Genre: Contemporary Romance

Review: Promise Me Always by A.L. Jackson

Posted January 30, 2023 by Casee in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: Promise Me Always by A.L. JacksonReviewer: Casee
Promise Me AlwaysNarrator: Connor Crais, Samantha Brentmoor
Series: Redemption Hills #4
Also in this series: Give Me a Reason, Say It's Forever
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: January 30, 2023
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 491
Length: 12 hours and 37 minutes
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
four-stars
Series Rating: five-stars

I should know better than to let Tessa McDaniels pretend to be my fiancée.I’m a dark, dangerous disaster who leaves destruction in his wake.But when she offers to pretend to marry me to help me get my kids back, I can’t refuse. They are the one thing I have left to fight for.
Milo Hendricks found me at my lowest.Battered and broken by my ex with no place to call home. When he insists I stay at his cabin with him, he sparks the feelings I’ve tried to suppress.He’s only supposed to be my friend, but every time he comes in the room, he makes my knees weak.This gorgeous, tatted, mountain-of-a-man who’s riddled with secrets.
Tessa is everything I crave but can’t have.I shouldn’t touch her.Shouldn’t make it real.But she’s a red-headed flame I can’t resist, and I can’t help but take her to my bed.
Now we’re falling into an abyss of passion and need.Loving her is easy.Only we’re tied in ways we don’t know.I’ll do anything to protect her, but it’s my past that might destroy her in the end…

Tessa McDaniels was introduced as Eden’s quirky but loving friend in Give Me a Reason. She became more prominent of a character as the series continued, until it was obvious she needed her own book. Tessa is a woman that is holding out for her “Ace”. Due to the situation she finds herself in after her brother is injured, Tessa doesn’t think she will ever find her Ace.

Milo Hendricks is a bouncer at Absolution. The head tough guy. But the head tough guy wasn’t really a tough guy at all. He’s a softie. Hard on the outside & gooey on the inside. It made for quite the contradiction. All Milo wants in his life is to get his kids back from their grandparents. After his wife died, Milo was certain that he had (and lost) his chance at happiness. Then he meets Tessa & all his thoughts go up in smoke.

After Tessa finds herself in an unimaginable situation, Milo is there to help her pick up the pieces. He is there for her when she feels like she has no one else. Even her gang of girlfriends and their families aren’t enough to make her feel less alone. Then Milo comes in & saves the day. The least she can do is help him get it kids back. Right? Because it’s a great idea to lie to everyone you love. I did have a hard time with that even though I understood.

This was definitely a friends-to-lovers book. It was so nice to see Milo & Tessa’s friendship grow into more. I loved both these characters. Milo was everything a tortured alpha hero should be. Tessa was a combination of sweet and spunky. They just fit. They fit from the very first page they came together.

It took me five long days to finish this book. ALJ generally tends to write angsty novels, but this one took angsty to a whole other level. Like I was feeling anxiety when I was reading this book. I felt relief when it was over because I just couldn’t take it anymore. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good book. It was a great book. It was just a lot. A lot of blame, self-hatred, grief, and love. It really did have everything that I usually love when I a read an ALJ.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5.

Redemption Hills

four-stars


Tagged: , , , , , ,

Sunday Spotlight: Recovery Road by Christine Feehan (+ exclusive excerpt)

Posted January 22, 2023 by Casee in Features, Giveaways | 3 Comments

Sunday Spotlight is a feature we began in 2016. This year we’re spotlighting our favorite books, old and new. We’ll be raving about the books we love and being total fangirls. You’ve been warned. 🙂

Sunday Spotlight: Recovery Road by Christine Feehan (+ exclusive excerpt)Recovery Road by Christine Feehan
Narrator: Ryan West
Series: Torpedo Ink #8
Also in this series: Judgment Road , Judgment Road, Vengeance Road, Vendetta Road, Desolation Road, Reckless Road, Savage Road, Annihilation Road, Recovery Road
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: January 24, 2023
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Point-of-View: Alternating Third
Content Warning: View Spoiler »
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Paranormal Romance
Pages: 410
Length: 11 hours and 15 minutes
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
Series Rating: three-stars

A broken man finds a woman worth living for in the new novel in #1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan’s Torpedo Ink motorcycle club series.
Kir “Master” Vasiliev doesn’t care whether he lives or dies. He’s a burnt-out shell with no one and nothing but his club. Whatever Torpedo Ink needs, Master will put himself in harm’s way time after time. If he doesn’t make it back, he’s certain everyone will move on just fine.
Investment banker Ambrielle Moore knows her own mind, and she’s not willing to settle for anyone. So when a second-rate gangster and his thugs try to coerce her into marriage—and giving up all of her family’s money—she’s having none of it. Until they turn to cold-blooded murder.
Grieving and enraged, Ambrie is ready to go scorched earth on her captors when Master shows up anticipating a damsel in distress. But Ambrie is nothing like he expected, and everything he never knew he desired....

Excerpt

“Could any of the others have been put on that license, or just you?”

He shrugged his shoulders, hesitant to tell her. He didn’t want her to look at Keys, not even for a moment. Keys was a brother, but Ambrielle was his wife now. No one touched her. No one flirted with her. She was off-limits.

“Not just any of them. Keys volunteered to have his name put on it, but I said no.”

“Why?”

He sighed, but he wasn’t going to lie to her. They weren’t going to start out that way, not after his big fuckin’ speech. “Because that asshole Thompson wasn’t going to lay a finger on you. I knew I could stop him.”
“Why would you marry me, Master?” Ambrie persisted, her voice soft.

“Because I wanted you to belong to me. And you do. You’re mine. Your body and soul belong to me. Now I just need to win your heart. That’s going to be a little more difficult. I’ve never managed to win anyone’s heart. Not ever. I’ve got a big fuckin’ challenge in front of me.” He gave her that same faint smile that never reached his eyes because smiles in his world weren’t ever real.

Ambrielle’s small white teeth bit down on the side of her lower lip and chewed at the mark he’d put there. The tip of her tongue touched it as if soothing the bite. “You really married me because you wanted me? Why?”

He let out his breath. For the first time he wanted to laugh. Really laugh. “Look at you, woman. You’re so fucking beautiful it hurts. And you’re pure class. The way you move, the way you talk. You look like something out of a magazine. You’re smart. You can actually think for yourself and you’re not afraid to look me in the eye when you’re pissed at me. I could go on, but it doesn’t matter. A man like me doesn’t stand a chance with a woman like you. I approach you in a bar and ask to buy you a drink, you’d tell me to fuck off.”

Those strangely colored eyes drifted over his face and then down his bare chest. She shook her head slowly. “You’re the first man in my entire life I’ve ever been physically attracted to.” Her smile curved her full lips, drawing attention to the mark he’d put on her. His mark. “I saw you and the chemistry was off the charts, even when I knew I was going to have to kill you. It was such a shame. Then you kissed me, and you melted my panties off. I would have taken the drink in the bar. I probably would have gone home with you if we made it that far. That’s how classy I am.”

She could make his cock hard just talking about her panties melting off. Shit. He was acting like a teenager without the least bit of control. His jeans weren’t even halfway buttoned and already the material was too damned tight. You’d think he hadn’t seen any action in years.

“Tell me what you need from me. What kind of marriage did you envision when you thought about it?”

Her gaze dropped to the front of his jeans and her breathing changed. He kept back the grin of pure satisfaction. His princess liked his body, especially his cock. He hoped she had no inhibitions when it came to sex, because he didn’t have any.

“I always thought I’d find a man who loves me, but things change, you know. I can accept that.”

He didn’t know what the hell love was, and they’d just met. It wasn’t as if he could reassure her. But he would do his best to give her a good life with him. “I’ll do right by you.” That was the best he could give her. “Keep talking, princess, what do you want out of our marriage? What kind of life are you looking for?”

If she kept looking at his cock with hunger in her eyes and that little tongue of hers kept darting out and moistening her lips until they were wet and gleaming, he was going to palm the back of her head and bring her mouth right where it belonged. There wasn’t going to be time for any more talking.

Excerpted from Recovery Road by Christine Feehan Copyright © 2023 by Christine Feehan. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Torpedo Ink

Giveaway Alert

We’re giving one lucky winner their choice of one of our Sunday Spotlight books. Use the widget below to enter for one of this month’s features.

Sunday Spotlight: January 2023

Are you as excited for this release as we are? Let us know how excited you are and what other books you’re looking forward to this year!

About Christine Feehan

Christine Feehan Author

I live on the beautiful Northern California coast and draw much inspiration from the beauty around me. I've always been a writer, for as long as I remember. My sisters were forced to read all of my books from the time I could write a story on paper.

I love family. I love my brothers and sisters, my children, my grandchildren and my great grandchildren. My home was always full of kids and children give me so much joy.

I also love my "sisters of the heart", those friends who have supported me through my life, laughed with me, cried with me and loved me regardless of how crazy my life got. I am a strong supporter of women helping each other which is why I became a third degree black belt and taught self-defense to women who'd been abused.

I love people and dogs, good books and great coffee and I'm lucky to know just how blessed I am.


Tagged: , , ,

Review: One Percent of You by Michelle Gross

Posted November 14, 2022 by Holly in Reviews | 1 Comment

Review: One Percent of You by Michelle GrossReviewer: Holly
One Percent of You by Michelle Gross
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: May 5, 2019
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Point-of-View: Alternating
Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 341
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
four-stars

Make no mistakes about it. I know what I look like to others. Young, government-aided, pregnant mom. They see Lucy on my hip, and they see a mistake. I mean, why else would someone have a child so young, right? They couldn’t be more wrong. I’m too busy most days between parenting, work, and finishing up my last year of nursing school to let their judging gaze tear me down until he moves in the vacant house next to the apartments I live in.
His cold, blunt observation of us doesn’t differ from any other stranger. He doesn’t know me, but he’s already painting a picture of who he thinks I am in his mind. He judges my very round belly, Lucy’s inability to leave him alone, the bags under my eyes, and the fact that I could not care less what I look like anymore.
He’s a rude guy. Stays that way for months too. Then something happens, I’m not even sure what. Judgmental Guy decides Lucy and me — as well as baby Eli — are worth his friendship.
Turns out, Judgmental Guy isn’t too mean — okay, he kind of still is. But he graduates to Elijah. I build an unlikely friendship with him which deems it necessary for him to start smiling around me and my kids.
I’m wrong again. Elijah isn’t rude. He’s terrifying. His strange acts of kindness are unraveling me. Elijah is only my friend.
Right?
Oh, fudge. I think I’m wrong. Again.

One Percent of You by Michelle Gross is a single-mom contemporary romance. My friend Ames recommended this book to me. If not for her, based on the blurb and the first chapter, I probably wouldn’t have read it. I’m glad I did. It turned out to be really cute, though it could have used a good edit.

Elijah sort of accidentally on purpose scared a little girl in the grocery story and stole her bag of chips. Then she moved into the apartments next door to his house, and became his arch-nemesis. He’s feeling pretty judgmental about her and her obviously pregnant single-mom, but also kind of intrigued. As time goes on, Elijah comes to realize he’s been a jerk and he becomes friends with the little family.

I loved how Elijah was sort of intrigued by this little family of Hadley’s, despite his resistance to kids. The way he and Lucy, Hadley’s daughter, formed a bond was adorable. There were a lot of editing errors and I thought Hadley held onto things a little more than she should, but overall it was a great read. It was just what I was in the mood for at the time.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

four-stars


Tagged: , , , , ,

Review: The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang

Posted October 24, 2022 by Rowena in Reviews | 2 Comments

Review: The Heart Principle by Helen HoangReviewer: Rowena
The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang
Series: The Kiss Quotient #3
Also in this series: The Kiss Quotient (The Kiss Quotient, #1), The Bride Test
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: August 31, 2021
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Point-of-View: Alternating Third
Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
Content Warning: View Spoiler »
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 343
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

A woman struggling with burnout learns to embrace the unexpected—and the man she enlists to help her—in this new New York Times bestselling romance by Helen Hoang.

When violinist Anna Sun accidentally achieves career success with a viral YouTube video, she finds herself incapacitated and burned out from her attempts to replicate that moment. And when her longtime boyfriend announces he wants an open relationship before making a final commitment, a hurt and angry Anna decides that if he wants an open relationship, then she does, too. Translation: She’s going to embark on a string of one-night stands. The more unacceptable the men, the better.

That’s where tattooed, motorcycle-riding Quan Diep comes in. Their first attempt at a one-night stand fails, as does their second, and their third, because being with Quan is more than sex—he accepts Anna on an unconditional level that she herself has just started to understand. However, when tragedy strikes Anna’s family she takes on a role that she is ill-suited for, until the burden of expectations threatens to destroy her. Anna and Quan have to fight for their chance at love, but to do that, they also have to fight for themselves.

It’s been quite a while since I’ve written a book review so please bear with me as I jump back into this bitch. It’s also been a little bit since I read this book but I came across my notes that I wrote for this book so I’m reviewing it. I’m not going to get into what this book was about, the summary does a great job of explaining what we’re getting into so I’m jumping right into my thoughts.

This is the third book in the Kiss Quotient series by Helen Hoang. It’s the book that I was really looking forward to because it’s Quan’s book! Lovely Quan, Michael’s cousin from The Kiss Quotient. He was such a memorable character for me. I’m a bit sad that this was Quan’s story because we got more Anna than Quan. I felt that Quan was part of Anna’s story and that was a bummer for me. Quan was such a delightful and interesting character so I felt he was cheated and even after all of this time, I’m still not over that.

That’s not to say that I hated Anna or that I hated the book. I just wish that Quan had gotten another story where he shined and was front and center instead of being featured in someone else’s story. There is a lot of heavy stuff tackled in this book and I understood and even connected with Anna through all of it. There were times when I really felt for Anna and wanted to fight every single member of her family because holy shit are they toxic as hell but there were also times when I wanted to smack some sense into Anna as well.

The little Quan that we got in this book was fantastic. My heart hurt for him and what he was going through and seeing him work through each of his struggles made my love for him stronger. I loved the way that he loved Anna. I loved the way that he was up for anything and willing to do whatever he can to support Anna with everything she was going through. Even when he didn’t know how to support her or even if he had to do things that hurt him in order to support her, he was ready and willing.

The romance between Quan and Anna was small but what we got worked. I just wanted more. As a romance, which is what I assumed I was getting, this was okay but this would have worked better for me had it been a women’s fiction story but I’m still salty about not getting as much Quan as I wanted.

3 out of 5

The Kiss Quotient Series

three-stars


Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Review: The Last Second Chance by Lucy Score

Posted September 21, 2022 by Holly in Reviews | 4 Comments

Review: The Last Second Chance by Lucy ScoreReviewer: Holly
The Last Second Chance by Lucy Score
Narrator: Tanya Eby
Series: Blue Moon #3
Also in this series: No More Secrets , Fall into Temptation
Publisher: Self-PublishedFormat: Audiobook, eBook
Source: Kindle Unlimited, Purchased
Point-of-View: Alternating First
Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars


What would it take to get one last chance?

Joey Greer is done having her heart broken. Eight years ago, after a horrific car accident, Jackson Pierce—her high school sweetheart—abandoned her. Abandoned his family. Abandoned the town they'd both grown up in, and fled to Hollywood. He never looked back, and she never forgot him.
Or forgave him.
Now he's back, pretending like the past doesn't exist, wanting another chance. And even though she still feels the undeniable connection between them, the fiery attraction that burns her up from the inside out, Joey’s determined to keep him at a safe distance.
Jackson Pierce can't tell Joey the truth about the night when he left her in the hospital. It would ruin more than just their relationship, and he can't do that to her.
The entire town of Blue Moon knows that Jax and Joey are meant for each other, but Joey isn’t interested in giving him a second chance. All he can do is give her flowers. And picnic lunches. And a dog.
Oh, and handcuff himself to her for charity.
Will this second chance be the last one Jax needs to win back Joey's heart, or is the past too much to forgive?

The Last Second Chance (Blue Moon #3) by Lucy Score is a second-chance romance between high-school sweethearts.

Jax and Joey were high school sweethearts who had their whole lives planned out. Until the night they hit a deer and Joey ended up in the hospital. When she woke up the next day Jax was gone. 8 years later he’s back in town and has made it known that he’s here for Joey…

He wants to pick up where they left off, but Joey can’t forgive him for abandoning her…especially since hasn’t given her a good reason for why he left in the first place.

I liked this book. Joey and Jax were good together and I liked the way Score built up the town and wove the other characters from the series through the story. It felt like I was right there living their lives with them. I did think the book was a little too long, and I struggled with both Joey and Jax at times. But overall it was a light, easy read that I enjoyed.

3.75 out of 5

Blue Moon

three-half-stars


Tagged: , , , , , , ,