Author: L.P. Dover

Guest Review: It Must’ve Been the Mistletoe by L.P. Dover

Posted March 23, 2018 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: It Must’ve Been the Mistletoe by L.P. DoverReviewer: Tracy
It Must've Been the Mistletoe by L.P. Dover
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: December 15th 2017
Genres: Contemporary Romance
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three-half-stars

Finding your soul mate is a dream Adeline Hamilton thought was just that … a dream. After several failed relationships, she realizes she’s not capable of falling in love. The only passion she’s ever had is teaching U.S. History at the local high school.

A week before Christmas, Adeline is all set for her best friend’s wedding, even though she dreads having to go to it alone. But when she’s given a Christmas wish that could change her future forever, she’s whisked away to the past, to a completely different place and time. It’s also when she meets him, William Blair, the man who steals her heart.

As their relationship grows, Adeline realizes that true love does exist. What she doesn’t know is that her wish can’t last forever, that soon she’ll have to leave the past behind. Will Adeline and William find their way back to each other? Or will their love have to stay where it all began . . . in 1865? With mistletoe and Christmas magic, anything’s possible.

Adeline is a bit frustrated with her family and friends.  They keep wanting to set her up on dates and so far nothing has panned out.  Sure, she wants to get married and have a family but striking out time and again gets frustrating after a while. Her best friend Jessica (who is getting married) now wants to set her up with her fiancé’s brother, Will, who is moving back to Asheville from California. She agrees but he ends up missing his flight so she doesn’t meet him at the wedding rehearsal dinner.

During the rehearsal dinner she speaks with the wedding planner, Margaret, who gives her her wedding gift from Jessica.  It’s an antique locket with mistletoe inside.  Adeline thinks it’s odd but Margaret assures her that mistletoe is magical.

When Adeline falls asleep that night she wakes up and is in 1865.  Everyone thinks that she is Adeline-Jane.  Since Adeline is a history buff she’s fascinated with everything but knows it’s all a dream.  She meets William Blair while in 1865 and they fall in love.  When Adeline awakens the next morning and meets Will, she finds he’s the same guy – only he doesn’t remember the “dream”.

This was a cute story.  I liked the semi-magical aspect of it as we really didn’t know if Adeline was dreaming or if she had really been transported into 1865.  Since she was supposed to be Adeline-Jane she met her (fifth) great-grandparents and she was thrilled.  (In real life Adeline -Jane had died in a carriage accident on the way to visit.)  The history part of the story, for Adeline was wonderful.  I thought that Dover did a great job of showing us the time period and the lovely family traditions that the Hamilton family had.

Adeline and William’s relationship grew quickly which I thought was a bit strange, but Dover made it work.  William loved that Adeline was different from the other women of 1865.  When Adeline returns to present day and meets Will it’s hard for her as she fell in love with William and Will has no idea who she is.  She also has no idea if he was the will in her “dream” or not.  I liked how Dover worked things out between Will and Adeline and in the end they got their HEA.

Now my mind started going all over the place once I finished the book because of questions.  In the dream that Adeline had she had given money to one of her great-grandmother’s servants to start her own dress shop.  Of course the real Adeline-Jane never made it to the house for the visit so there would have been no one to give the servant money in real life.  Of course when Adeline looked up the servant to see if she was real a newspaper showed her in front of the dress shop she purchased.  If it was all a shared dream, and not real, how did the servant get the money?  Gah!  Things like this make me crazy! Lol

Despite that odd question I enjoyed the book and thought it was a lovely Christmas romance.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

 

three-half-stars


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Guest Review: Blocked by LP Dover

Posted November 9, 2017 by Tracy in Reviews | 2 Comments

Guest Review: Blocked by LP DoverReviewer: Tracy
Blocked by L.P. Dover
Series: Breakaway Series #2
Also in this series: Hard Stick
Publisher: Loveswept
Publication Date: October 31st 2017
Genres: Contemporary Romance
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

He’s got every reason to be cocky . . . until a female cuts him down to size.

I’m Dallas Easton, the best goaltender in the league. I make a damn good living playing hockey, and with women falling at my feet wherever I go, why not enjoy it? I get whatever I want, whenever I want—that is, until I come across the one player who gets the best of me on the ice.

When I try to pummel the dude, all hell breaks loose. Imagine my surprise when the helmet comes off to reveal a woman underneath. And not just any woman, but the sexiest woman I’ve ever seen. Callie Davis is the complete opposite of the puck bunnies I usually go for, a good girl with sick moves and a selfless streak a mile wide. I need to make amends, but she dodges me at every turn. It doesn’t help that Callie’s brother hates my guts, or that my agent thinks she’s bad for my career.

But I could care less what they think. I can’t let our little run-in on the ice be the end of our story. Because when I set my sights on something, I won’t rest until I score.

Dallas Easton is a complete player.  He’s the goaltender for the Carolina Strikers and he thinks quite highly of himself.  When the book opens he’s at an after-the-game-win party at a fellow player’s house.  He picks the first hot chick he sees, dances with her for a minute and a half, maybe and next thing you know he’s in a bedroom with her RTF.

Dallas gets hurt at that party and Callie, an ER and surgical nurse takes care of him.  Later when he’s well enough to get back in the game he’s practicing on the ice and actually almost punches Callie (I won’t tell how).  He wants nothing more than to tell Callie how sorry he is but she won’t give him the time of day. She knows he’s a womanizer and really wants nothing to do with him.  He’s never had to chase a woman in his life so he gets creative with trying to see her and apologize for his actions. He soon gets close enough to tell her how he feels and soon Callie is giving him a chance

The pair start falling for each other but they have plenty of roadblocks standing in their way.  Will their love be enough to get them through everyone who hates them together and stands in their way?

I have to admit that when I got this ARC from NetGalley I was excited to read it.  I’d liked the first book in the series and was looking forward to book two.  I read the first chapter and quite frankly?  I hated Dallas. He was such a huge douchebag that I had no desire to read any more about him.  I put the book down and let it sit there for almost 3 months before I picked it back up.  I know, bad Tracy.  When I finally decided to give it another chance and read past chapter one I was quite surprised.  I still thought that Dallas was an ass for about half the book but he truly redeemed himself in my eyes.  He fell in love with Callie and couldn’t see any other woman besides her.  It went a long way toward making me like the man.

Callie was a strong woman and I liked that about her.  She stood up to Dallas, and her brothers as well when they got too protective.  She had a good head on her shoulders and was happy to see that she didn’t give in to Dallas right away.  She really made him grovel and I loved it.  Their relationship ended up being pretty great. Yes, there were the typical trying to tear them apart moments but overall it was good.

This has been a good series (yes, only two books so far, but still) and I was happy to see that this book had a lot more hockey involved in it.  The last book had a hockey player in it but not so much hockey.  This had a ton more and I loved it.  I’m looking forward to reading the next book and I can’t wait to see what happens next with these hockey players.

Rating: 4 out of 5

four-stars


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Guest Review: Hard Stick by L.P. Dover

Posted June 30, 2017 by Tracy in Reviews | 1 Comment

Guest Review: Hard Stick by L.P. DoverReviewer: Tracy
Hard Stick by L.P. Dover
Series: Breakaway Series #1
Also in this series: Blocked
Publisher: Random House, Loveswept
Publication Date: June 13th 2017
Pages: 225
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Series Rating: four-stars

He carries a big stick. And he’s not afraid to use it.

On the ice, I’m Kellan Carter, powerhouse enforcer for the Charlotte Strikers. Off the ice, I’m just a regular guy. The last thing I want is to get mobbed by a bunch of groupies who are only after me for my fame and money. My ideal woman knows how to enjoy a little good, clean fun—and maybe some not-so-clean fun too. That’s the kind of girl I’d never let go.

When Kristen Robinson, the gorgeous, down-to-earth bartender I’ve been crushing on, agrees to let me take her out, I’m thrilled. We have an amazing night together, culminating in the most electrifying kiss of my life—and that’s it. Kristen tells me we can’t see each other again, but I know that kiss meant as much to her as it did to me. What I don’t know is that Kristen has a dangerous secret. . . .

I’ve proved to Kristen that she can trust me with her body and her heart. But when her past comes back to haunt her, I need to prove that she can trust me with her life. And I might have to get my hands dirty after all.

Kristen Robinson was in a relationship with a controlling asshole.  When she finds out that he had a hand in the death of her best friend she knows it’s time to get out.  The problem is that he can find her anywhere.  She enlists the help of a friend who have relatives that work with the FBI.  They get her new papers and hide her.  Kristen meets Kellan Carter because she is a bartender at the bar that him and his fellow ice hockey teammates go to.  They’re constantly asking Kristen out but she always declines.  She doesn’t want anyone else wrapped up in her mess.

When the FBI decides to fake Kristen’s death she feels like a weight has been lifted from her shoulders.  She actually accepts Kellan when he asks her out and that’s pretty much all she wrote.  They are incredibly happy together until Kristen’s past finds her once again.

I think I’m in the majority when I say that when I picked up this book I thought it was a hockey player romance.  Ok, it is that but mostly it’s about Kristen and her issues with her ex-boyfriend.  Yes, Kellan and Kristen get their romance and it’s very sweet but quite frankly Kellan could have had any job and the story wouldn’t have changed too much.  There was very little hockey involved and it definitely wasn’t the focus of the book.

Once Kristen’s death is faked she really lets herself breathe and Kellan is there to date her.  They are really quite cute together and I loved that they were so perfect for each other.  After everything that Kristen had gone through she needed someone who cared about her. Their romance was kind of a blow to the head for Kellan as it was unexpected but he didn’t question his luck and I loved that.

The end of the story was a bit much in the drama department but it worked.  I was happy that Kellan and Kristen got their HEA after everything that happened.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5


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Guest Review: Catching Summer by LP Dover

Posted April 4, 2016 by Tracy in Reviews | 1 Comment

Guest Review: Catching Summer by LP DoverReviewer: Tracy
Catching Summer by L.P. Dover
Series: Second Chances #6

Publication Date: April 5th 2016
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two-half-stars
Series Rating: three-stars

Falling for someone can be dangerous, especially when someone wants to take them away from you. But what happens when fighting for the one you love could cost them their life?

For over two years, Summer Jacobs has tried to get her life back on track. A former nurse and now a prestigious restaurant owner, she’s living the dream just like her husband wanted. After watching him get killed in the MMA ring and almost losing her life herself, it left a scar on her soul. The thought of moving on scares her, but the local NFL star, Evan Townsend, is determined to catch her heart.

Forced to work with him and the football team, Summer succumbs to his relentless attempts at capturing her heart. He has the power to heal her, but there’s someone out there who wants to keep them apart. Even if it means getting rid of Evan permanently. Summer is being chased by hidden dangers and it’s up to Evan to catch her. The question is . . . will he get to her in time

It’s been two years since Summer’s husband was murdered.  She was there when it happened and it’s taken weekly therapy to get her to the place she is now.  At the beginning of the book we hear about the murder and my heart broke for Summer as that couldn’t have been easy.  She decides that it’s time to stop seeing her therapist and he encourages her to start dating again.  She’s not sure about it but then finds out that a friend of hers, Evan, has had feelings for her since he met her and she decides to give dating a chance.

This is where the book lost me completely.  The story went from emotional darkness to the possibility of a relationship down the road – and I liked that about it.  That’s not what ended up happening though.  Summer went from maybe dating to “all-in” with Evan: having sex, saying the “I love you’s” that I did not see coming, and then moving in with him in a matter of weeks.  WTH? There was just no building of the relationship and that really didn’t work for me.  I think the author wanted to focus more on the suspense aspect of the story as it seemed that someone had it out for Evan and they were trying to figure out who it was.  As the reader I had the villain figured out immediately so there wasn’t really any suspense.  IDK, the book went from a 4 star to a 2.5 to 3 star read in a matter of pages and that was quite disappointing.

As far as the characters went…Evan was really hot and sweet but the man had a temper on him.  It was always geared toward other people that he thought were hurting Summer, but holy cow did he fly off the handle a few times!  If I were Summer that would have thrown up a red flag.  It just didn’t sit well with me.  Summer was sweet and very caring about others. She was a strong character and I liked reading about her but didn’t care for how fast she fell into it with Evan.  I don’t think any woman having gone through what she went through with her first husband would have moved that quickly but that’s just my opinion, of course.

This was my first read contemporary read by LP Dover (the other was a paranormal) and the first story I’ve read in this series.  I’m definitely interested in a couple of the characters that I met in this book so I might just have to pick up another book to see what happens. Hopefully those characters won’t rush in like Evan and Summer did.

Rating: 2.5/3 out of 5

two-half-stars


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Guest Review: Turn of the Moon by L.P. Dover

Posted September 25, 2015 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: Turn of the Moon by L.P. DoverReviewer: Tracy
Turn of the Moon by L.P. Dover
Series: Royal Shifters #1
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: August 24, 2015
Format: eARC
Genres: Paranormal Romance
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three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

To escape the cruel, overbearing, Kade, the Yukon Pack alpha she’s been promised to, Bailey Whitehill flees her home in search of a new life, one of freedom where she can make her own choices. However, Kade will stop at nothing to make her his and begins the hunt.

As Bailey starts her new life, everything she’s known to be true, is not. Time is of the essence and choices have to be made or consequences suffered. Not only does Bailey fear Kade, but another danger lurks deep in the recesses of the forest. Unbeknownst to her, that danger is what she’s been searching for all along. At the turn of the moon, her fate hangs in the balance . . . and it’s up to her to make the right choice.

Tracy’s review of Turn of the Moon (Royal Shifters #1) by L.P. Dover

Bailey was raised in near solitude with her pack and family. They finally let her go to college and she had a great time. Now she’s back and her parents tell her they are forcing her to mate with a nearby pack alpha. She’s thinking…oh hell no! Kade is a complete asshole and she wants nothing to do with him. He’s cruel and vindictive and when he tries to rape her after her father hands her over she rips his throat and runs.

She ends up in Wyoming and manages to meet her true mate. Of course she was raised in such solitude her parents never told her about magic or true mates. She likes Ryker and is shocked when she finds out that he knew her as a child and that they were friends. She remembers none of that. In fact when her friend and fellow pack member Sebastian shows up and tells her some other truths about her life she’s even more surprised at what she hears. She’s not who she thought she was at all and she can’t understand why the secrets were kept. As Ryker and Bailey get to know each other they start to fall in love and plan on bonding during the full moon but Kade isn’t about to give up on Bailey as she was promised to him. He’ll stop at nothing to make her his.

This was a good start to a new series. I liked the characters in the story and the story itself. There were a lot of secrets that were discovered in this book – not only about Bailey but about Ryker as well. It was interesting to peel off the layers and find out what was underneath.

While I like stories about fated mates it’s hard for me to sometimes liked the fact that the love happens so quickly. Even if it’s not insta-love it’s fast enough that I have to wonder at it. This is a paranormal story though so I took it at face value. 🙂

Overall the love story was good, the unfolding of the story done well and the battle scenes pretty great. I look forward to reading what happens next in this world.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

This title is self-published. You can buy it here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

three-half-stars


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