Tag: Maisey Yates

Blog Tour: Tough Luck Hero by Maisey Yates

Posted June 29, 2016 by Rowena in Promotions | 1 Comment

Has anyone read this series before? I’m mighty curious about it. I read some Goodreads reviews and the reviews seem pretty good so I’m mighty curious about this one. Tough Luck Hero is the second book in the Copper Ridge: The Wests series, #6 in the Copper Ridge Series and it looks pretty good. Check it out!

Tough Luck Hero by Maisey Yates
Copper Ridge Series #6, Copper Ridge: The Wests #2
Releases on June 28, 2016 by HQN Books

Can the golden boy of Copper Ridge, Oregon, get a second chance at happy-ever-after?

Ranching heir Colton West knew his wedding would be the talk of the town. But he didn’t expect to get left at the altar—or to escape on the next flight to Vegas with Lydia Carpenter, the woman who gets under his skin like no one else. The only thing crazier than honeymooning with Lydia is waking up married to her. So why does he find himself entertaining his new wife’s desire to stay married—and fantasizing about a real wedding night?

As Copper Ridge’s prospective mayor, Lydia can’t risk a divorce scandal so close to election time. But pretending to be blissfully in love with her new husband is more confusing than she’d thought. For a man who’s always rubbed her the wrong way, Colton suddenly seems to know exactly what to do with his hands. And his lips. Now Lydia’s wildest mistake could turn out to be her luckiest move, if they’re both willing to take the ultimate gamble…

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Excerpt

COLTON WEST COULDN’T remember the last time he had gotten blackout drunk. Maybe college? Maybe. It was hard to say if in those scenarios he had passed out because of the alcohol or because they were still awake at five in the morning after some ridiculous party.

Though at none of those ridiculous parties had he married anyone.

And, judging by the messages overflowing his phone, he had gotten married last night.

Which wouldn’t be that weird since yesterday was supposed to be his wedding day. The weird part about it was that he had married a bridesmaid. Not the bride.

And not just any bridesmaid.

Lydia Carpenter.

There were three other bridesmaids. All of whom he was more likely to get drunk and marry in Vegas than Lydia. Or at least, he would have thought so if asked prior to his hasty Vegas marriage.

Actually, had he been asked prior to his hasty Vegas marriage he would have said there was no way on earth he would ever get drunk and marry anyone spur of the moment. He was not a spur-of-the-moment kind of guy. Colton was a planner. Colton had never set one foot out of line.

After his older brother had taken off and completely abandoned the family, it had been up to Colton to establish himself as the likely heir to his father’s business. It had been up to him to be the son his father needed. And he had taken that duty very seriously.

Hell, the wedding yesterday was a prime example of that.

The wedding that had originally been scheduled, not the wedding that had ultimately taken place.

This was a nightmare. Unacceptable in every way.

So take it back.

It was the only thing to do. Unlike his brother, who had run when he didn’t want to deal with his life, and unlike his father, who had buried his mistakes, Colton would meet his head-on.

He looked up from his phone at his scowling—he winced—wife.

“Well, I can honestly say this is the last situation I ever expected to find myself in,” he said.

“No way,” she said. “You do not get to look this annoyed about the situation. This is your fault.”

“How is this my fault?”

“Granted my memory is questionable, but if I remember right, we were drinking in Ace’s. Then you were the one who suggested we go somewhere. You were the one who said you had the time off and wanted an escape. You are the one that facilitated the car to take us to the airport and said we needed to get a nonstop flight to somewhere that would be fun. And lo, we boarded a plane to Vegas.”

“At no point did you say no,” he said, wishing he could remember the events a little bit clearer. Maybe she had been hesitant. Maybe she had said no and he’d talked her into it.

But he was going to bluff his way straight through, dammit.

She folded her arms across her chest, crinkling the ridiculous lavender fabric of the bridesmaid dress she was wearing. One of Natalie’s choices. And honestly, he hadn’t cared. Not about the entire spectacle that she had put together with his mother from top to bottom. It hadn’t concerned him at all. The only thing that mattered to him was that Natalie was an appropriate choice. She’d been raised in a family like his. Highly visible in the community, with a lot of concern given to appearances. There were expectations placed on her as the daughter of the long-term mayor, and they matched the expectations placed on him. Plus, he was attracted to her. He liked her. A lot.

He’d liked her more before the wedding plans had started to get really intense. But, ultimately he had been confident in her as his choice of bride. So, the wedding had seemed like an incidental detail to him. Something that would have to take place to appease his mother, Natalie’s family and the populace of Copper Ridge, before he could get on with his life.

He hadn’t paid attention to things like bridesmaid dresses. And now he wondered if he hadn’t paid enough attention to Natalie, either. Well, obviously, since she had left him standing there at the altar without anything other than a quick apology text.

Actually, it hadn’t even really been an apology.

One line, obliterating a relationship that he had spent two years building. A relationship that was supposed to shore up the foundation of his life. And she’d just knocked it all down.

I can’t do this.

That was all she’d said. And he didn’t even get the message until later, after the ceremony that wasn’t. When he was already at Ace’s ordering the kind of hard liquor he never, ever drank in a public space. And definitely not to excess. Then Lydia had shown up.

Fast-forward a little bit—through scenes he couldn’t even remember—and here they were.

Copper Ridge: The West Series

About the Author

Maisey Yates

WEBSITE || TWITTER || FACEBOOK

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Maisey Yates lives in rural Oregon with her three children and her husband, whose chiseled jaw and arresting features continue to make her swoon. She feels the epic trek she takes several times a day from her office to her coffee maker is a true example of her pioneer spirit. In 2009, at the age of twenty-three Maisey sold her first book.

Since then it’s been a whirlwind of sexy alpha males and happily ever afters, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. Maisey divides her writing time between dark, passionate category romances set just about everywhere on earth and light sexy contemporary romances set practically in her back yard.

She believes that she clearly has the best job in the world.


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Guest Review: Sheikh’s Desert Duty by Maisey Yates

Posted January 27, 2015 by Jen in Reviews | 0 Comments

Sheikh's Desert Duty by Maisey YatesJen’s review of Sheikh’s Desert Duty (The Chatsfield #9) by Maisey Yates

Journalist Sophie Parsons needs a scoop to stop the sale of her friend’s hotel chain. And she’s found it! But being abducted by a sheikh goes way beyond the call of duty… 

Sheikh Zayn Al-Ahmar has a wedding to arrange, a sister to protect and a country to rule. He’s not going to let one woman bring it all down with a headline! Kidnapping Sophie seemed like a good idea, but soon her delectable company puts everything he values at risk.  

Only one mistress can rule Zayn’s heart—will it be Sophie, or his duty?  

I’d heard good things about Maisey Yates, so I wanted to give one of her books a try. While it doesn’t break any new ground, this book is a just-slightly-better-than-average Harlequin Presents.

Sophie Parsons is a columnist at a local newspaper. She needs to dig up some dirt on the wealthy Chatsfield family to help a friend, but while snooping she gets caught eavesdropping on an altercation between James Chatsfield and Sheikh Zayn Al-Ahmar, the ruler of the nation of Surhaadi. Zayn is angry because James slept with his virgin sister, Leila, though no one but Zayn and Leila know she’s also pregnant. Zayn is desperate to protect his family, and he doesn’t want Sophie running off to tell his secrets to the press. There’s only one logical move to make when a stranger has heard some very vague information about your family: kidnap her. (Not how you’d handle it? Well, you’re clearly not a Sheikh.) Zayn coerces Sophie into his limo and half strong arms/half blackmails her into coming back to Surhaadi with him. He promises her she can report on his upcoming wedding, and he also promises to give her a scandal that would damage the Chatsfields. Naturally, the two have to spend time together, and they each realize the other is more than they first thought.

Zayn is pretty much like every other Sheikh hero from the HP line. He’s bossy, he’s concerned about virginity, he is burdened by his “duty”, etc. Nothing new to see here. Sophie is slightly more interesting. She is smart, ambitious, and self-sufficient. Aside from her reaction to her kidnapping (more on that later), she acts fairly believably. I really didn’t see how she thought she could be a hard-hitting journalist since she clearly does not have any aptitude for investigation or interviewing, but she does have an amazing amount of drive and has worked hard for everything she has in life. I also liked that she’s mostly upfront and honest. She does keep some of her motivations secret from Zayn, but only because she’s protecting her friend. When it comes to her feelings and her relationship with Zayn, she’s admirably open.

I think this is why the ridiculous kidnapping thing bothered me so much. Sophie isn’t stupid, but she completely acts that way at first. She shows very little fear when a strange, intimidating man basically forces her to get into his limo. She has no idea what he might do to her, but she’s already fantasizing about how hot he is. I’d describe her as unsettled, not completely fucking terrified, which would be the appropriate reaction. Either commit to the kidnapping and make Sophie have a normal reaction (fear) but make Zayn redeem himself, or find another way to get Sophie to Surhaadi. Moreover, the kidnapping makes no sense whatsoever. What does Zayn hope to accomplish by taking her away? You don’t think she’s going publish the story about her kidnapping eventually, if she really was out for a scoop? And inviting a woman looking for dirt into your home seems much more dangerous than simply letting her go with the vague details she’s already collected. But Sheikhs don’t care for your logic, Commoner!

I also didn’t appreciate the fact that Zayn is engaged. In fact, he’s getting married in a matter of weeks. It’s true he doesn’t love his fiance and they’ve barely met (she doesn’t even appear in the book), but it still seems pretty lousy to start something with Sophie. His fiance is just a plot device, not a real woman with her own feelings and needs. (Ditto for Zayn’s sister, Leila, though at least she does appear in the next book in the series. Maybe the fiance will eventually make an appearance as well?) I wanted Zayn to grovel some more, too. He didn’t do much to make up for stringing Sophie along or for the things he said to her near the end.

If you don’t enjoy the HP line, you’ll find nothing unique in this book. But if you’re in the mood for one, you could certainly do worse than Sheikh’s Desert Duty. That sounds like faint praise, but for a line as homogeneous as the Harlequin Presents can be, slightly-above-average is not too shabby.

Grade: 3.5 out of 5

This book is available from Harlequin Presents. You can purchase it here or here in e-format.  This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.


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Guest Review: Unexpected by Maisey Yates

Posted September 25, 2013 by Tracy in Reviews | 1 Comment

Guest Review: Unexpected by Maisey YatesReviewer: Tracy
Unexpected by Maisey Yates
Series: Silver Creek series #1
Publisher: Berkley, Penguin
Publication Date: August 13, 2013
Format: eARC
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-stars
Series Rating: three-stars

 

After spending another family wedding fielding questions about her non-existent love life, Kelsey Noble decides she’s tired of waiting around for things she could go out and get herself. What Kelsey wants is a baby, and she doesn’t see any point waiting for a husband she’s not even sure she wants. But a mix-up at the fertility clinic lands her with a hassle she didn’t count on. A big, muscular hassle in a Stetson and cowboy boots.

Cole Mitchell is shocked to discover that a grand gesture from years past has come back to haunt him. Now, thanks to a clerical error, a woman he’s never met is having his baby—and there’s no way he’s going to walk away and forget he has a child.

Trying to make nice with the unexpected father of her baby lands Kelsey in Silver Creek, Oregon, dealing with the kind of small town life she left behind years ago. Even worse is dealing with the burning attraction she feels for Cole. She knows adding sex to the mix is a very bad idea, but she’s not sure how long she can resist falling for the last man she ever expected…

Kelsey is in her 30’s and wants a baby. She was engaged at one time but after finding her fiancé in their bed with another woman that ended quickly. She decides to have in vitro fertilization and she’s excited about the prospect of being a mother. It scares her thinking about what her mother will say when she finds out but she’s determined to do it on her own. That’s until Cole Mitchell shows up on her doorstep.

Cole had been married at one time and it was not a happy marriage. He tried to placate his wife on many fronts and freezing his sperm so they’ll optimum results (he wasn’t ready to have children then – probably because it was with her) was one of the concessions he made. Now that he’s no longer married he heads to the sperm bank to have his sample disposed of but is told that there was a mix up and his sperm was used. He manages to get the info on the woman who used them and heads to her house. He knocks on the door and there’s Kelsey. Cole’s not sure how he feels about being a father when it wasn’t planned and it wasn’t with someone he loved but he wants to take care of Kelsey as she’s horribly sick. He takes her to his ranch so that they can get to know each other.

Kelsey and Cole aren’t quite sure what to do with one another. Kelsey is kind of pissed that this man has intruded on her life but the more he’s around she realizes that she’s glad. Both Kelsey and Cole start having stronger feelings for each other than planned but when Cole asks Kelsey to marry him – strictly for convenience sake, she turns him down flat. He’s determined to get her to marry him and she’s determined to not do something foolish – like marry a man she’s in love with but who doesn’t love her in return.

I was excited when I received this book for review as it sounded pretty darned good. I was surprised at how the author set up the story. The fact that the fertility clinic got things mixed up wasn’t too much of a surprise although I’m sure this happens rarely. The part that surprised me was that the hero found out the info by just pushing the receptionist out of the way, looking at the computer and printing out the info. I know this is fiction but I like at least a modicum of believability in my contemporary romances. If this was a paranonormal romance I probably wouldn’t have blinked an eye.

Anyway, despite how Kelsey and Cole came to know each other I liked them together. Kelsey had her own snarky sense of humor and Cole meshed with that well even though he was a more uptight person in general. Their banter was amusing and kept me smiling throughout the book. Their romance was sweet but I thought that Kelsey’s “I love you” came kind of out of the blue. She was determined to keep Cole at arms length but then slept with him. We had been privy to her inner thoughts so I felt the author should have given us at least some clue that she was feeling more than lust, horniness and some affection. With Cole he had been hurt so much by people – his ex-wife and his father that he was scared to love again – I certainly didn’t blame him. The fact that he overcame his hesitance so quickly was both good and bad. I guess I’m always surprised when someone says that something like “I’ve loved you for a long time now” when even that person wasn’t aware of it. IDK, it just didn’t sit square with me.

Despite the niggles that I had with the book I liked it. The humor and the secondary characters, along with the romance, helped to make this an entertaining read.

Rating: 3 out of 5

three-stars


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What I Read Last Week

Posted August 26, 2013 by Tracy in Features | 1 Comment

How is everyone? What have you been up to lately? Tell me everything!

Things here have been…interesting. My oldest daughter is trying to feel her oats and in the process is making me feel..mental. Ah the joys of having a 15 year old. All I can say on the matter is if you’re the praying sort please put us in your prayers cuz we can use all we can get.

On to what I read this past week:

First up for the week was Freefall by Tess Oliver. This was a book I saw on Goodreads and was interested. The story is about a tattoo artist and his relationship with a girl who already has a boyfriend but the boyfriend is controlling and well, whack. It was an interesting and good book but I definitely had some issues with it. You can read all of my thoughts on the story here in my review. 3.5 out of 5

Next up was The Vampire With the Dragon Tattoo by Kerrelyn Sparks. Dougal is a vampire who was once in love. His love died but when he meets geneticist Leah Chen he believes that she may have the soul of his dead love. He does fall in love with Leah – whether she’s Li Lei or not but he doesn’t believe he’s the best person for her. Leah has a problem believing that vampires can be good people but eventually she does especially when she realizes she’s falling in love with Dougal. I’ll post my review of this one this week so you can read my thoughts on the book. 3 out of 5

To All The Rakes I’ve Loved Before by Anne Barton is a novella that has our heroine Amelia taking a beaten man into her home when her mother’s away. Amelia nurses Stephen back to health and they realize they have feelings for the other. It was a sweet story and though it all happened rather quickly I thought it was well done. 4 out of 5

Unexpected by Maisey Yates is the story of Kelsey who wants a child and finally does something about it by having in vitro. Cole finds out that his sperm was used accidentally and that he’s now going to be a father. Kelsey and Cole try to come to terms with the fact that they will be co-parenting but also with the fact that they find themselves falling in love. It was a cute story that I had more than a few niggles with but it was a decent read. 3 out of 5 (read for Book Binge)

Unbound by Cara McKenna has Merry hiking across part of Scotland but falls ill and seeks help from Rob who is a recluse. She brings him out of his shell and they find compatibility sexually with Rob as the submissive. Rob’s got his shame to deal with about his alcoholism and the fact that he never dealt with it – more just ran away from it. It was a decent read that I thought was well written but I personally wasn’t a fan of the sex scenes on a certain level. My biggest issue was the end of the book when they fall in love but we see no solid HEA. Very disappointing. 3.5 out of 5 (read for Book Binge – FYI: releases in October) 

Last for the week was To Sin With A Viking by Michelle Willingham. This story has Styr and his wife Elena heading off to Ireland to start a new life. They have a tumultuous marriage and Styr hopes that this new life will give them what they need to get things on track. They are attacked when they hit land and taken hostage. Styr by Carragh who just wanted to save her brother from certain death at Styr’s hands. After a while she lets him go and agrees to go find her brother, his men and his wife with Styr. Throughout their time together they find themselves falling in love but of course he’s married. I liked the story and I liked the h/h to a point. Unfortunately I don’t normally read books about infidelity. Styr kisses Carragh a couple of times and does touch her sexually in a minor way – but it’s the emotional infidelity that really got me. I just wish that this could have been a story of the two of them without the wife involved – it would have been great. 3 out of 5

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
Ad-Dick-tion Volume 3: 10 Tales of Hot Male Obsessions by Various Authors
Lover at Last by JR Ward

Happy Reading!


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