Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Release Day Blitz Review ~ To Kiss A Rake by Barbara Monajem


To Kiss A Rake
by Barbara Monajem
Series: Scandalous Kisses, #1
Genre: Regency Historical Romance
Release Date: July 29, 2015



WHEN A LADY IS ABDUCTED BY MISTAKE…

Melinda Starling doesn’t let ladylike behavior get in the way of true love. She’s secretly helping with an elopement, when she’s tossed into the waiting coach and driven away by a notorious rake.

REVENGE REALLY DOESN’T PAY.

Miles Warren, Lord Garrison, comes from a family of libertines, and he’s the worst of them all—or so society believes. When Miles helps a friend to run away with an heiress, it’s an entertaining way to revenge himself on one of the gossips who slandered him.

Except that he drives off with the wrong woman…and as if that wasn’t scandalous enough, he can’t resist stealing a kiss.



Setup: Miles and Melinda have just been united in a marriage of great inconvenience which neither of them wished. They haven’t consummated the marriage yet (for a reason Melinda would rather I didn’t mention here). Miles is taking advantage of the next few days to work up to it, though.

     Miles guided the greys between two wagons. “Putting on an act, pretending to be madly in love, worked well enough in a pinch, but now that we’re married, we should take a different approach.”
     “Which is?” asked Melinda.
     “We should get to know one another,” he said.
    She huffed. “Obviously we’ll do that.”
     “By means of flirtation.”
     That delicate flush arose in her cheeks again. “I beg your pardon?”
     “Think about it. If I were courting you, we would flirt.” He paused to let her absorb the notion. “Wouldn’t we? You must have flirted with many men.” His heart beat painfully at the thought that she might continue to do so.
     “Only if I knew they weren’t serious,” she said. “The moment they got that intent expression in their eyes, as if they wanted to steal a-a kiss…” Her eyes widened. For a hushed second, her gaze hovered on his lips. Abruptly, she looked away. “I wouldn’t let them.”
     “Ah.” He suppressed a smile. “That privilege fell to me, and I seized it most unfairly.”
    She took a deep breath. Did she realize how it made her bosom rise and fall? “And if it seemed they were on the verge of making an offer, I stopped flirting straightaway.”
     “But that was then and this is now, and you’re already married to me. Think of the next few days as our courtship. We’ll drive in the Park, we’ll perhaps have ices at Gunter’s, we may even get invited to a ball or two, and…”
     “We’ll flirt.” She glanced at him from under her lashes—at his mouth again—and away.
     “But it will be much different from before. Instead of stopping at the first sign of serious intent, you’ll carry on as if your interest is as genuine as mine.”
     She chewed on her bottom lip. She toyed with the fingertips of her glove.
     “As if it’s leading somewhere,” he said.
     Melinda knew perfectly well that he meant the consummation of their marriage, but why must she blush so easily? She’d mentioned that kiss, and all of a sudden she couldn’t keep her eyes away from his mouth. “Which it is,” she said gruffly. There wasn’t much room on the seat of the curricle—enough for the two of them, but very little space between. She’d never flirted with a man in such close proximity before. It certainly added spice to the experience.
     “So there’s no reason to shy away or give me the cold shoulder or whatever you did to those fellows,” he said. “You may indulge your natural enjoyment of flirtation as much as you like.”
     She bristled at that. “Who told you I enjoy flirting?” Then she remembered. “Is it something Lord Bottleford said? He was forever reprimanding me for being too friendly, and saying a lady should maintain a proper distance at all times. To him, that meant ignoring everyone else and listening enraptured while he prosed on and on. And on.” She rolled her eyes. “And on.”
     His lips twitched. His eyes gleamed. Something inside her did a strange little flip.
     She pulled herself together. He disconcerted her without even saying a word. “Who, then? My grandmother?”
     “No, I didn’t mean you in particular, but rather one’s natural tendency to flirt with members of the opposite sex. It’s quite primitive, I think—rather like mating rituals of birds or beasts.”
     Primitive. What an odd word to use of flirting, which had always seemed a highly civilized behavior until now. And yet…how very enticing.
     She wanted him to kiss her again.


This is a story that will just make you feel good. The author did a superb job of portraying Miles and Melinda as strong people of moral character in spite of what rumors are being spread about them being immoral and unfit to be in society. This story has a lesson in it that will show the reader how to take adversity and change the life of a child and a couple.

Melinda survived verbal abuse and lack of love from her father and grandmother growing up to be a strong positive women with strong moral beliefs. I like how the author was able to keep her character in tact for the time period while showing her to be strong to survive the abuse. 

Everyone likes to read about the rake who conforms to society for a women he loves. But what happens to a man who is wrongly accused of something that he can not change. This is a story of redemption and a women who learns to love a man while believing and knowing how good he really is.

I give this 4 Stars and recommend it for all readers 18+ as there are some descriptive scenes between husband and wife.

A copy was gifted in exchange for an honest review via Book Partners In Crime.







Winner of the Holt Medallion, Maggie, Daphne du Maurier, Reviewer’s Choice and Epic awards, Barbara Monajem wrote her first story at eight years old about apple tree gnomes. She published a middle-grade fantasy when her children were young. When they grew up, she turned to writing for grownups, first the Bayou Gavotte paranormal mysteries and then Regency romances with intrepid heroines and long-suffering heroes (or vice versa). Some of her Regencies have magic in them and some don’t (except for the magic of love, which is in every story she writes).

Barbara loves to cook, especially soups, and is an avid reader. There are only two items on her bucket list: to make asparagus pudding and succeed at knitting socks. She’ll manage the first but doubts she’ll ever accomplish the second. This is not a bid for immortality but merely the dismal truth. She lives near Atlanta, Georgia with an ever-shifting population of relatives, friends, and feline strays.







Saturday, July 25, 2015

Review ~ The Perfect Bargain by Jessa McAdams


~ Categories ~ Contemporary Romance



American lass seeks brawny Scot...

As if being newly single isn't brutal enough, Sloane Chatfield's friends are getting obnoxious about setting her up. When Sloane insists she's waiting for a certain sexy fictional Highlander to come along, her friends surprise her with a trip to Scotland to find her a new boyfriend. She'd rather have a root canal. But if she can find a Highland hunk to "break her heart" before her friends arrive...


In a remote Highland village, Galen Buchanan is struggling to keep the family pub afloat. Everything is falling apart, he's running out of money, and now there's an opinionated American lass parked at his best table, driving him mad. But then Sloane asks Galen to be her pretend Highland boyfriend...and offers him enough money to save the pub. It's only for a few days, he figures. What's the worst that could happen?


I loved the blurb of this story and I could definitely relate to Sloane and what she was going through with the breakup and her interactions with her well meaning girlfriends. I think that Sloane's girlfriends characters were hysterical because they reminded me of some of my friends when we are together.

Galen came across very rough and old school with a "she doesn't fit in" attitude much like how a true Scot would towards some Americans. I can say this since I lived there and experienced what they think about some of us. I would have liked to of seen Galen's character more developed.

There are parts of the book that didn't work for me because I wanted more meat to the story. It was a fun fast read but for me I would have liked more depth. 

An ARC copy was gifted in exchange for an honest opinion via Netgalley.





Julia London is the New York Times and USA Today best selling author of more than a two dozen romantic fiction novels. She is the author of the popular Secrets of Hadley Green historical romance series, as well as the new Cabot Sisters historical series, including The Trouble with Honor, The Fall of Grace, and The Perils of Prudence. She is also the author of several contemporary romances, including Homecoming Ranch and Return to Homecoming Ranch.

Julia is the recipient of the RT Bookclub Award for Best Historical Romance and a six time finalist for the prestigious RITA award for excellence in romantic fiction. 


~ Find The Author At ~ Website | Goodreads | Facebook




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Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Release Day Blitz Review ~ Countess by Coincidence by Cheryl Bolen


Countess by Coincidence
by Cheryl Bolen
Series: House of Haverstock, #3
Genre: Historical Romance
Release Date: July 7, 2015



To extricate himself from financial difficulties, John Beauclerc, the Earl of Finchley, concocts a scheme to marry a stranger who's answered his advertisement. He'll show his grandmother! That lady’s withholding money until he can demonstrate more maturity and less scandalous behavior. At six and twenty, the last thing he wants is to settle down. He goes to the church at St. George's Hanover Square to wed Miss Margaret Ponsby of Windsor, send her on her way with £100, and continue to pursue wine, women and faro with his fun-seeking friends.

After the ceremony, he realizes he's married the wrong woman. Miss Margaret Ponsby of Windsor obviously thought the wedding was to occur at St. George's Chapel in Windsor. Lady Margaret Ponsby was at St. George's in London. How can he extricate himself from this wretched marriage—a marriage over which his grandmother is ecstatic?

If only Lady Margaret Ponsby weren't so shy. When the lanky young (though most disreputable) earl she's worshipped from afar for as long as she could remember asks her to move to the church's altar with him, she's powerless to decline. Even after a wedding ceremony begins, she still remains mute. She must be standing in for Lord Finchley's true bride. But once she realizes she really is married to Lord Finchley, she determines to do everything in her power to make this a dream marriage. Even if it means imitating her clever, talkative sister.



Read the first chapter on Cheryl's Website


This is a lighthearted easy historical read that shows the reader how a young Rake can find himself changing when he least suspects it. John Beauclerc, the 11th Earl of Finchley loves carousing with his three best friends. The author shows that there is more depth to his character that he is unaware of but his grandmother and now shock of shocks his unexpected wife can see. There are some amusing parts in how John acts that will crack up the reader because they will identify with someone in their life just like him. But the author balances out his character with life lessons that he needs to feel good about himself and his life.

Lady Margaret Ponsby is the perfect match for Earl of Finchley in her love for him, how she treats him, their marriage and those around her. The author does a commendable job of showing a shy women trying to take command of her shyness to get the man she loves.

This story is a great for all. I give it 4 STARS.

I received an ARC for an honest opinion.







Book 1: Lady By Chance

Book 2: Duchess By Mistake


Cheryl Bolen is the New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of over 20 romances, both historical and contemporary mystery. Many of her books have placed in contests, including the Daphne du Maurier (romantic suspense) and have been translated into ten languages. She was Notable New Author in 1999. In 2006 she won the Holt Medallion, Best Historical, and in 2012 she won Best Historical in the International Digital Awards and she's had four other titles place in that competition. Her 2011 Christmas novella was named Best Novella in the Romance Through the Ages. She invites readers to www.CherylBolen.com, or her blog, www.cherylsregencyramblings.wordpress.com or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cheryl-Bolen-Books/146842652076424.




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