I managed to read 5 books this week. I picked up one by Debra Webb called Traceless which was really good. A romantic suspense with so much more going on than a simple murder. The hero really had a rough ride having spent 10 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, and this story focuses on him trying to get to the bottom of who did it. Really tense in places and kept me glued throughout. My only criticism would be that people still got away with things they shouldn’t have done, and I can’t say any more than that without giving the ending away! – 4.5 stars

Having enjoyed the above book I was delighted to find I had another Debra Webb in my collection called Nameless. It’s another romantic suspense with a hero that was wronged in the past, and while this was good it didn’t grab me as much as Traceless did. Definitely worth a read though if you like this type of book – 4 stars

Lois Lane Tells All by Karen Hawkins was my next book. It’s a romantic comedy that for me did not really take off. While I enjoyed the relationship between the protagonists, the rest of the story was a bit odd and I didn’t really find it very humorous (although I think it was meant to be). Not my favourite and while I would read more books by this author if they came my way, I wouldn’t actively seek them out – 2 stars

Next was a Mills and Boon romance – The Secret Sinclair by Cathy Williams. A good romance with not much to the story other than the relationship building, always enjoyable but the ending came up a bit quickly – 3 stars.

Finally this week I read not Quite a Lady by Loretta Chase – my good old favourite genre historical romance.  This was the first one I have read by Ms. Chase and I really enjoyed it. Full review coming later this week – 4.5 stars.

Grete

Well the good news is my back is getting easier, the bad news is I’m trying to move around more which means less time for reading.  I’m also so behind in reviews I shall get to do some good ‘sitting upright’ exercises

I finished Abaddon’s Gate by James S.A. Corey and it was amazing, I love everything about this series and all three books so far, of The Expanse have been solid 5 star reads.  Reviews are coming (honest!)

Winter is also coming (see what I did there?) as I decided I needed to re-read A Game of Thrones.  I can’t remember where I got up to in the series the first time round (perhaps book 2 and then was waiting for book 3) and also as my memory isn’t as good as it used to be, I wanted to catch up.  I love the TV series as well and it was bugging me I couldn’t remember key events that might be coming up! I thoroughly enjoyed my romp through the first book and am now into book 2, A Clash of Kings.  I do like my light reading

So that’s it from me!

Tracey is coming to visit at the weekend and we usually end up doing at least a little bit of book shopping… and also I love the fact that when she’s here, we can comfortably read in the same room in utter silence and have brief conversations about our books

Have a good week x

Our Week in Books is a regular blog post from Tracey and Grete, catching up on everything they’ve read recently.

Nine years later he is now the Earl of Wynwood and she returns to his life as an unexpected guest of his uncle. Can they deal with the anger between them and can Viviana continue to hide the secret she kept all those years ago.

This is the second book in a series which began with One Little Sin. Thankfully this book was much better than the first, and I am glad I decided to continue the series. You don’t need to have read the first book to enjoy this however, as the first hundred pages or so basically go over the events at the end of book one. As I had read One Little Sin, I found this a bit unnecessary and it meant that getting to the new story took a while. There were some explanations needed about Quin’s behaviour from book one, but it didn’t need to be as lengthy as it was.

Once I did get into the story though I enjoyed it, the passion and emotion in the characters came through very well in the writing. In the prologue we see both of the characters as their much younger selves and I have to say Quin was extremely hard to like. I feared this book was going to follow the same path as book one with me disliking the hero for most of it. Fortunately, thirty year old Quin soon won me over once he’d accepted his responsibilities as Earl of Wynwood. I suspect that in the prologue of book three, the hero will also come across as unlikeable, as this seems to be a theme!

I liked the fiery passionate Viviana and especially loved the way she kept bursting into Italian – particularly when cursing Quin. Sometimes she did go off the deep end a bit quickly, although this seemed to be the only defense mechanism she could use against Quin.

The children – both Quin’s nephews and nieces and Viviana’s three added another dimension to the story and were quite adorable, particularly Cerelia who also had my heart breaking for her at one point.

Overall a good story with passion, emotion and of course a happy ending.

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

This week I varied my reading a bit, although it wouldn’t be right not to have any historical romance in there!

The first historical romance I read this week was Emma and the Earl by Paula Marshall, a tale of  a young penniless woman who was forced to become governess to the children of the man she nearly married when she was rich. Of course he doesn’t recognize her but she has never forgotten him! This was a very enjoyable story, a good read and a solid romance – 4 stars.

Scandals by Georgina Devon was the other regency romance I read this week, and it took me a while to warm up to the hero – for most of the book I wanted to slap him. Enjoyable, but not one of my favourites although it did get quite intense at times – 3 stars.

Feeling like a change I delved back into the world of the Dark Hunters reading Night Pleasures by Sherrilyn Kenyon. I absolutely love this series and this book in particular. If you have never read the Dark Hunters and enjoy paranormal romance you must read this (the sex is always hot too!) Despite having read this book a couple of times before, I could easily read it again and again – 5 stars. The problem is I now want to re read all of them but I have so many books waiting to be read I am not sure I can!

I then read a couple of suspense novels, the first one I picked up was Death Notice by Todd Ritter. The plot was excellent but there was no romance! Oh my god, how disappointed I was to realise the police chief and FBI agent were not going to get it on!! So while the story was good I was left feeling  decidedly dissatisfied. Of course, if romance is not your thing you will enjoy this even more – 3.5 stars.

Love You to Death by Shannon K Butcher was next and wow that was good. A romantic suspense with a seriously creepy serial killer and super hot sex between the protagonists. The plot was very good and I liked the main characters. Towards the end there was a scene which I am sure we all wished happened more and was very satisfying! When you read it you will know what I mean – 4.5 stars.

Grete

While I wouldn’t recommend it as a means to get some time to yourself, my back throwing a massive wobbly last week and still not having recovered did mean I got some solid reading done.  Since all I could do was rest it, I was casting about for something to keep me occupied. I remembered I had Hounded by Kevin Hearne (the first book of the Iron Druid Chronicles) to read on my Kindle and a few chapters in I was hooked!  It was so amazing I finished it and immediately bought book two, then book three (you can see where this is going!), until I reached the last two books which I had kindly been sent physical copies of.

So in order, I raced through Hounded, Hexed, Hammered, Tricked, Trapped, Hunted AND the two accompanying Novellas – Two Ravens and One Crow and The Grimoire of the Lamb.  Phew!  And I still want MORE.  This is an utterly fantastic series, 5 stars all the way and one I will definitely be re-reading again.  Reviews are coming once I can sit upright for long enough

Hunted actually arrived mid-week, along with another book I had been eagerly awaiting – Abaddon’s Gate by James S.A. Corey.  I dived into that yesterday and am almost finished.  Another excellent and very tense book from the Expanse series and there will be a review (also one for Caliban’s War which I re-read in anticipation and also realised I had neglected to do one the first time!).

Hoping my back will be back to what passes for normal this week, but also hoping that my thirst for reading continues unabated!

Have a good week

Our Week in Books is a regular blog post from Tracey and Grete, catching up on everything they’ve read recently.

It’s sad as well because Iain Banks told us it was coming in his very honest and frank announcement two months ago, and I thought, as I imagine everyone did, that there would be more time.  He passed away today and I can only think of one more thing to say:

RIP Iain Banks, thank you for all the wonders you gave us.

x

He was a scoundrel, a scamp, and a hopeless skirt-chaser. 

She was beautiful, brazen, and utterly bankrupt. So it shouldn’t have been so shocking when Miss Hamilton (Esme) accepted the rogue’s scandalous proposal to move in with him…and become the baby’s governess.

One little sin brought them together. But when one man’s wicked charms are matched by one woman’s fiery spirit, one little sin can lead to another…and another…and another…

This was my first book by Liz Carlyle and overall I enjoyed it, but it is not among my favourite books.

Esme is headstrong but prepared to do whatever is right for her little half sister, Sorcha, and there can be no doubt that her best interests are what matter to Esme the most. It bothered be a little that at times she seems fearless yet at others she turns into a bit of a wuss but I did like the way she decides to take matters into her own hands and hang the consequences at the end.

It is very hard to feel any sympathy for Alasdair in the beginning – if he had been female he would have been called a slut! The child in question is supposedly a result of Alasdair having a quick fumble behind the curtains at a party with Esme’s mother, and worse, he can’t remember all the details. However, as the story progresses he does manage to worm his way into my affections, he grows up and starts taking responsibility for his actions. Thinking about someone other than himself…

The premise I really struggled with was Esme being attracted to someone who had already slept with her mother – eww wrong, just wrong!! There was no end of misunderstandings and miscommunications going on, why do people not talk to each other properly? I did however stick with the story and am glad I did.

At the end of the day I am a romantic at heart and as long as there is a happy ending then I am happy.

The review above does seem negative but overall, Ms. Carlyle’s writing style was witty and easy to read, and I will be looking to read the next two books in the series. The gentlemen involved were introduced here and I look forward to finding out what makes them tick.

Rating: ★★½☆☆ 

Been a busier reading week this week, primarily my good old favourite, the historical romance.

I seem to have been on a bit of a Mills and Boon kick this week, starting with His lady Mistress by Elizabeth Rolls.  I really enjoyed this one and if you are a fan of regency romance definitely worth a read – 4 stars.

I also read A Very Unusual Governess by Sylvia Andrew, another regency romance involving a gentleman and a supposed governess. This book made me laugh a lot in places – 4.5 stars.

How to sin Successfully by Bronwyn Scott is also an historical romance and quite coincidentally involves a governess. No, I haven’t suddenly gone on a mission to find all the books involving governesses but they seem to have found me! This had a bit of a mystery plot surrounding it and a truly despicable villain, overall a good story – 3.5 stars.

My last Mills and Boon book this week was The replacement Wife by Caitlin Crews – shock horror, not a historical romance! I was not overly keen on this one. I would have liked a bit more background information about the hero and the ending seemed too quick and convenient. However I did finish it – 2 stars.

I then read the first two books in a series by Liz Carlyle – One Little Sin and Two Little Lies. Watch out for full reviews coming soon.

In between all this I also read Forever by Jacquelyn Frank – again look for a full review coming soon.

So seven books this week, wow possibly a record, even for me.

Grete

Well Tracey puts me to shame this week (and the last couple!).  Back flare ups, visitors, and MCM London Comic-Con (not in that order!) put paid to a lot of reading I’ve been wanting to do.  Strong pain medication also makes what I have read a little fuzzy!  Fingers crossed I will be back in action soon or I may go a little (more) nuts!

Our Week in Books is a regular blog post from Tracey and Grete, catching up on everything they’ve read recently.

Another great book from Eloisa James, she always manages to evoke strong emotions in me. I sobbed in parts during this, and my heart was breaking for Gowan and Edie. At other times Gowan made my heart melt, “You’re my lodestone and my North Star”, how perfect is that?

Both Edie and Gowan have issues relating to their upbringing and are both very young and inexperienced. At 19 and 22 respectively, this leads to a number of misconceptions about marriage. Usually all the crossed wires and misunderstandings annoy me, but for some reason with this story, it didn’t as much as usual.

In the historical romances I tend to read it’s very unusual to find the hero under the age of 30 and usually they have years of sexual experience to bring to the marriage. I liked the fact that they were learning together (or should have been!) and Gowan wasn’t the experienced rake about town.

There is another side story here involving Edie’s father’s marriage to her stepmother, Layla.  Their marriage isn’t running smoothly and again it’s the lack of understanding that marriages need to be worked at and love is not always enough on its own. Layla is a great character and has a large part to play in Edie and Gowan’s marriage – not always providing the best advice!

Chapters 39 and 40 in particular rank among the most heart wrenching, emotional, yet romantic chapters I have ever read and I could not tear myself away.

I love how Eloisa James brings the early 19th century to life and has lots of interesting information – for example, did you know that playing the cello was seen as entirely inappropriate for women due to the leg position required?

If you like your romances with murders to solve or a suspenseful element then you will be disappointed with this, but if you are a true romantic at heart you cannot fail to enjoy this and the roller-coaster of emotions it produces.

Rating: ★★★★½ 

I was intrigued from the start, with an introduction to an apostate escaping from an ancient temple with a scary truth.  We don’t know who he is, but as the book progressed I started to have suspicions, but each time I thought I knew the truth I was cleverly deflected by Daniel Abraham.  In most fantasy settings, you often find one or two other races that are ‘typical’ but for this series, Abraham has created twelve and an extremely clever reason behind them (I mentioned the rich history already!)

It’s also a multi-faceted tale about people trying to do the best thing in the worst of circumstances and that means not always doing the right thing.  The major cast were brilliant. Marcus, Yardem, Cithrin and Master Kit were all characters that I really warmed to, even if I didn’t always agree with their choices. Geder, I felt for but wanted to shake and Basrahip… well, I don’t think there is a boot big enough to stomp on him!  Along with them are quite a few other characters, some you love and some you hate but they all felt extremely well fleshed out and very real.  I have to note the friendship and interplay between Marcus and Yardem, the first time they appear, made me laugh out loud and I knew I was hooked.  Daniel Abraham has quite the talent for creating his characters.

The plot can be quite complicated but not too hard to follow.  Explaining it however is another matter and I’m not even going to try.  I shall say instead that it is completely engaging and if you like a good epic fantasy that isn’t going to run to twelve books (I believe there is five in this series) then this will be right up your street.

The pace was good and I never felt it dragged, even when the characters themselves were being put through long journeys.  The action scenes were brutal and a couple of times I was open mouthed in shock but at the end of the day, that is not what the book is about.  The characters are what make it shine.

A great start to an epic fantasy series and I am eager to dive into the second book – The King’s Blood.

Rating: ★★★★½ 

This can’t be happening to her.  A random break down…an isolated mountain road, a seemingly chance meeting with a hotter-than-hot stranger. Tatyana is a modern gal who can handle any crisis, but before she knows what’s hit her, she’s sensing a hideous threat, not to her but to this man who draws her like a moth to flame. Hunter.

“I know things…I saw it.”

When the attack comes, she is his protection from a diabolical enemy, even as he initiates her into a startling world of magic, sorcery and sensuality. For in a moment of terrifying danger a spark has been struck, and neither can escape the erotic fire to come…

Wow this was hot and steamy but still had a great plot! There is so much going on that the description above doesn’t do it justice. I understand that this is hopefully the first book in a new series but oddly, it read as if there should have been one before and I felt like I was missing the story that set the scene for this one. There were a lot of references to it and in all fairness, I thought that even if there had been a previous book, then I wouldn’t rush to read it because most of it is given away here.

There are a lot of characters all living in a coven together that there is a lot of potential for future books, which I would definitely be eager to read. What little I learned about the secondary characters, I loved.

Hunter – sex on legs, gorgeous and to die for, I think I am in love with him myself.  Tatyana is a very strong character and definitely no shrinking violet when it comes to sex! The banter between the two of them is good and the sex is explosive – it has been a while since I have said this, but get a cold shower ready!

I love the world, the concept and the characters but I do have one criticism in that there was a lot of sex and it did detract a little from the story. While the plot was very good, it did seem to get rushed along a bit; one minute they were talking about what to do and the next it was in progress with no preparation. I would have liked a bit more explanation but want to keep the sex too, so really the book needed to be double the size.

Overall a good book, steamy, sensual and erotic – works for me!

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Having had a very expensive trip to New York with lots of shopping I surprisingly found little time for reading! We were so exhausted from all the walking! So what have I read in the week since getting back?

I started reading Ambersley by Amy Atwell on the plane but couldn’t really get into it – probably just too tired. I left it for a bit and didn’t go back to it until much later in the week, having read other books in between. It started off a bit slow and I struggled with the concept of how I knew the book would ultimately end; that the child and grown man we see interacting together for the first third of the book, then end up together in the girl’s adulthood. I know age gaps in this period of history are not uncommon but it just felt a bit weird, and I think it’s probably another reason why I didnt finish it in one go. Having said that, when I did go back to it and we got past childhood stage, the story picked up pace and I ended up enjoying the romance. We were introduced to various characters who get their own story later on and I will probably look to read them at some point – 3 stars for me.

I was clearly in the mood for some more historical romance and picked up His Wicked Kiss by Gaelen Foley. This is the seventh book in the Knight Miscellany series and brings home the mysterious Lord Jack Knight who in previous books had only been mentioned in passing. It was another enjoyable story in the series and has a good plot and romance, although Eden Farraday did get on my nerves a bit at times. You do not need to have read the series previously to know what is going on but as we get reintroduced to the characters and their partners from those books, it is nice to have the background info. This could definitely stand alone though – 3.5 stars

And yet more historical romance! Slightly Shady by Amanda quick was my next read. A light historical romantic suspense which was a quick easy read. I again found the heroine to be a bit of a pain in the butt at times – I don’t know what is up with me this week! The suspense aspect felt more believable than the romance for me, but overall I enjoyed the story – 3 stars.

A Bite to Remember by Lynsay sands was next and was a return for me to the world of the Argeneau vampires. This book focuses on Vincent and Jackie Morrissey (a mortal PI who knows all about their world). As with all the books in this series this was very good. I always love the Argeneau men and Vincent is no exception. Marguerite, the interfering matriarch of the Argeneau’s, features heavily in this book as well and I love her and her interference. This can easily stand alone if you have not read any of the others but why start with this one – go get the first one and work your way through! – 4 stars

I am currently reading Hunter by Jacquelyn Frank and loving it, in fact I feel the need to get back to it – review to come in the next couple of weeks

Grete

Well my reading rate has been down again but I have a good excuse – I’m in the process of giving up smoking!  It’s a very weird thing but I’m having to learn how to do things without an ever present cigarette in my hand – everything still feels a bit wrong but I’m getting there   So lets see what I’ve read over the last two weeks (including while a certain review partner was off gallivanting in NYC!)

I re-read Full Blooded by Amanda Carlson and it was as entertaining as the first time.  Jessica McClain is a great character and I love her starting story!  I went straight into book two, Hot Blooded and actually was a bit disappointed with it.  It was still enjoyable but it seemed to turn into a bit of a slog towards the end.  Full reviews are coming, anyway.

I had to wait my turn to read The City by Stella Gemmell as Tony got there first – he did an excellent review which can be found here.  I thought I might have a slightly different opinion to him as a female reader but actually, I agree with him completely – 4 stars for me too.

I then picked up a recently arrived book which had me intrigued from the moment I first heard about it – The Shambling Guide to New York City by Mur Lafferty.  I absolutely loved it and highly recommend it!  You can read my full review here

My fantasy nose was twitching again so I picked up The Dragon’s Path by Daniel Abraham.  This is a book I’ve been meaning to read for ages and as book three is sitting there looking at me imploringly, it was incentive enough.  Full review is coming but suffice to say it’s a fantasy on an epic scale with the sense of a full world and history behind it.  I’m half way through The King’s Blood which is book two, and is proving a little slower going but still as enjoyable.

And there we are, all up to date!  Same time next week?

Our Week in Books is a regular blog post from Tracey and Grete, catching up on everything they’ve read recently.