Review: Fearless, by Tawny Weber

Posted by

0

18309286 

Gia is way more brave than I would ever be!!

She has liked Luke for a while, but never, in her wildest dreams, would he give her a second glance. But she is sick of waiting. So she decides to change her appearance and give him a weekend to remember.

But she never thought it would change her life.

Luke is unhappy with everything being handed to him, included women. For once he would like to actually have to work for something. While in Vegas, for work, he meets a super hot woman that he is instantly attracted too. He wants the full weekend with her, but he after a hot night, he wakes up alone. Now he can’t get her out of his head and he’s thinking of changing everything he knows. That woman changed him.

Gia’ head only wanted a weekend, but her heart wants forever.

What is she gonna do now???

I received this ARC for an honest review.

~Melpomene

Buy it now Fearless (The Girlz Guide to Gettin’ It)

Authors are even better in person…

Posted by

3

I love authors way more than traditional celebrities. Meeting Tom Cruise wouldn’t really faze me but meeting my favorite author would make me go into complete fangirl mode. However, I had never had a chance to meet any authors at all before this summer.

935196_4296103779079_1580414677_n In July some book friends of mine informed me that New York Times best selling author Khaled Hosseini of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns was coming to Ohio to promote his new book And the Mountains Echoed. I was ecstatic! This is an author whose books really moved me and I admired. The signing was huge, with a couple of hundred people coming out to meet him. Khaled did a Q&A talk where I found him humorous and really engaging. Also way cuter than I expected! Due to the size of the event there was no picture taking, but I did get my book signed and got to shake his hand.

My next author meeting was totally different. Tessa Dare and Gayle Callen were coming to Dayton.They both write romance novels – Tessa wrote The Spindle Cove series that I had really enjoyed and Gayle I had yet to read. This was at a bookstore in Dayton where there was a small crowd. This was much more interactive and I really loved seeing them talk to us so candidly. I thought they both were really funny and I thought it was awesome that Tessa recognized a friend of mine from their Twitter interactions. I’ve since read Gayle’s latest release that I had signed and loved it. I left there a bigger fan than I was going in.

971108_10200258989500777_870582190_n I then was able to go to a small bookstore in Delaware, OH and meet Patrick Rothfuss who has a huge fan following. The Name of the Wind is a fantasy novel a fellow muse convinced me to read, which I completely loved. This small bookstore was packed and Patrick was amazing. He was hilarious, answered many, many questions in philosophical and funny ways and he stayed way late. Patrick was willing to take pictures with every single person and signed multiple books for just about every fan there.

So my experiences so far have been vastly different. But the common thread they all shared were that the authors were SO great. Since in general authors are like idols to me maybe I assumed they would think they were better than their fans, or thought they’d act snobby. If anything, my meeting these authors made me love them even more. If you can manage it I would highly recommend going to one!!

~Clio

Look for any of the books from these awesome authors here: Search

Review: Fire Inside (Chaos #2) by Kristen Ashley

Posted by

0

imageLanie Heron just wants to hook up with Hopper Kincaid for one night. She’s not been with anyone since the death of her fiancé eight years ago. There’s always been an undercurrent of attraction between the two since they first met.
So the one night stand leads to many more nights together with Lanie, the drama queen, being resistant to any type of relationship with Hop.

Fortunately Hop is persistence and patient and handles her well. He helps deal with her troubled parents as well the guilt that she still holds over the death of her fiancé. Also, we get to know what really happened in regard Hop cheating on his ex. Finally, we learn that Hop is a rock star who can melt Lanie’s heart with a Bob Seger.

This book’s timeline runs concurrently with Tab and Shy’s. So don’t expect a resolution to storyline of Benito Valenzuela wanting to take over Chaos territory.

Overall, it’s an enjoyable read. I loved getting to know Hop better and could tolerate the high drama that Lanie can bring. As always, the epilogue worked well to add additional happiness to Hop and Lanie’s HEA.

This is the second book in the series. I highly recommend that you start with the first book, Own the Wind before diving into this one. The motorcycle club is huge and lots of characters are involved. I would hate for you to be confused.

3/5 stars

ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley.

~Thalia

Buy Book 1 Own the Wind: A Chaos Novel

Buy It Now Fire Inside: A Chaos Novel

Review: Shades of Gray(KGI#6), by Maya Banks

Posted by

0

13411699

I just love these big alpha men!!! This series is full of them. So far there are 7 books. The 8th will be out in December, and I can’t wait!!

P.J. and Cole compete all the time. I was hoping all the competitiveness was a cover for romance. I’m so glad I was right. It seems this has been a long time coming.

The day after they finally give into their desires; which, by the way, was super HOT, they get called back out on a mission. Cole wasn’t a fan of this mission, but P.J. wasn’t about to let him make the call after one night with him. She should have listened to him.

The mission went unbelievably wrong. I was devastated. The men, on the team, were devastated. Cole was heartbroken. And P.J.? She was destroyed……

She decides to quit the team and go off on her own mission of retribution. She doesn’t wanna drag her team down with this dark path she is heading down. She can’t function any more, until payback has been given.

But Cole doesn’t give up on her. He knew, from the moment he laid eyes on her, that she was gonna be his. Now he had to find her and bring her back and help her get better.

After six months he finds her and is determined to bring her back to herself and help her heal.

“I’ll wait as long as it takes, P.J. I’ll do whatever I can to help you. Whatever it takes for you to heal physically and emotionally. Just know that I’m not going anywhere, and it’s time for you to stop running.”

It’s takes a lot of patience, and love, to show her that she belongs to Cole and the KGI family. No matter what happens, this is her family now and they won’t turn their backs on her.

“I’ll always have your back, P.J. You’ll never have to look far to find me.”

If you can get past the mission scene, the rest of the book is smooth sailing. Just a word of warning. 🙂

~Melpomene

Buy it now Shades of Gray: A KGI Novel

Review: Shadows by Paula Weston

Posted by

0

cover33319-mediumYA Supernatural or Paranormal genre has gone through many different fads. Witches, vampires and werewolves have all been covered to a great extent in a ridiculous amount of books. Some have been wildly successful with the stories they’ve told, spawning movies and fandoms like crazy.

But I read a lot of books in the Young Adult genre and over the last few months I’ve seen an explosion of Angelic books. I’m a sucker for books that draw from an established mythology and either make it their own or expand the established mythology into an even greater one.

And that is exactly what Shadows does so well.  Paula Weston managed to take what I’ve come to expect in an Angel story and add even more to it. This was a very fast paced book – in a good way – I didn’t want to put it down.  The world building done within the book was excellent, letting us see what we need to establish what is to come in the rest of the series.

While this is going to be a series, the ending was not cliffhanger-ish enough to drive me crazy. It left me wanting more but not to the people of being angry at the book. I liked the young adult/ new adult vibe Shadows has as well. Gaby is coping with the death of her twin brother, Jude and trying to move on with her life when the angelic world is brought solidly into her life and is forced to deal with the shocking consequences that brings along with it.

I can’t wait to read the rest in the series. I really liked the secondary characters and want to see much more of Rafa, Jason and Maggie.

I received this ARC from Netgalley in return for an honest review.

4 Stars

~Clio

Buy it Now Shadows (The Rephaim)

Review: Delectable by Adrianne Lee

Posted by

1

20130909-091341.jpg I found Delectable so refreshing! Instead of boy meets girl until happily ever after, Adrianne Lee gives us a romance about a newlywed couple who almost didn’t make it past their first two years of marriage.

With intervention from friends and family, Quint and Callee are thrown together in the kitchen of Big Sky Pie Cafe. They think about rekindling their relationship and decide against it several times. Eventually, all roads do lead to a happily ever after.

I liked how Callee made Quint work for the relationship. She refused to be a doormat even though she still loved him. I loved Quint’s efforts to save his marriage, especially his attempts to be romantic while still being his authentic self.

The ending was abrupt and could have used another chapter about Callee to bring the reader along on her mind trip, but I made the leap and enjoyed the book as a whole.

True love and homemade pies made this novella totally delectable!

-Calliope

Buy It Now Delectable

Review: Oh, the Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss

Posted by

2

imageCongratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

This is a very popular book by Dr. Seuss. It’s about starting a new adventure. It’s about being brave enough to start adventure.

Three people in my life recently chose
to begin new journeys. Davy and Eddie are already far, far away in their new home. My blogging partner, Urania, will begin hers in the next few days.

This is my ode to them. To say that I am proud of them. That I miss them very much.

I’m afraid that some times
you’ll play lonely games too.
Games you can’t win
’cause you’ll play against you.

Like the verses above states, sometimes you will be lonely. You will be battling with yourself whether or not you made the right decision. While you are fighting those self-doubts and insecurities, take a look back and see how far you traveled. You will find inner strength.

And you will succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

Happy trails, Urania! Davy and Eddie, looking forward to the next daily update of your further adventures in Rio!

~Thalia

Buy It Now Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

Pre-Order Kindle Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

Review: Edenbrooke, by Julianne Donaldson

Posted by

1

12820360

Normally, I don’t read historical romances. But a certain Muse told me about Ms. Donaldson and said that I must read her. Boy, am I glad I glad I listened to her. This is the second book I’ve read of hers and I am in love with her writing. This book was so full of sweet romance that my eyes were prickling the whole entire time. I fell in love all over again. I feel like twirling with my eyes closed.

Marianne has been away from home for 14 months. She wants nothing more than to be reunited with her twin, Cecily, and her father. But instead, she must endure constant affections from an unwanted suitor in a city that is the complete opposite of where her home is.

She has been invited to spend some time in Edenbrooke with her sister and some family friends. And after a horrible incident with a highway man and then being subjected to a very flirtatious boy, she wonders what else will happen on her visit.

The longer she stays at Edenbrooke, the more her heart strings get pulled. She starts to feel things for Phillip, the heir to Edenbrooke, but she knows that her sister wants him, so she tries to remain only friends.

Phillip was the perfect gentleman. He was sweet and adventurous and enjoyed making Marianne blush every chance he could. But he always seemed to be there when she needed him.

My heart broke for Marianne, while she examined herself and found it lacking. She always put herself in her sister’s shadow and never realized that she was perfect, not inferior. She tries to convince herself that someone will love her, even if it’s for her inheritance.

Little does she know that love is right in front of her.

“Where is your compassion when I need it the most? Open your eyes, love, and see what is right before you: that I am not merely a friend, but a man deeply, desperately, in love with you.”

*swoon*

Seriously swooning happened. Phillip did everything a gentleman would do. He was perfect.

“I will always want her…Always! There is nothing you could do to change that.”

~Melpomene

Buy it now Edenbrooke: A Proper Romance

Ramblings From the Odd Muse Out……

Posted by

8

622516_10151562979950064_1131408446_oSometimes I despair over being a muse. Don’t get me wrong. I love it. This blog is so much fun. The fellow muses are amazing. It’s not often you can get 5 women to all agree on something, but the blog is also so much fun!

However, I have to confess…..sometimes I feel like the odd muse out. Trust me when I say all of the other muses are girly girls….meant in the best possible sense of the word….They are cute and cuddly and they all seem to love HEA books. They get all giggly over all the latest romance books and I am left wondering what is wrong with me? I mean, really, can’t I be part of the giggling muse in-crowd too? Seriously, I can giggle….listen……

Bwhahahahahahahahahaahah…..

Okay, maybe not…..see what I mean? Didn’t that sound a bit like some evil laugh right there? Seriously, there was nothing cute and bubbly about it, was there?
Now I know, my fellow muses are so wonderful that they will read this blog post and come running and offer me chocolates and some story of a studly man hunk that they are sure will cheer me up…..they will tell me how this book or that book is just like my very own HEA story….

So, now that I’m over my self-pity party, I realize that this is what this blog and my friendship with my fellow muses are all about….fun and good times with people you care about…but since this is a literary blog, let’s take it a step further….

Where else can you find total acceptance with a group of strangers other than in the literary world?

I said a moment ago that I love this blog and how much fun it is….but it’s not because we are all doing something we love. It’s also because of the followers. It’s also because of the fellow muses. But there is more…..It is because all of us, muses and followers share a common interest. Love of reading….not a common genre of books…..but the love of books themselves….

You see, I’ve been an odd muse out pretty much my entire life….and for that lifetime, I’ve also been fortunate enough to have a strong passion for reading….no matter how or where I was going, or how far I was going to have to walk, I never felt lumbered enough where I didn’t carry some sort of book with me….school, over night stay at grandma’s house, family vacation….wherever, I always toted along that book….just in case….

Now that I have found other literary friends, I have truly felt accepted for perhaps the first time ever….

Let me try to explain…..sure there are school ties that bind us….if you went to a certain school you found connected to the other students….but perhaps not to the students of the closet rival school….so your binds ended right there….
you can feel a bigger bind with people in your hometown….perhaps your state, your favorite sports team…..hell, even your Country….you can even form a bond just because you share the same gender with someone…..

But think about it…..with literary friends, you don’t have to all read the same things. I know fellow literary friends (I won’t name names Muses!!!!) that read nothing but fluff, and I still consider them some of my favorite people in the world! To take it a step further, they don’t seem to mind that I read some really oddball stuff….
But think about it….open up your mind….My love of the written word has brought me great friendships from every walk of life…..Different genders, different generations, different cultures, different genres and different reading preferences.

As I’ve been sitting her pondering it….I wonder what else could do so?

George RR Martin wrote:

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one”

I would just like to point out that it’s not just the words on the page that enables us to do this….it also the combined love of these words that we share with one another…..if you want to get people talking, really talking to one another, give them something they are passionate about and open the door….
How many times have you seen a stranger with a book and started a conversation based on it? I know I have! What a thrill to feel that instant bond with a stranger! Haven’t tried it? Take the chance and do so! You might be really surprised how easily a conversation starts over a book….it doesn’t even need to be a book you’ve read or would even consider reading!

The best part of about being a person that reads is that reading encompasses so very many different areas….and because it does, so many readers are open to new ideas….when you read a lot it’s so hard to simply see the world in black and white anymore….I, for one, see it in various shades of vibrant colors….
I know that without reading, so many doors I have walked freely though would not have been open to me…So many of the people I love most in this world would be unknown to me…..

So yes, perhaps for now on, after this long rambling post, I will be known as “Urania – the rambling muse”

But I also know that even though I sometimes feel like the odd muse out, that in fact, I belong to a very large and loving literary family that loves me despite my excellent reading tastes……
Bwhahahahahahaahahahahahaha (see! Did THAT sound more like a giggle there?)

Much Love and Happy Reading,
Urania

Browse Amazon now for books! Your Next Great Read

Review: Patchwork Family in the Outback by Soraya Lane

Posted by

0

20130906-070802.jpg

Poppy leaves the city and heads to a teaching position in the outback, hoping for a fresh start after her husband did her wrong. Harrison loves the land he was raised on and is determined to raise his own children there – despite his wife leaving the family for a more exciting city life.

This novella is very well-written, and the small cast of characters is nicely developed. There’s a meet-cute, the push and pull of new and unexpected chemistry, and a convenient storm that gives Poppy and Harrison a final push toward each other.

I loved the relationship between Harrison’s children and Poppy. I thought it was pretty realistic for a teacher to want to care for mother-less children. I also liked that Harrison was so rough and tough, but had a soft spot for his children.

I enjoyed reading about this Patchwork Family, and wished it was a full-length novel. For an hour or two I was transported to rural Aussie ranch country, and fell in love with Harrison’s family just like Poppy did.

–Calliope

For a quick, enjoyable, uplifting read for under $4:

Buy It Now Patchwork Family in the Outback