romance

Review: The Bourbon Thief by Tiffany Reisz

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01-ab “Love what they destroyed.
Destroy what they loved.”

This story is nothing like I’ve read from Ms. Reisz before. NOTHING. In fact, this story has to be one the most insane stories I have ever read. I went in knowing nothing. No spoilers or anything, just a vague idea that it’s about thievery and bourbon. That’s it. But when I finished I sat back and wish I took Dramamine for all the twists and turns this book had. A truly wild ride.

SYNOPSIS
When Cooper McQueen wakes up from a night with a beautiful stranger, it’s to discover he’s been robbed. The only item stolen—a million-dollar bottle of bourbon. The thief, a mysterious woman named Paris, claims the bottle is rightfully hers. After all, the label itself says it’s property of the Maddox family who owned and operated Red Thread Bourbon distillery since the last days of the Civil War until the company went out of business for reasons no one knows… No one except Paris.

In the small hours of a Louisville morning, Paris unspools the lurid tale of Tamara Maddox, heiress to the distillery that became an empire. But the family tree is rooted in tainted soil and has borne rotten fruit. Theirs is a legacy of wealth and power, but also of lies, secrets and sins of omission. The Maddoxes have bourbon in their blood—and blood in their bourbon. Why Paris wants the bottle of Red Thread remains a secret until the truth of her identity is at last revealed, and the century-old vengeance Tamara vowed against her family can finally be completed.

You must go into this story blind to truly appreciate the way the story unwinds itself on the pages. Deception, lies and revenge are the main themes of this tale. And one seriously messed up family. I won’t reveal spoilers, but I will say that you’ll never see the end coming. While some parts in this story will make you squirm, if you just take a deep breath, you’ll be fine.

To be honest, I held off reading this because I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this more, or even as much, as her Original Sinners series. That series is bananas. But I am so glad I took a chance. Tiffany has a writing style that is so addicting, you can’t help but be sucked in. You won’t be disappointed in anything you read from her.

~Melpomene

Buy The Bourbon Thief HERE

Review: Retreat by Jay Crownover

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01-a1 I love cowboys. I especially love when they aren’t your traditional Stetson wearing kind.

Fresh mountain air, horses, sexy cowboys and enough suspense to keep you on the edge of your seat.

I loved Leo, even if she had a rough beginning. What started out as a girl’s only week ends up with a life changing discovery that has her realizing she’s stronger then she thinks. She also wasn’t looking for love in these hills, but who knew cowboys could be so sexy?

Leo and Cy had this crazy instant chemistry that sometimes seemed to fast, but they were both looking for each, even if they didn’t realize it. Their connection was hot. Their sexy times were even hotter. Simple flirting turned into much more that neither of them was prepared for. It was a blast to see Cy strip Leo of her prickly outer shell. In the midst of life and death situations, these two managed to find love and peace with each other.

I liked the balance of suspense and comedic moments. I’m not usually a super fan of suspense books, but this one was just right for me. From about halfway through, I was reading as fast as I could, just so I could know what happens.

There were actually a few emotional scenes that will make you need the next book just as much I need it. Whew! Jay sure packs a punch.

What a fabulous start to this new series! I can’t wait to read about the next cowboy!

~Melpomene

Review: Long Way Home by Katie McGarry

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01lon There’s something about a Katie McGarry book that makes me wanna buy 10 copies and pass them out to all the teens I know. She is the queen of the ‘coming of age’ genre. I hope my daughter will start to like romance so I can pass all of these along to her.

Ever since Violet’s dad died, she’s wanted to leave the MC world and move on in peace, but she’s stuck. Her mom won’t leave, so she’s has to stay and try and protect her brother, and her heart, from the world that stole her dad from them.

Chevy has loved Violet for as long as he can remember but this life isn’t what she wants. Heck, this life stole his dad from him also, so he’s not sure if this is the life him either. When he’s 18 he needs to make a formal decision, but he’s not sure what to do. But when he and Violet get threatened, he must make a choice, even if it changes everything. His life will never be the same, no matter what. He loves her so much, but if she needs to walk away, he has to let her, even if it kills him.

Violet has always been my best friend, but it’s more than that. She’s always been a piece of me, and without her the world was cold, a bitter freeze that cut to the bone.

I loved Violet. She was willing to give up the boy she loved, in order to not have him choose. But when the past catches up with her, she must make some very hard decision about this “family” of hers, in order to protect them. She stood up to the men who, in her eyes, got her dad killed, and that had to be terrifying for her. But she was done and I commend her. She didn’t take crap from any of them, even if it scared her to death.

I love seeing Chevy, Violet, Oz and Razor together. They grew up together and they may not be blood but they’re family. I love these characters. They’re not perfect, but, to each other, they are.

Violet and Chevy must look inside themselves to find the right path. The decision will not be easy, and will make them question everything they thought they knew about who their family is and why things happened the way they did. So many new revelations that I didn’t see coming. But in the end they both have to make tough calls in the name of love and hope they make the right ones.

~Melpomene

Release date Jan 31, 2017
Preorder Long Way Home HERE

Review: One Distant Summer by Serena Clarke

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What a cool book! Jacinda Scott goes to New Zealand to take time off from the pressures of LA life. She doesn’t bank on staying next door to Liam Ward, cute younger brother of her decade-old teenage fling. 

One Distant Summer isn’t a simple story. Author Serena Clarke does a phenomenal job giving us something more than just unrequited love or “I fell for the wrong guy.”  Jacinda has her own life with fun and loyal friends. She focuses on a successful career, but not to the detriment of her own welfare. She’s a whole person… who just happens to fall into Liam’s neighborhood. Subplots abound — always in support of the main storyline. 

Without too much angst, Liam and Jacinda fall in and out of like and lust, trying to determine what will hurt the least. There are lots of gatherings with friends, sandy beach talks, and stolen moments with guitars, as the couple journeys to find a resolution. Serena Clarke successfully takes the reader on that journey — the characters feeling like my own friends, and New Zealand feeling home.  

-calliope

Buy ONE DISTANT SUMMER

Review: Feversong by Karen Marie Moning

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01-a The most critical, defining battles we wage in life, we wage alone.

It has taken me almost a week to collect my thoughts on this book. I’m still reeling. Let me start out by saying that this isn’t the final book in the Fever series, but the final one in the Mac/Barrons story line. So savor it and read it slowly. Trust me.

When we left Feverborn, we left screaming. Mac opened herself up to the Sinsar Dubh and we weren’t sure how, or if, she would be able to get out. In Feversong, Mac must take back control and destroy the book, find the Song of Making to also destroy these black holes that seem to be slowly eating up our world, and do all this without getting lost inside herself again. It is an ongoing battle that only she can do. She must forget about her past actions and focus on the future with a clear head.

In the midst of Mac’s issues we have Dani and her quest to find a balance between Jada and Dani. She is there to help destroy the book, of course, but the five year she spent alone in the silvers has changed her, and not for the better. On the outside Dani is hard and uncaring, but if you chip away her layers, you see that she is soft and just wants love. She will fight to the death for it. Watching her grow into herself was beautiful, devastatingly so. I can’t remember watching a character go through so much and come out stronger for it. I am looking forward to see what happens to her. She has had enough heartache to choke on and I know she deserves a happily ever after.

“I love you more eternal than pi.”

As I said this is the final book about Mac and Barrons. Their story comes full circle and it’s crazy when I look back at when they first met. She was so sad and naive, but by the end she knew who she was and was stronger for it. They had their battles but, through it all, their love was the stuff faerie tales. Truly.

“Fire to his ice.
Frost to my flame.
Forever.”

I spent the final 25% of this book with tears in my eyes. Some scenes had them flowing nonstop, while others had me chocking to hold them in. This book was an epic edition to this series. A full range of emotions. You won’t leave untouched. She makes us work for this ending. Grab a comfy blanket, perhaps a box of tissues and leave the world behind as you escape into the world of the fae. You can thank me later.

~Melpomene

Buy Feversong HERE

Review: The Bookshop on the Corner

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I loved Nina and her van full of books! As she traveled and matched up the right books with the right people, Nina also experienced personal growth. Along her journey from England to Scotland, Nina did more than just drive some kilometers. She transitioned from roommate-situation to living alone, and from depressed to wide-eyed in awe. 

I also liked Nina’s relationship with her roommate Surinder – everyone needs a best friend who can share unvarnished truths. And Surinder was so fun! Nina also had a beautiful friendship with teenage Ainslee, a girl who just needed a good book and a nudge in the right direction. 

I didn’t enjoy the Marek storyline at all, but I did see the necessity of a “transition” guy during Nina’s transformation. So while Marek and his subplot made a lot of sense, the whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth.  The chapters with Nina’s landlord were similarly nose-wrinkling. He was a great guy, but I didn’t like his circumstances in the story. 

Overall, I sailed happily through this lovely story about a woman making a big life change. While the romantic parts weren’t my cup of tea, Nina’s friendships and journey of self-discovery were on point. Author Jenny Colgan made me feel like I was part of Nina’s book van, and that was a thrill in itself! 

-calliope

Buy THE BOOKSHOP ON THE CORNER

Review: Solo by Jill Mansell

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Solo is a mad adventure by two women who have their hearts set on something: for Holly, it’s Max, handsome hotel owner;  for Tessa, it’s being left alone and not being tied to a man. Unfortunately for them both, “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” 

Tessa is involved with Max’s brother Ross in a love triangle of the most unexpected kind. Holly tries too hard. And Ross and Max have their own agendas! Cougar Antonia brings her own melodramatics that turn everyone’s lives into a soap opera. 

I always adore the fun and crazy that Jill Mansell writes, and this is no different. The characters are unique from book to book, Solo’s plot is multilayered, and the dialogue is believable even when it’s over the top. 

Thanks Ms. Mansell for taking me completely out of reality and into the world of fancy hotels, infidelities and karma, and simple girls who live in simple cottages quite happily enough. 

-calliope

Buy SOLO

Review: Meet Me at Willoughby Close by Kate Hewitt

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A Cotswold Christmas introduced this series, but you can certainly read Willoughby Close as a standalone. Willoughby Close is a little collection of charming cottages on a large estate of a lovely royal-ish elderly lady. I have a feeling a collection of charming people will inhabit them all by the time the series is finished! 

For now, we meet Ellie and her daughter Abby. Ellie has a new job at the University, and Abby is looking forward to making a fresh start where friends are concerned. 

I so love how Hewitt wrote professor Oliver — the guy  Ellie works for. He’s nerdy and introverted and stays true to himself. Hewitt did a phenomenal job developing Ellie, as well. Ellie is a little nervous and quirky, and she’s quite unsure of herself most of the time. That could be annoying, but not here. Hewitt made her real and relatable. I like Ellie’s mom side and her romantic side – she appears to the reader as a whole fleshed out character with different facets – just like a pal in real life!  

I also really like how the new neighbors moved in and they’ll be the focus of the next book in the series. And how the Close’s superintendent is a flirt! This is a fun read that touches on some harrowing issues in just the right way. 

-calliope 

Buy MEET ME AT WILLOUGHBY CLOSE

Review: Commander in Chief by Katy Evans

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01com
The ending of Mr. President had me reeling. I wanted more. I needed more. Thankfully Commander in Chief gave me more.

If you read Mr. President you’ll know that Matt didn’t want to want Charlotte. He saw how his mom was treated, as first lady, and didn’t want to do that to her. But the heart wants what the heart wants and you have to just get on board with it. Matt decides if he can’t date her out in the open, then he’ll bring her inside to him and have her anyways. He decides to make her the acting First Lady so she has a platform to do all the things she wants to do.

You see where this will go, right? Exactly where we hope it does. You can’t work close like that and not have feeling resurface.

I loved Charlotte. She took on the roll perfectly with poise and lots of heart. She loves Matt and if this is a way to be close, then so be it. She knows she shouldn’t want to be with him, but she just can’t help it. The sexual tension was fantastic. The sneaking around was sweet. These two were meant to be together.

This book goes pretty fast, in the sense that a lots happens in between the pages. It spans over a few years, with quite a bit of excitement and a smidgen of angst. I was never bored with this story, like some contemp romances have left me lately. I read so quickly, because I knew their story was going to be perfect. And I was right.

~Melpomene

Buy Commander in Chief HERE
Buy Mr. President HERE

Review: The Cottage at Firefly Lake by Jen Gilroy

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Sometimes you just want some easy reading. Maybe you just finished something heavy, or maybe your life is a little crazy and an effortless read is just what the doctor ordered. The Cottage at Firefly Lake is your medicine, baby. 

After her mother’s death, Charlotte returns to her family’s summer cottage to get it ready for the real estate market. She runs into teenage sweetheart Sean, whose family business is in town – has always been and will forever be. Their past love is now colored by adult responsibilities and expectations… and emotional baggage. 

Though the plot and writing were very simple, I enjoyed the way Gilroy seamlessly wove in the lakeside setting and that vacation-y feeling.  She also did a great job including Charlotte and Sean’s families. Even though the main plot line was about a possible romance between the couple, Gilroy gave the supporting characters meaningful and fun roles. 

I think Gilroy went a little heavy on trite romance novel phrases, but I can forgive that for a first-in-a-series. With a little more originality, Gilroy could have a series that sits up with Robyn Carr’s Virgin River books. I sure hope so! 

-calliope

Buy THE COTTAGE AT FIREFLY LAKE