romance

Review: Yours to Keep by Serena Bell

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Well, I thought this was going to be an ordinary light romance, but it was EXTRAORDINARY! Ana is an undocumented immigrant from the Dominican Republic, but only because her visa ran out when she was a child and her mother passed away. Ethan is a well-loved local doctor (and widower) who needs a Spanish tutor for his teenage son. You can connect the dots that form the romance.

But Serena Bell gives the reader even more of a story… the story of Ana’s family, their efforts, their fears, their love for one another. I cried my eyes out at Ana’s plight: trying to achieve and succeed while flying under the radar in a country that didn’t know she existed. Ana’s brother and sister were her whole world, and they sometimes had to give up personal wants and values for the good of the whole family.

The other moms in the community were surprising but necessary characters. They tried to befriend Ana, help her, and make her feel better. But no rich white woman had been in her shoes. They didn’t feel the fear of getting caught that Ana lived with daily. They were awkward and ignorant, even if they meant well.

I absolutely enjoyed the love story in Yours to Keep. Ana and Ethan overcame personal challenges and came to a meeting of the hearts and minds. What really pulled at my heart strings though was Ana’s illegal immigrant status and her determination to succeed despite it. The adorable-but-typical teenager was a heart-tugger, too. And watching his talented dad (He cooks! He cleans! He saves lives!) fall in love was very romantic.

–Calliope

Buy it now Yours to Keep

New Releases for Nov 26, 2013

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It’s super Tuesday!!! There are a ton of great books being released today. Again, I’m thanking my family for all the GC. I am using them up quite quickly.

17830559Remy (The REAL series) I love Remy!! That is all I’m saying about that. Here is my review.

17233800Crash into You (Harlequin Teen) I really enjoyed this one as well!! Here is our review.

16101234The Chocolate Heart (Amour et Chocolat) I’m just about to start this one. But here is our review.

17415184Highland Master (The Murrays) Gotta love those Highlanders! I’m hoping to get a chance to read this one soon.

18050760Love a Little Sideways (The Kowalskis) This is Number 7 in the Kowalski series. I have a few of them sitting on my kindle. I am determined to start this series this week. Perhaps while I sit in those long lines on Friday morning.

18221310Pawn (The Blackcoat Rebellion) This is the first in the Blackcoat Rebellion series. I just finished it yesterday. My review will be up tomorrow. All I can say is, if you liked The Hunger Games, you will like this.

Now, I hope you found at least one book that caught your eye. Make sure you fill up your kindles before you head off to family gatherings. You never know when you’re gonna need a break from all those crazies. 🙂

~Melpomene

Review: Remy by Katy Evans

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“When I take you, you’ll be mine.”

Holy sexual tension, Batman!! I love reading male’s POVs cuz of all the emotions they feel, but this books is nothing like those. Now, don’t get me wrong, this book had emotion, but most of it was filled with sexual tension so raw, I was fanning myself a few times. He is a fierce lover. FIERCE!

It’s starts off on their wedding day. And while he’s waiting for Brooke, he remembers all those things that happened between them. I thought this book was going to basically be Real from Remy’s point of view. But I was wrong. It was Real and Mine together. I was very happy about that. It basically alternated between the now and then. I’m glad we got to see some of his scenes, where Brooke isn’t there. We never knew how he felt about going black and needing the shots. I felt so horrible for him, at those parts. I can’t imagine not being in control like that. Scary.

When we first see Remy meet Brooke, you see how he was thrown off balance, just like she was. It’s nice to see a guy off kilter. The way he wanted her was slightly overwhelming. He was quite obsessive for her. I never knew the depths of his needing love, until this book. He was basically thrown away, when all he wanted was love. He wants to give all of himself to Brooke, if she’ll take him.

And once he has Brooke, he will do everything to keep her.

“I’m not letting anyone take her. I’m not letting her go. I’m her Real. She’s Mine.”

I still loved the way music was intertwined throughout the book. Remy uses songs to show Brooke how he feels, since he can’t quite say the right things. The songs they picked were perfectly written for them. She seems to understand him more and more, with his song choices.

This was a nice ending to the Remy and Brooke story. I know there are more books coming, but those will be about some of their friends. Not that I’m complaining about this sexy fighter, but it will be a nice break from all his obsessive ways.

I received this ARC for an honest review.
~Melpomene

REMY Banner copy

Release date: Nov 26
Gallery Books
Buy it now Remy (The REAL series)

Review: On His List by Wendy Sparrow

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20131119-142353.jpg Remy and Owen meet serendipitously. That’s perfect for spontaneous Remy… but a little crazy for organized, structured Owen. Little does Owen know that he’s going to fall hard for Remy, and loosen up in the process.

On His List is a cute, romantic novella filled with flirtation and double entendres. Even though I am more of a list-maker myself, it was fun to see Owen want to relax and enjoy the insouciance that Remy brought to the table.

My favorite part was the end, when Owen did the most spontaneous thing in his life — all for the sake of love — and then showed how he still stayed true to himself by making the ultimate romantic list. Even Remy swooned.

3.5 stars for 77 pages of flirtatious fun.

–Calliope

Buy it now On His List

New Releases for November 19, 2013

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Yet another week I’m thankful for my birthday GCs. I’ll be snagging a few of these.

17831619Beautiful Beginning This is number 3.5 in the Beautiful Bastard series.

17894256The Curse Keepers (Curse Keepers series) This is sitting on my Kindle just waiting to be read. I’m hoping during Thanksgiving week.

17908462Takedown Twenty: A Stephanie Plum Novel I LOVE me some Stephanie Plum!! I can’t wait to start this one!!

18086963Holiday Games (A Play-By-Play Novella) Can we just stand here and stare at this for a while?? Thank you. 🙂 Must grab the print version of this one!

18695377Holidays with the Walker Brothers (Alluring Indulgence) Christmas novella and hot cowboys, what more could a girl want?? In my opinion, nothing. Merry Christmas. 🙂

Happy Reading!!!

~Melpomene

Review: Miracle Road by Emily March

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Spanning autumn and ending at Christmas (into the New Year if you count the epilogue), Miracle Road is traveled by Hope and Lucca, each trying to overcome grief and depression. They lift each other up with family and community help. In the end they find a way to love themselves and each other.

I’ll be honest, my favorite part of this book was tall, dark, hot, hunky, lean, brawny Lucca Romano. Somehow his broody self was so very appealing (i.e. sexy). Lucca’s brothers were just as awesome, though they took a back seat in the plot.

Hope is just as appealing a heroine. She’s a kindergarten teacher, a stand-in hoops coach, and a volunteer in the community. She’s headstrong and maybe somewhat of an introvert. I totally related to her and loved her character.

Lucca aside, my other favorite part of Miracle Road was a full-on cry fest at the single most romantic thing Lucca could have done for Hope. I read happily-ever-after romances all the time, and I didn’t even see this coming. Grab some tissues, and prepare to be impressed. It’s brilliant, in more ways than one. 😉

Miracle Road illustrates how a strong sense of family can help someone overcome a personal life challenge. The book has other romantic subplots, as well as friendships and mentor-ships that bring people together and uplift them. Emily March’s writing is good, her character development strong, and her ability to create a strong, sensitive, swoon-worthy hero… beyond excellent!

Miracle Road is #7 in the Eternity Springs series, but it can definitely be read standing alone.

–Calliope

Buy it now Miracle Road

Review: Four Seconds to Lose, by K.A.Tucker

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I believe you don’t have years, or months,
or weeks to impact a person’s life.
You have seconds.
Seconds to win them over,
And seconds to lose them.
–Cain

This was definitely not the like the first two books. It was still good, but just different.

Cain wasn’t your traditional strip joint owner. He set out to help girls get back on their feet. He knew if he didn’t help them they’d end up lost and forgotten. He’s very good at his job and he never wanted to mix business with pleasure.

Well, that was until he met Charlie.

Charlie needs cash. And she needs it FAST. She is in a horrible situation and need is desperate to get out of it. So desperate that she’ll become a stripper to do it.

Soon she finds herself falling for Cain, but she knows she can’t. She can’t risk him knowing who and what she really is. She doesn’t want him to get hurt or worse.

She tries everything to get away from him and her new friends, but she is so lonely she doesn’t want to leave.

Cain doesn’t want to let Charlie go. He is determined to help her with whatever she needs help with. He doesn’t care what she’s done in her past. He wants to be in her future. He’s done things in his past that he’s not proud of, so he understands why she’s leery.

When everything comes out in the open, they both need to make some very hard decisions. Decisions that will tear them apart, before they can even think of being together.

We get a glimpse of the past friends from the other books. Storm and Dan play a bigger roll than Ben, Kacey, Trent and Livie do, but they all play a minor roll.

I knew I liked Cain, after reading the other two books. But after reading this, I REALLY liked him! Something horrible happened to him, in his late teens, but he chose to turn it around and make a better life for himself.

I can’t wait to see what trouble Ben gets into, in the next book. But I have to wait til February for that one.

~Melpomene

Buy it now Four Seconds to Lose: A Novel

New releases for November 12, 2013

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I’m actually quite happy with the low amount of books this week. I can’t keep up with all the past ones I’ve purchased. It’s nice to have a break. The funny thing is that the first two were released yesterday!

17840487Working It: A Love by Design Novel
I can’t wait to read this book! I’m saving it for my birthday treat. I plan on doing nothing but read, and this is the first book I’m starting with. I’ve really enjoyed all of Kendall’s books, so I know I’ll enjoy this as well.

18166194Infinite Possibilities (Contemporary New Adult) (The Secret Life of Amy Bensen)
After the last book, Escaping Reality, left us with a cliffy, I am dying to read this book as well. So don’t even look for me tomorrow. I’m gonna be busy. 🙂

17628631 Plain Peace (A Daughters of the Promise Novel)
And while this may not seem like my normal read, I’ve read the first 5 books in the Daughters of Promise series. This is #6. So I know I’ll be reading it as well. I sometimes enjoy the simpleness of the Amish life and reading about it gives me a glimpse into it.

Happy Reading!!

Don’t forget to enter the 2nd birthday week giveaway, on our Facebook page!!

~Melpomene

Review: Love, in Writing; by Elsa Winckler

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20131102-220427.jpg Just released this month!

Love, in Writing is about a romance author, Margaret, who meets a sci-fi writer, Graham. They live in different towns in South Africa but keep running into each other at various events. Margaret and Graham develop a relationship, but each is too stubborn to see the love they have between them.

I enjoyed the South African setting, the surfing references, crazy cousin Louise, and Margaret’s bookshop (full of books with happy-ever-afters). The author signings and book launches were fun to read about, too.

I really liked that Margaret stood her ground and wouldn’t compromise her values and needs just because she met a hot guy. She wanted Love and Forever, and she was prepared to wait for it. I also thought it was great that Graham wanted to hold back, since his goal was a casual relationship. He pulled back from getting too close to Margaret before he was really ready.

Within this novel, Margaret and Graham wrote about each other in the books they were writing. Using valuable novel space to describe how and what they were writing was a little too silly for me. I skimmed over those parts when I saw them coming. I thought the plans near the end to get back together were also a little unrealistic. But I suspended my disbelief and was satisfied with the ending and the epilogue.

Love, in Writing is a well-written, quirky romance. The characters are fun, and the setting is unique. I enjoyed it.

–Calliope

Buy it now Love, in Writing

Review: When I Look to the Sky, by Barbara S. Stewart

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“Cause when I look to the sky something tells me
you’re here with me
And you make everything alright

And when I feel like I’m lost something tells me
you’re here with me
And I can always find you when you are here”

-Train-

Oh my word….I need a minute…..

OK, I have sat here for two hours writing and deleting and writing again. This is the 5th time a book has made me wanna just type…It was awesome. I cried. Buy it. But that won’t do it justice, will it?

This is the second book in a trilogy. The first, Rock and Roll Never Forgets, was one of the ones I couldn’t write a review that was worthy of it. But I have to give this one a go. I’ll try not to spoil the first book by telling you of this one. But you REALLY must start from the beginning. You MUST!!! I’ll be buying these in print, because some of the proceeds go to The American Cancer Society. That makes me love these even more.

When I finished Rock and Roll, I was devastated. The last 25% of the book I spent crying. I won’t spoil it, but I will say, you may need tissues. The entire love story was so romantic and tragic. The love, that was shown, was overwhelmingly beautiful. I never wanted the story to end. I wanted to know what happens next.

But I admit, I was scared to read this one. After the last, I didn’t know if it was gonna live up to the emotions I felt. So I put it off for a while. But when I finally picked it up, I knew I wasn’t gonna be disappointed. And I knew I was gonna need tissues. 🙂 Just reading the beginning, I was already crying.

Carlee always felt loved by Andy. He gave her everything she ever needed or wanted. She’s been through a lot, in her young age, but her Papa was always there. And she loved him with all her heart. When Andy surprises her with a European vacation, she never imagined that it would bring her another man to love and change their lives forever.

While eating at their hotel, she meets Matthew. I loved the way we see him for the first time and get his view of her. He was instantly smitten and so sweet to her. Offering to be her tour guide, was perfect. 🙂 It was cute to see Andy find ways to have Matthew join them in their travels.

I loved all the point of views we see. This book shows us what everyone is feeling and seeing. But not in a confusing way. They have so many people in their lives and they all have a part to play. You see Andy as he is watching his sweet girl move farther from him and closer to another man. You watch Carlee experience everything for the first time. You see Matt try to be the best man he can, for his girl.

Watching Matt’s and Carlee’s romance reminded me of the good times between Andy and Carlee’s mom, Beth. They were very slow and sweet. Innocent kisses and hugs and long phone calls. Now, I love romances with a bit of sauce in them, but not every story needs that. I think if they rushed into things, it would’ve ruined it. They way they took their time to get to know each other was perfect. And when Matt needed Carlee, she jumped to his aid. They leaned on each other through the hard times and grew closer through the good.

“I think about more than ‘now’ when I look at you…I can’t wait for every tomorrow with you…”

Music played such major character in this series. I was constantly looking up the songs to listen while I read the scenes, which undoubtedly made me cry more. I’ll never hear “Unforgettable” without thinking of Andy.

DO YOU KNOW MEL?

The camp scenes were just so touching. I won’t say much more. I don’t want to spoil that part. But if I ever have a chance to be a part of something that amazing, I’m going to jump on it.

While we’re watching Matthew and Carlee’s love story we see Andy and Carlee’s love. They love each other so much it hurts. It’s been only them, for so long, he has to learn to let go of his little girl, and it breaks his heart.

“I’m going to bed now and cry myself to sleep…Wake me in the morning. I need a few more minutes alone with you before I share you with Matthew…forever.”

“Papa, I love you.”

“Carlee Elizabeth, you just don’t know.”

*wipes eyes*

After I typed all of this out, I read the last book, Feel Like Makin’ Love, and that was the perfect ending to a wonderful series. I am so glad I went straight to it, after this one. It answered the few questions I had. But really, I just needed closure. I needed to know that everyone was OK.

There is so much more I want to say, but it would spoil it, so I’ll leave you with this.

It was awesome.

I cried.

Buy it.

~Melpomene

Rock and Roll Never Forgets (The Rock and Roll Trilogy)

When I Look to the Sky (The Rock and Roll Trilogy)

Feel Like Makin’ Love (Rock and Roll Trilogy #3)