day is extraordinary with his love by his side. And, thankfully, their future has never looked brighter.

Themes:   Paranormal, Short Story

Rating: 4.25 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

So as far as short stories go, I’m not usually a fan, mostly because I feel like they are over too quick for any kind of development or connection for me.  However, in the case of these short stories, revolving around our favorite Dreagan couple I am more than willing to accept the shorter length for the continued glimpses into their love story and developing relationship. Grant is giving us these stories, all about Rhi and Con, who have finally found their way back into each other’s arms after millennia apart, and we are getting to experience the rush and happiness right alongside them.  They are dealing with a lot of heavy issues, including the knowledge that their twins were not lost so long ago, but that they have grown into beautiful adults, ones that don’t seem to want anything to do with their parents. Each of the short stories to my understanding will be another glimpse into Con’s journals over the long separation from his mate and Rhi will get to experience the love and longing that he carried stoically for so long.  In this story Rhi first gets to read the infamous “red journal” that Con has been keeping so long and she sees the pain and yearning her mate lived with and hid so well.  As she experiences it, she devises a way to show him, in the present, just how much she loved him all those years as well and how much more she continues to love him each day.  I really enjoyed the glimpses of their love and the information we got about the overall arc as it continues.  I will say that for readers that haven’t read the new spin-off series, I don’t recommend jumping into this story because you’ll get some spoilers for that book (Dragon Revealed), but otherwise this story could only have been better had it been a little bit (or you know, a LOT) longer. Another lovely idea from Grant, and I look forward to continuing Con and Rhi’s epic love story right along with them.    

*eARC provided by author for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

ARC Review: Filthy Rich Prince (Filthy Rich Billionaires #2)

Filthy Rich Prince (Filthy Rich Billionaires #2)

by Lynn Raye Harris

Blurb:

He’s rich, ruthless, and royal. He will make her his wife…

Single mother Lily Morgan knows what it’s like to struggle. Not a day goes by that she doesn’t work hard to survive. But when she’s thrown in jail in a foreign country, she has no idea she’s about to come face to face with the prince who took her virginity and left her pregnant two years ago.

Nico Cavelli might’ve released Lily from his dungeon, but he’s not letting her go. She stole his son and heir, and he can’t forgive that. He’ll make her his princess – and he’ll make her pay for keeping his child a secret.

What he will never do is show her any mercy.

Or fall in love with her…

Themes:  Contemporary

Rating: 4 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

When I first learned the this series was getting a new expanded and updated look, I was willing to be open-minded and give it a try because Lynn Raye Harris is really one of my favorite authors, and I am extremely grateful I was.  The first book in the series was all about two people that made assumptions and acted our of revenge and retribution instead of trying for understanding and forgiveness, and the theme continues in this second installment in the series.  Harris takes us to a foreign world of a small country in Europe ruled exclusively by their royal family, and tells the story of a young single mother that finds herself caught in the web of the Crown Prince.   Harris’s skill with human emotion and the ways that miscommunication and assumptions can change a person’s life irrevocably in a single moment remind us once again that just one decision is the difference sometimes between utter defeat and total happiness.  If you are a fan of the HOT series you might find this one a little bit different, in that the men are anti-heroes but in the end they find a way to redeem themselves and show their women that they are deserving of their love and devotion.  A true story of redemption and forgiveness, Filthy Rich Prince, teaches us that sometimes letting go of the past is the only way to have the future we truly want.

Nico Cavelli has found himself cast into the one role he never wanted in life, and now he has to step into his late brother’s shoes as the Crown Prince, even going so far as to take a fiancé he doesn’t love.  Lily Morgan is trapped in jail for a crime she didn’t commit in a country she never wanted to travel to in the first place and she wants only to escape to get home to her son. Neither of them ever thought to see each other again, but when Nico is shown evidence that Lily is the mother of his young son, there is no way he is letting her go.  Giving her the option of staying in prison or becoming his wife, Nico knows that she will soon be under his control, however he vastly underestimates her impact on him and her ability to change him, for the better.  As they try to find a way to navigate this new relationship, despite the hatred between them, enemies around every corner, and the secrets they both keep, the passion is undeniable and begins to bring them closer together until soon there is no denying that they might be able to have a future, if they can learn to forgive and accept.

So let’s be real, Nico is an asshole for like 80% of this story, no getting around it, but that’s what makes him the ultimate anti-hero. He has had an emotionally stunted upbringing, despite having all the money and prestige, but he only ever loved or had the love of one person—other than Lily. Once his brother is gone, he is adrift in a sea of anger and failure, and finding out about Lily and his son, only compounds it, until he finally learns to open up to the happiness that having them back in his life could offer him.  I loved seeing him finally come to accept that his past may have shaped him, but it didn’t have to define him, only his choices now and where he wanted his future to go with his new family would do that. Lily obviously has had a really rough life, but she never gave up, especially when it came to her son or claiming her place in the world.  Even when she is thrown into the viper pit, she stands up for herself and demands her place in Nico’s life and that he let go of the past or she’s not ever going to truly be his. She was brave, smart, sweet, and loving through and through, even when she had moments of doubt and anger, she never let them change the core of who she was.  Her obvious love and devotion to her son and those that showed her they deserved it made her a great character.  She really was the perfect woman to show Nico that he was living his life all wrong and make him into the man he was always meant to be.

The story of two people, finding their way back together after one fleeting but deep connection that was severed, Filthy Rich Prince, is another masterpiece by Harris. While some readers might not enjoy it as much, because  certainly anti-hero stories are not for everyone, this one is beautifully written, filled with passion and the power of redemption.  I loved every moment of getting to know Lily and seeing her spread her wings, even under the oppressive new life she was forced to step into.  She is certainly the strong, sweet, and loving woman that every anti-hero needs in order to find his own personal goodness and path to become a hero. Nico, while an asshole in the beginning, begins to find his inner light and actually allow himself to show it to Lily and the readers so that we could connect with him.  I enjoyed seeing him deal with someone finally challenging him and his conceptions of his power, forcing him to understand what his power would never extend to controlling everything and everyone. In the end, their blazing passion and the sweet love they shared as youths was what allowed them to grow into their new relationship and find a way back into one another’s arms and build a future for their family.  I am seriously looking forward to the next story in this series and hope that she continues to write the stories, because who doesn’t love a good billionaire anti-hero getting his life rearranged by a strong and determined woman not willing to take shit from him. Great work Lynn!

*eARC provided by author for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

Review: Highland Treasure (Highland Brides #9)

Highland Treasure (Highland Brides #9)

by Lynsay Sands

Blurb:

After escaping from the English soldiers who attacked her home and imprisoned her in a dungeon, Lady Elysande de Valance is grateful for the rugged Scots who are escorting her to safety in the Highlands. Even with danger dogging their every step, she hadn’t expected to welcome the strong comforting embrace of their leader, Rory Buchanan. They say he’s a healer, but she finds the heat of his touch does so much more...

Let his brothers get married—Rory is too busy tending to the sick to be bothered with wooing a bride. But when he is tasked with accompanying a family friend’s “treasure” to the Highlands, he is surprised to learn the treasure is a beautiful woman on the run—and even more surprised to discover bruises hidden by her veil. Rory makes it his mission to tend to her injuries and protect her, but the thought of losing her makes him realize that perhaps it is his heart that is most in need of healing…

Themes:  Historical, Scotland

Rating: 4.5 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

 The young healer finds his own love story in the most unlikely of places in this ninth installment of the Highland Brides series.  I have been a huge fan of Lynsay Sands for a long time, first with her paranormal series and then when I stumbled onto her amazing historical writing.  Rory’s long-awaited story had been one that readers have been begging and dying for a while now, myself included, because he is just the kind of sweet but strong and smart guy we all want for ourselves.  Rory Buchannan has watch his sister and older brothers fall head-over-heels for their mates in recent years and begin their own families, but his has a much higher calling than settling down to start raising a family.  His renowned healing skills have him very much in need and able to make his way to very interesting places, even learning her skills along the way, but he has yet to meet a lass than grabs him enough to settle his wanderlust.  When he is asked by a family friend to escort the young Lady Elysande to safety he never imagined she would be the ultimate end to his life as he knows it, and one he would happily embrace. Lady Elysande has had to flee from everything and everyone she knows and loves in order to remain alive and hopefully find a way to rescue her family and friends, but Rory Buchanan is not what she expected to say the least.  Instantly they are attracted to one another, despite Elysande’s fears about her future and the actions of men in her past, and soon she knows that she doesn’t want a future without Rory.  But the enemy lurks much closer than either Rory or Elysande ever imagined and other together, with a little help of the other Buchanans will either or them survive in order to have a chance for the future they have both realized they want together. Lady Elysande was the type of woman I imagine I would have wanted as a friend in these perilous times for women.  She was sassy enough to keep herself from being cowed under by the men that wanted to control her life, but still sweet enough to offer her whole heart in love to the man that truly earned it.  At the same time she was brave enough to stand up against tyranny and for those she loved, even knowing it might well cost her life. There was so much passion between these two once they let go and accepted the rightness of it. I enjoyed every moment of the laughter, heartbreak and ultimate strength these two showed as they found their way into one another’s arms and an HEA together.  I cannot wait for the next book in the series and to see the next man fall in love with a great woman.  Honestly, I have no idea how Sands comes up with all these unique and shocking plots and twists but I guarantee she will never let her readers down.  Sexy, sweet, heartbreaking, and fulfilling to the end!

*eARC provided by publisher (via NetGalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

Review: Deadly Past (Verona Bay #2)

Deadly Past (Verona Bay #2)

by Katie Reus

Blurb:

She lost everything once…

Autumn Perez was just twenty-two when she witnessed a brutal murder and gave up her entire life to put the killer behind bars. A decade later, witness protection has her settled in picturesque Verona Bay, teaching art at the local high school. It’s a quiet life…until she’s caught up in another harrowing event and she worries that the US Marshals will try to move her again. But Autumn is done running—she’s built a life, has friends. And now she’s pregnant after an intense one-night stand with her sexy neighbor.

This time she’s not running…

Lincoln Jordan has been biding his time with Autumn, his talented, gorgeous neighbor. The attraction between them is undeniable, and after their one incredible night together he wants more. But she’s determined to keep him at arm’s length. When it becomes clear that someone wants her dead, he steps up to protect her. He needs to earn her trust, and fast. Because the enemy is closer than they ever imagined.

Themes:  Contemporary

Rating: 4.5  stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

Honestly I do not know where Katie finds all of these crazy and terrifying storylines within her own imagination but all I can say is her brain must be a scary place to live at times. I was thrilled when I learned Katie was beginning a new contemporary series and after the first book I knew I was going to be a fan, but the Verona Bay series just gets more and more interesting. This second addition to the series revolves around friends and family of the first couple, Autumn and Lincoln, who each have secrets and issues, but they are undeniably drawn to one another.  Autumn knows she needs to stay away from Lincoln, mainly because he is such a good guy and she wants him so badly, but she has deadly secrets in her past that would put him in danger if she tried to keep him.  Lincoln has wanted his sexy neighbor since the first moment he met her, but the more time he spends getting to know her, the deeper that need becomes. When Autumn’s life suddenly seems to be in peril, Lincoln will do anything to keep her safe despite her pushing him away, and Autumn will have to decide if the connection between them is important enough for her to take a risk and tell him the truth about her past.  Before it is too late.  I loved every second of this story and am literally dying of anticipation for the next one. Lincoln is such a good guy, caring for his friends and family, offering a shoulder to a woman in need, and then giving his entire heart to her when she finally lets him.  He is brave, sweet, sexy, and badass enough to protect those he loves from all comers.  Seeing him in action as he protected his woman from those after her reminded me that still waters truly do run deep and nothing was going to stop him in his quest for her safety.  Autumn was an interesting character, brave in some ways, fearful in too many others, but knowing her past, we can understand and forgive her those foibles.  While she obviously feels deeply for Lincoln, she is just as determined to keep him safe and the only way she can think to do so is to push him away and keep their connection from turning into a deep love that she knows it could. She was sweet and calm at the moment odd of moments, but others she was kickass and the perfect match for her man.  I liked seeing their friendship develop, even as the fire burned between them, because it let them learn more about one another and know that once they gave into the passion the banked fires would flare into an inferno.  I am really looking forward to the next in the series, though at the same time a little bit terrified of the kind of villain Katie will come up with next because so far in this series they have been pretty damn scary to be honest.  But I guess that is what makes a great writer—terrifyingly hate-able villains, and perfectly lovable heroes all rolled into a perfect romantic story. Another instant hit!

*ebook provided by publisher (via NetGalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

Review: A Highlander is Coming to Town (Highland, Georgia #3)

A Highlander is Coming to Town (Highland, Georgia #3)

by Laura Trentham 

Blurb:

You better watch out. . .

Holt Pierson is dreading Christmas. His parents absconded to Florida for the season and left him to handle the family farm which will be his one day―whether he wants it or not. Driven by duty, Holt has always followed the path expected of him. But lately, he’s been questioning what he wants and where he belongs. Will assuming the responsibility of the Pierson farm make him happy or is there something―or someone―else out in the wider world calling to him?

To Claire Smythe, the Scottish lead singer of a touring band, Highland, Georgia, is the perfect place to hide . . .until a very handsome and deeply curious Holt begins to ask all the questions Claire doesn’t want to answer. As Holt draws Claire out from under and into the fabric of small-town life, can Claire put the past behind her and embrace the unexpected gifts of the season―including the new and lasting love? 

Themes:  Contemporary

Rating: 4 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

 Another Highlander finds a home, in a different Highland than you would expect, but one that certainly embodies the spirit of the Scots through and through. This series set in Highland, Georgia, has provided some laughs and groans this past year as two other couples have found love and redemption in their lives.  Holt Pierson has watch two of his best friends find love with big Scotsman that landed in their small town and he has never felt more lonely.  When he runs into Claire, in a seriously low moment in her life, he wants nothing more than to offer to help her, despite her prickliness and obvious reluctance to take help from anyone. Claire has temporarily settled in to the small southern town in order to come to some serious conclusion about choices she needs to make for her future.  She doesn’t want to form connections or fall in love, but the more Holt pushes his gentlemanly assistance on her, the more deeply she begins to fall for his good-ole-boy charms. Holt and Claire are soon wrapped up in one another and the secrets begin to come to light for them both, but Holt is determined to fight for her love and to keep her with him, if only she accepts him.  I enjoyed this story very much, with Holt exhibiting all of my favorite southern gentlemanly traits and I loved seeing him as he found a way to work through the sadness he was dealing with my helping others.  He was obviously in need of a good woman to show him that sometimes all we need is a tiny connection to another person to hold onto.  Claire was an enigma and a little bit of a hedgehog through most of the story, biting back at those around her when they got to close, but she slowly began to show her soft underbelly and the woman underneath was truly a great person.  Together the two of them will definitely be a strong and loving force of good in the world.  The sweetness of the heat between them was a banked fire that made me think the fire will burn forever, with flares of passion at all the right times to keep things from getting too boring, of course.  I am not sure if this series will continue, I think it might have ended here, but either way I enjoyed these three stories and I look forward to more by this author.

*ebook provided by publisher (via NetGalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

ARC Review: Dragon Revealed (Dragon Kings #1)

Dragon Revealed (Dragon Kings #1)
by Donna Grant

Blurb:

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Donna Grant comes a new story in her Dragon Kings series…

The capture of a Dragon King is cause for celebration. Jeyra never dreamed she would actually face one of the creatures who destroyed her home. But the longer she’s around him, the more she finds herself gravitating to him. All it takes is one reckless kiss that unleashes desires and the truth that has been hidden from her to set them both on a course that could be the end of them.

Varek, King of Lichens, has known nothing but a life with magic. Until he finds himself on a different realm unable to call up his powers. Worse, he’s in shackles with no memory of how it happened. When he sees an enthralling woman who leaves him speechless, he believes he can charm her to free him. The more she rebuffs him, the more he craves her, igniting a dangerous passion between them. Can he protect the woman he’s fallen for while uncovering the truth – or will peril that neither see coming tear them apart?

Themes:  Paranormal, Dragon-Shifters, Magic

Rating: 4.25 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

The world of Donna Grant’s Dragon Kings gets a makeover with an all new cast of characters and a new world with new rules in this spinoff of her beloved Dark Kings series. Donna Grant has captivated readers for years with her sensual and tantalizing Dragon Kings and the women that manage to steal their hearts and this new series looks like it will be just as amazing. The story picks up directly after the ending of Con’s story overlapping with the short Holiday novella that was released, but there is so much going on in the Dragon Kings's lives that it just gets better and better with each story.  Varek is pulled into a new world and learns the fate of their dragons finally and meets the woman meant for him in the most unlikely of circumstances. For long-time readers, this story brings a lot of tears, both happy and sad, as we learn this long held secret, and we also get the hope that the series will continue for many years to come.  I am already dying for the next story and to learn more about Con and Rhi’s twins and to see where that storyline goes.

Varek, King of the Lichens, is in serious trouble.  He has been captured and locked in a prison in a strange world full of new enemies but the scariest thing of all is he is utterly defenseless—unable to access his innate magic, shift into his dragon, or access his immortal healing.  While he knows he can get away from his captors, he needs information first so that he can keep the other kings safe from this new enemy.  Jeyra has fulfilled her lifelong quest to capture a Dragon King, in order to kill him as retaliation for the death of her family and many others on her world at the hands of other dragons and their Kings.  Despite breaking all the rules to do it, she doesn’t regret pulling Varek to her world, until the council forces her to interrogate him, then she has to face her choices. The more she learns from Varek and gets to know him, the more she questions her entire life and the outlook she has on the dragons and the actions of both sides of her people’s war in the past. When the time comes to make a decision on who to trust, both Varek and Jeyra have to decide if their newly formed bond is strong enough to withstand the truths they are discovering and take a chance on a new life together.  Or if the long-standing feud between Dragons and the people of Jeyra’s world will pull them apart.

We haven’t gotten to know Varek very well in previous stories in the long-running series, so it was great to get to know him and learn more about his troubled past. Varek has lived a long and tormented life with struggles that would make any mortal give up, but he has preservered and found joy in the small things and friendships with the other Dragon Kings, despite his desire for a Mate of his own and the dragons he sent away for their safety so long ago.  He is a strong and sensual male that instantly pulls you in and makes you want to make him your own, reminding us all that some men are truly honorable and sweet even when they are deadly and dangerous to their enemies.  He was obviously intelligent and cunning, but I found the best trait of Varek’s to be his forgiving heart. His willingness to forgive Jeyra’s mistake in the light of her ignorance and the connection they formed showed him to be a truly great male and one that I would like to have for myself. Jeyra has lived her life with a certain understanding of the way the world works, but as she begins to look deeper she finds herself in some serious danger, and the questions that Varek is pushing her to ask herself are even more vexing.  While she has a reason in her mind to hate Dragons, there is always a deeper truth, and thankfully she is open-minded enough to know that only by knowing the full truth can she make a decision about how to live her life.  I didn’t like Jeyra at first, which was the intention I think, but as she begins to open her heart and mind, I found her to be an honorable, intelligent and brave match for Varek. While she has certainly had a lot of bumps in her long life as well, she is not a hateful person by nature, more a misguided woman who finally learns the truth of her world at the insistence of a truly loving male. In the end Jeyra was a brave woman that was forced to face a life-changing choice that rocked her to her core, but this made her a better woman and mate for Varek.

I was so thrilled to learn that Donna was continuing this series and leaning into an all new world, giving us new characters to meet, new rules to learn, and new adventures.  Varek is lost in an alien world, but he immediately feels the connection to the sexy woman that is sent to interrogate him for his captors and knows that there is no way he can just walk away from her.  His fears for his life are very real in his weakened state, but he is confident enough in his life experiences and his charm that he knows he will get out of his prison and home safely, now he just needs to convince Jeyra she is meant to come with him.  Jeyra has a lot of learn about herself and her people, having lived in the dark all her long life, but with the truths she faces she comes to realize that she might have been on the wrong side of the battle all along.  I loved seeing her growing into the perfect mate for Varek and the two of them coming together to bridge the gaps between their two worlds in the most meaningful of ways.  The passion between them is a steady undercurrent from the beginning, both of them burning slowly to a point of undeniable flash burn.  Once the love develops though, there is no way they will give up on a future together, no matter the dangers and difficult choices they have to face to have a life of love and happiness.  This story was truly one of two worlds coming together in a clash that would forever change them both and allow them to meld in a way that will make them both better.  I am dying to see where this new series goes and have so many questions.  Who will visit Jeyra’s home world next to visit the dragons? Will Rhi and Con finally get to meet their twins? Will the new truce between the Dragons and Jeyra’s people last?  I cannot wait for more… but I know whatever comes, Donna will make it worth the time it takes!      

*eARC provided by author for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

Review: Hit Me With Your Best Scot (Wild Wicked Highlanders #3)

Hit Me With Your Best Scot (Wild Wicked Highlanders #3)

by Suzanne Enoch

Blurb:

Coll MacTaggert, Viscount Glendarril, is a big, brawny Highlander who doesn’t like being told what to
do—not even by his exasperated English mother who is determined to see her eldest son wedded and bedded. However, when he comes to the rescue of an irresistibly beautiful woman, Coll discovers that he may have found his perfect match…

The challenge isn’t that Persephone Jones is famous, wealthy, independent, and smarter than anyone he knows. The problem is that she is not interested in marrying any man---especially not a hot-headed Scot—even if he is the only man who seems to understand who she really is even when she’s not sure herself. When Coll learns that Persephone is actually a lady-in-hiding and someone is willing to kill her for what she stands to inherit…Well, Coll has never been one to turn down a fight. When hearts are involved, nothing comes between a Highlander and his lady.

Themes:  Historical, Scotland

Rating: 4.5 stars

Heat Rating: 
Review:

 The ending finally arrives with the final MacTaggert brother falling madly in love with another inappropriate woman in order to rock not only the household but all of London! I have really been looking forward to this conclusion of the  series for a while now, knowing that Ms. Enoch would not disappoint us with Coll’s story, but I really was blown away.  Coll has had it with his mother’s machinations and scheming to get him wedded, despite him knowing that he needs to find a wife as soon as possible.  After watching his brothers truly find their matches, he longs to find something similar for himself, even though he won’t admit it to himself much less his family. Intent on escaping her latest scheme, Coll finds himself backstage at the theater and stumbles across the most coveted actress of the moment, but she is so much more than he or anyone else knows. Persephone has made her way in the London theaters for several years, becoming one of the most coveted actresses, but she is suddenly in danger from an unseen enemy and is willing to make a deal with the sexy and dangerous-to-her-heart Scot.  Coming together in a pact, Coll and Persephone begin to get to know one another and soon the relationship has run away from them both despite them resisting it.  Coll wants to keep her and Persephone loves the big brute, but doesn’t ever want any man to control her or force her to give up what she loves.  They have to trust in their new love and find a compromise, before the enemy makes his final play and the choice is taken out of their hands—permanently. Coll was a great character to get to know because he was just so complicated, despite wanting the most basic of things for his future. He is a strong protector of those under his care, he is passionate, sweet, and loving in even the smallest of ways, but he is also a determined and stubborn Scot to the core, refusing to give up on what he wants and needs to his happiness or others’. I enjoyed watching him running in circles as he got to know more and more about Persephone, learning her secretes, and coming to the conclusion that she was the perfect mate for him. Persephone was definitely a woman before her time, independent, opinionated, sexually free (to the point she could be), brave and willing to sacrifice for those she loved and the career she wanted for herself.  She gave up a lot to be the woman she wanted to be and pursue the future she wanted, and after meeting and falling in love with Coll she will do it again. Getting to know her was a true experience and I liked her from the beginning and only liked her more by the end.  There was no lack of fire between Coll and his Persephone from the moment they met until the very end and it was undeniable that the passion burned hot in them both individually and together. I loved reading this exciting conclusion to another great Enoch series and cannot wait for the next one, seriously, this woman amazes me with her ability to just blow my mind while still make me wish I lived in the time and world of these noble, sensual, strong and brave Scots. Another Enoch masterwork.

*ebook provided by publisher (via NetGalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.