Smokin' Seventeen - Janet Evanovich

Synopsis:


Dead bodies are showing up in shallow graves on the empty construction lot of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds. No one is sure who the killer is, or why the victims have been offed, but what is clear is that Stephanie’s name is on the killer’s list.

Short on time to find evidence proving the killer’s identity, Stephanie faces further complications when her family and friends decide that it’s time for her to choose between her longtime off-again-on-again boyfriend, Trenton cop Joe Morelli, and the bad boy in her life, security expert Ranger. Stephanie’s mom is encouraging Stephanie to dump them both and choose a former high school football star who’s just returned to town. Stephanie’s sidekick, Lula, is encouraging Stephanie to have a red-hot boudoir “bake-off.” And Grandma Bella, Morelli’s old-world grandmother, is encouraging Stephanie to move to a new state when she puts “the eye” on Stephanie.

With a cold-blooded killer after her, a handful of hot men, and a capture list that includes a dancing bear and a senior citizen vampire, Stephanie’s life looks like it’s about to go up in smoke.

Review:
After the bonds office burned down in Sizzling Sixteen, we pick up the story with Vinny's bonds office being set in Mooner's bus/travel trailer. The bus is parked in the same lot as the bonds office was, and on the way to the "office" Stephanie stumbles on the EMT, police and ME just to find out that there is a dead body of a mobster that is buried in a shallow grave. As the story continues, more bodies are found, then suddenly they start to have labels added to them, saying "To Stephanie". While on the hunt for her FTA's and trying to stay out of the line of fire when it comes to bodies popping up, Morelli's grandmother puts another hex on her, causing her to be a "slut". During all of this, Stephanie's mom has found out that a lady from the berg that graduated highschool with Stephanie is getting married and is bound and determined to get Stephanie set up with Dave, the highschool quarterback that is back in Trenton after some shady dealings and recent divorce. With all this drama, it is a wonder she has time to feed Rex the hamster.

Notable Quote:
"I don't shoot people", I said, "almost never".

Rating:
To say that I was disappointed in this book would be a gross understatement. This storyline should have stopped, in my opinion, around book 11. When the series started, Stephanie was a naive young woman trying to make it, and has progressed to her being a slut with bad judgement. At this point, the story is all the same, Stephanie's car gets blown up, she is in love with Morelli but attracted to Ranger, her life is in danger and she has to find the bad guys in order to pay her rent. Same story just a different bed for her to jump in. The only relief for this series, is Lula. I actually laughed out loud several times with what comes out of her mouth. Needless to say, book 18 is not in my future.



Sqeeze Play - Kate Angell

Synopsis:
Risk Kincaid was finding out that the life of a pro baseball player wasn't all it was cracked up to be.  The fame, the fortune, the fans, what food were they when he kept striking out with the one woman who really mattered to him?  Jacy Grayson was sassy and spirited, but she only saw him as her rebound lover, the man who picked up the pieces when her heart was broken.  Yet Risk had never stepped sown from the plate before, and he certainly wasn't going to start now.  The bases were loaded, all Risk needed to do was show her that the diamond he had in mind wasn't found on a baseball field.

Review:
Squeeze Play is the first in the Baseball series by Kate Angell.  Risk is a pro baseball player that just won the World Series.  Coming off the win, he heads to his hometown and his hometown girl, Jacy.  Jacy owns the local java hang out, and is as quirky in her daily life as her decorating is.  Wild colors and patterns surround her, and suit her to a tee.  Jacy and Risk have known each other their entire lives, and in high-school when Jacy got her heart broken, they struck a deal.  He would be her rebound lover whenever she needed him.  Never would he even think that she would not only concoct relationships and heartbreaks just to get him to come home, but fall in love with him at the same time.  He has his own secrets of the heart he isn't sure he can share with his best friend.

Notable Quote:
"When boys swim in the sea, and it's cold, their willies get small."  (oh the things that kids say lol)

Rating:
Squeeze Play was a fun, quick read (I read it in one day).  The cast of characters was fun and energetic.  Cover to cover this book was entertaining.  A secondary romance (actually by the end there are 3 solid couples) brews and you see love blossoming all over the place.  This book is proof positive that communication is key to any relationship, and if you can't trust you romance novels, who can you trust? LOL  I can't wait to read the next, and read about the Bat Pack....Curveball!!!

Beg For Mercy - Jami Alden

Synopsis:
Megan Flynn thought she was falling in love. Cole Williams wasn't just handsome and passionate, he was one of the good guys. Or so she thought, until he arrested her brother-the only family she has left-for a murder she knows he couldn't have possibly committed. Now, with her heart broken and her brother's life hanging in the balance, Megan will risk everything to prove his innocence. Even if that means throwing herself into the path of a sadistic killer with a hauntingly familiar MO.

Seattle Detective Cole Williams had given up on making Megan see reason where her brother is concerned. But when she insinuates herself into the most shockingly brutal case Cole has ever worked, he can't stand idly by. Plunged into a secret world where the city's elite indulge their darkest desires, Cole will do whatever it takes to bring down a madman who has made Megan his most coveted prey.

Review:
Beg for Mercy is the first in a new series.  Once Megan's brother, Sean, is convicted of murder, Megan takes it upon herself to prove he is innocent.  When Megan starts to get to close to the truth, all hell breaks loose.  After Cole was the one to arrest Sean, and then publicly denounced his feeling for Megan, she wrote him off, never wanting to see him again.  While Cole is conducting his investigation of new murders, Megan is hell bent on finding out if the new set of murders are connected to her brother's case.  After convincing Cole to give her classified information, she is more convinced then ever that her brother is innocent, but her brother has given up hope and refuses to fight the justice system any longer.  Megan is running out of time, and there is a killer on the loose that is closer than she ever imagined.  Can the heat between Megan and Cole keep the case alive, keep the bed sheets warm AND catch a killer?

Rating:
I loved this book, this was my first Jami Alden book, but not my last.  Once I got in to Jami's writing style, I was hooked.  I had a very hard time putting it together.  The suspense was intense.  I thought I knew who the real killer was, then I guessed again, then I wasn't sure...it was GREAT.  The romance was hot, and believable.   The secondary characters were intriguing, and you were left wanting more, but in a good way.  I can't wait until Sean's story comes out in November.

The Look of Love - Bella Andre

Synopsis:
Chloe Peterson is having a bad night. A really bad night. The large bruise on her cheek can attest to that. And when her car skids off the side of a wet country road straight into a ditch, she’s convinced even the gorgeous guy who rescues her in the middle of the rain storm must be too good to be true. Or is he?

As a successful photographer who frequently travels around the world, Chase Sullivan has his pick of beautiful women, and whenever he’s home in San Francisco, one of his seven siblings is usually up for causing a little fun trouble. Chase thinks his life is great just as it is—until the night he finds Chloe and her totaled car on the side of the road in Napa Valley. Not only has he never met anyone so lovely, both inside and out, but he quickly realizes she has much bigger problems than her damaged car. Soon, he is willing to move mountains to love—and protect—her, but will she let him?

Chloe vows never to make the mistake of trusting a man again. Only, with every loving look Chase gives her—and every sinfully sweet caress—as the attraction between them sparks and sizzles, she can’t help but wonder if she’s met the only exception. And although Chase didn’t realize his life was going to change forever in an instant, amazingly, he isn’t the least bit interested in fighting that change. Instead, he’s gearing up for a different fight altogether…for Chloe’s heart.

Review:

The Look of Love is the fist book in Bella Andre's new series about the Sullivan family.  In this first book we get to meet a few of the Sullivans, the majority of the book is about Chase, the photographer.  The Sullivan family is made up of some of the most beautiful and talented family, there is the photographer, a firefighter, a movie star and a successful business man....and that is just a few of them.  After helping Chloe one night in a rain storm, Chase realizes his life has been changed.  Now all he has to do is convince Chloe that she is safe with him, she can trust him and to stay.  Not an easy task for a woman that is running from an abusive ex-husband.  Little by little, Chloe comes to trust Chase and give her heart over piece by piece.  Will she be able to trust him completely?  Will her demons catch up to her before she is strong enough to handle them?

Notable Quote:

"You know what I realized this week?'...."That I am a sex god"  (so humble of Chase I think lol)

Rating:

I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't to the standard that I would normally rate a Bella Andre book.  I mean, he told her that he loved her after knowing her for 2 days.  She admitted she loved him after 4 days, and after being in such a bad relationship for so long, that is just not a possibility, it is almost a slap in the face to women who have dealt with abuse.  I found myself really wanting to see more of Marcus (the older brother), I was intrigued by him from the first time he entered the story.  I felt Chase and Chloe's story seemed a bit....rushed.  That being said, it will not stop me from buying Marcus' story in September.

Bride Quartet - Nora Roberts

Vision in White:
Wedding photographer Mackensie "Mac" Elliot is most at home behind the camera, but her focus is shattered moments before an important wedding rehearsal when she bumps into the bride-to-be's brother...an encounter that has them both seeing stars.

A stable, safe English teacher, Carter Maguire is definitely not Mac's type. But a casual fling might be just what she needs to take her mind off bridezillas. Of course, casual flings can turn into something more when you least expect it. And Mac will have to turn to her three best friends-and business partners-to see her way to her own happy ending.

Bed of Roses:
Emma Grant is finding career success with her friends at Vows wedding planning company, and her love life appears to be thriving. Though men swarm around her, she still hasn't found Mr. Right. And the last place she's looking is right under her nose.

But that's just where Jack Cooke is. He's so close to the women of Vows that he's practically family, but the architect has begun to admit to himself that his feelings for Emma have developed into much more than friendship. When Emma returns his passion-kiss for blistering kiss-they must trust in their history...and in their hearts

Savor the Moment:

Wedding baker Laurel McBane is surrounded by romance working at Vows wedding planning company with her best friends Parker, Emma, and Mac. But she's too low-key to appreciate all the luxuries that their clients seem to long for. What she does appreciate is a strong, intelligent man, a man just like Parker's older brother Delaney, on whom she's had a mega-crush since childhood.

But some infatuations last longer than others, and Laurel is convinced that the Ivy League lawyer is still out of her reach. Plus, Del is too protective of Laurel to ever cross the line with her-or so she thinks. When Laurel's quicksilver moods get the better of her-leading to an angry, hot, all-together mind-blowing kiss with Del-she'll have to quiet the doubts in her mind to turn a moment of passion into forever...

Happily Ever After:

As the public face of Vows wedding planning company, Parker Brown has an uncanny knack for fulfilling every bride's vision. She just can't see where her own life is headed. Mechanic Malcomb Kavanaugh loves figuring out how things work, and Parker is no exception. Both know that moving from minor flirtation to major hook-up is a serious step. Parker's business risks have always paid off, but now she'll have to take the chance of a lifetime with her heart...

Review:

I decided to do one lump review for this series, cause I could write about it all day.  I put off reading the first book cause I haven't really ever been a Nora Roberts fan, to me, some of her stuff just seems to go on and on and seem to be a bit overly wordy for no reason.  So when this first book came up for my online bookclub, Romance and Oreos, I decided to buy it but didn't have time to read it in time for the bookclub discussion.  I was in between romantic suspense books and decided to give it a try, by the time I had read the whole first book, I had already downloaded the other three.  

I absolutely loved this series.  The relationship that the girls have is one, I think, every girl wants.  Friends that are with you through thick and thin.  In the first book, you pretty much can figure out who is paired with whom in their own books, but it was wonderful to see it happen in slow motion too.  Each of the 4 girls is so different in personality, and looks, sometimes I wondered how they got along all the time, but it just worked.  The men they were paired with were totally swoon worthy.  I have a sweet spot for Jack and Emma, who will remain my favorite couple....reading his story and watching him fall, was my absolute favorite.  There are definite villains too, Mac's mother for instance.  I actually wanted to cause bodily harm to that woman.  The books were also filled with great info about the wedding business, and you just felt like you were having fun right along with the girls.  If I had one negative thing to say, it would be, these girls drink ALOT.  They are always having champagne or wine.  That seemed to be a bit of overkill in my opinion.

I would absolutely recommend this series to anyone who loves a great contemporary romance. 

Kade - Cheyenne McCray

Synopsis:
After a bitter divorce, reporter Kelsey Nichols has erected a border around her heart too strong for any man to cross. She's not ready for a relationship of any kind with any man. But when Kelsey meets Kade she can think of nothing but being in his powerful arms and in his bed.

Intelligence Agent Kade Owen is hot on the trail of a notorious smuggler when the sensual blonde reporter comes into his life. Once he gets a hold of Kelsey, nothing will stop Kade from winning her heart.

Review:
While at the airport getting ready to head to Arizona for some investigative reporting, Kelsey meets the handsome cowboy, Kade and they strike up and easy friendship.  The plane ride just solidifies his interest in her and when finding out they are staying at the same hotel, he asks her to dinner.  After leaving her at her room with a smoking hot kiss, he wonders if he will ever see her again.  At breakfast, visiting with his father who is there to meet the reporter that will be staying with them for the next several weeks, who walks in but Kelsey.  Both Kelsey and Kade are shocked that they will now be spending the next few weeks sleeping under the same roof.  While Kelsey strikes off to write her article and conduct her interviews, Kade slowly starts to break down her heavily lined walls that are around her heart from her disastrous marriage.  With Kade getting to close to a human smuggling ring, things begin to get more heated.  Then Kade's family is threatened and action must be taken.  Kade knows almost immediately that he is in love with Kelsey, will she realize what is in front of her before it is to late?

Notable Quote:
"Can we keep her dad?"  (Trent talking to Kade about Kelsey)


Rating:
I loved this book from cover to cover.  I was pretty sure I had all the bad guys picked out early on, but I have to admit I get surprised by one at the end, which I love when I can't figure it all out.  I love the chemistry between Kade and Kelsey and that she didn't just fall at his feet from the beginning, but he had to work hard to get her to open up to him.  In my opinion, a good book is one that brings out a myriad of emotions, and that is exactly what this one did.  I had adrenaline pumping, and the sex scenes were not only hot but intimate, and the scenes with Trent warmed my heart.  I felt myself smiling at times and turning the pages faster to see what happens next.  I can't wait to read the next in the Armed & Dangerous series.

Instant Attraction - Jill Shalvis

Synopsis:
Accountant Katie Kramer is a quintessential good girl—working hard, recycling diligently, all the while trying to ignore the feeling that she doesn't fit in anywhere. That's all she wants. Well, that—and amazing sex, and the kind of daredevil escapade she can look back on when she's crunching numbers in a dusty cubicle. Which explains why she just took a job in Wishful, California, working for Wilder Adventures and Expeditions. Waking up to find a magnificently built stranger towering over her bed—that part defies explanation...

After wandering the planet for months following a life-changing accident, Cameron Wilder has come back to the only home he knows. Under other circumstances, he might be thrilled to find a gorgeous woman sleeping in his cabin, but now, while he'll risk his body taking clients on adrenaline-drenched excursions, his heart is off limits. Still, Katie's killer smile triggers something deep in his gut...among other places. Showing her how exhilarating it can be to stop balancing her life as if it was a checkbook is the biggest rush he's ever felt—and an adventure Katie's wishing would never end. . .

Review:

After a life and death scenario, Katie is looking for some adventure to add to her boring LA life.  When she happens on a temporary position with Wilder Adventures, she thinks it it perfect timing.  While dead asleep, she is waken up by the one and only Cameron Wilder back from an 18 month trek to "find" himself.  While there is mutual annoyance between both Cam and Katie, there is also mutual admiration and gratitude, Katie for helping Cam see he is a different person than who he used to be but still that new person is just as great, just different.  And Cam for showing Katie what adventure really is.

Notable Quote:

"Do you exercise?"  "It's on my to do list, at the bottom."  (girl after my own heart)

Rating:

This is a very dynamic and complicated family, but for all their quirks, they just work.  I loved all of Annie's aprons, each one made me giggle, but my favorite was "never trust a skinny chef".  Katie had back bone and wit and wasn't ever afraid to use either of them.  Cam was wounded and healing and Katie was just what he needed.  A cute romance, setting up the next two while introducing all the brother and several town's people.

The Cowboy's Surrender - Ann Marie Novark

Synopsis:
Copper River Oil Company is drilling for oil on the Diamondback Ranch. Dallas McCade can't do a thing to stop them, because he doesn't own the mineral rights. To add insult to injury, they've sent a woman to oversee the operation. Dallas has good reason to distrust women. As soon as he sets eyes on Gillian Bankston, he loses his temper . . . and his heart. That makes him spitting mad and frustrated as hell. Gillian has never met a man quite like Dallas. He's as prickly as a cactus, but his kisses are hot enough to ignite a West Texas wildfire. Gillian's been burned before and wants nothing to do with love . . . or lust. Battle lines are drawn and it's war between the sexes. Will they surrender to the powerful attraction neither can deny? Who will be the first to wave the white flag?

Review:
Dallas McCade is as rough around the edges as they come.  Having had his heart trampled by his ex-wife and feeling betrayed by his sister-in-law he has no use for any female unless it is to warm his bed.  Gillian Bankston has had her own troubles with the opposite sex, after an abusive relationship that ended luckily with the death of her husband, she is in no hurry to let her heart loose anytime soon.  To bad for both of them, fate has a different plan.  Every time they turn around, it seems they are at the same place and same time, finally giving in a calling a truce, the heat ignites between them.  Gillian is the new boss at the oil rig that Dallas despises.  When things start to go wrong at the rig, all fingers and evidence points to Dallas.  Would he really do anything to get his land back, as he has said?

Favorite Scene:
I really loved the delivery of the new baby!!

Rating:
This was my first Novark book, and I guarantee it won't be my last.  I loved getting to know the McCade family.  All with their own since of loyalty and honor, but the banter with the brothers was a crack up.  I could picture them each time throwing verbal jabs at each other.  I liked that Gillian was a woman with a purpose, not just some pretty girl, and that she was cautious.  Some of the scenes seemed to be a bit wordy and a little over descriptive for my tastes, but the story line was great and I hope we get to see more of the brothers, and Tori of course.

Creed's Honor - Linda Lael Miller

Synopsis:
Conner Creed knows exactly who he is: a hardworking rancher carrying on his uncle's legacy in Lonesome Bend, Colorado. Maybe a small-town cowboy's life isn'this dream, but he owes the man who took him in as a kid. Until the identical twin brother he's been estranged from for years reenters his life.

Conner struggles with identity issues as he gets to know his wilder brother. And then he meets Tricia McCall, a beautiful woman who knows a thing or two about living someone else's dreams. Together, they just might find their own dreams right here in Lonesome Bend….

Review:
The next book in the Montana Creed's series follows Connor Creed.  Small town rancher Connor Creed has always done the right thing.  Holding on to the family ranch while his wilder older brother travels the rodeo circuit, drinks and has a multitude of women at this disposal.  Tricia McCall has a life in Seattle that she loves, friends that she adores and a man that she...tolerates.  Coming back to Lonesome Bend to settle her father's estate and sell off his properties is just a little hitch in the road, until she isn't sure Seattle is her home anymore, and not sure where her home actually is.  With the help of a matchmaking dog, a nosey goddaughter and a meddling grandmother, Tricia can't help but fall in love with the country side and the cowboy, right??

Notable Quote:
"...he likes her, too.  You can tell buy the way he looks at her.  It's the same way my dad looks at cheeseburgers."

Rating:
I adored the first in this series, but this second on kind of fell flat for me.  The main characters didn't even talk to each other until about page 100.  It seemed very slow to get to the point and when the point was made it was a rush to the end.  I liked the characters individually but together I am not sure they had chemistry, and that could be because there wasn't a lot of the book that revolved around them being a couple, just their own battles that needed to be won.  I am very much looking forward to Brody's book though, hoping this is just a little bump in the road.

Fool For Love - Marie Force

Synopsis:
Joe Cantrell, owner of the Gansett Island Ferry Company, has been in love with Janey McCarthy for as long as he can remember. At the same time, Janey has been dating or engaged to doctor-in-training David Lawrence. When things go horribly wrong between David and Janey, she calls her “fifth brother” Joe, one of the few people in her close circle who lives on the mainland. Janey decides a few days with Joe is just what she needs before she goes home to the island to face her parents and family with the news of her broken engagement. It was bad enough for Joe loving Janey from afar, but having her in his house is pure torture.

Review:

This is the second book in the Gansett Island trilogy.  It is the most horrible way a woman can find out her significant other is or has been cheating, Janey walks in on her fiance while he is in the middle of having sex with another woman.  David is so busy he doesn't even realize she is in the room.  Quietly slipping out to head back to the island to lick her wounds, her car breaks down.  There is no one else to call (in her eyes) than Joe.  Joe rushes to her aid, having been in love with her for to many years, he is having some mixed feelings about what has just happened with David, the brother part of him wants to beat him to a pulp, the lover part of him wants to kill him and the man in him, wants to make her all better.  While staying at his house, she pushes him for the ultimate medicine, to help heal her broken heart.  Is his heart safe, even from this woman he has given his entire heart to?  How will she feel once she learns he has been in love with her for...years?  

Notable Quote:

"May the Force be with you"  (not that this was a hugely funny line, but it made me giggle while referring to Marie Force)

Rating:

This series just gets better and better.  I love this whole family, and the dynamics.  I am so happy that Joe gets his HEA and that Janey finally realizes what is right in front of her face.  I think one of my favorite parts was at the bachelor party, and the secrets that get spilled.  I am looking forward to the next in the line and sincerely hope that Marie finishes out the brothers too.