Tag: Abigail Roux

What I Read Last Week

Posted April 15, 2013 by Tracy in Features | 3 Comments

Howdo!

What have you all been up to this past week? Anyone do anything fun? It was a pretty quiet week in Tracyland which was really nice. This past weekend I didn’t have to go too many places so I got to be a homebody and just hang with the kids. That was really nice. 🙂

So since I have nothing to report about life I’ll get right on to what I read last week:

I started off the week with Stranded with a Billionaire by Jessica Clare. This was a great book about Bonte who is a waitress from Kansas City that wins a trip to the Bahamas and ends up stuck on the island during a hurricane. She’s not alone though, she’s with Logan who she thinks is the resort manager but he’s actually the owner and is a billionaire. They spend great time together but when she finds out who he really is she’s pissed at the lie and heads home. He finds her again and the book is the story of them trying to work through their relationship issues – mainly him having money and her not having it and how they deal with that. It was really good and I definitely recommend it. 4 out of 5 (read for Book Binge)

Mindlink by Kat Cantrell was a sci fi book that was my next read. I’m not usually a fan of sci-fi romance but this was pretty darned good. I’ll be posting my review of this one in a couple of days.

Warrior’s Cross by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux told the story of Cameron who is a waiter who has a crush on a guy who comes into his restaurant every Tuesday. They finally talk after months of silence (besides order taking/giving) and end up going home together. Julian and Cameron start a relationship but Cam really doesn’t know all that much about Julian and Julian doesn’t share. This was a good book but I didn’t like that we were never specifically told – and neither was Cameron – what Julian did. It’s inferred that he’s a hit man (all evidence points that way in my mind) but for some reason the fact that it wasn’t specifically stated bothered me. IDK, maybe it was just me. It was a hard relationship and it didn’t look like it was going to get any easier so it was hard for me to completely enjoy the HEA. 4 out of 5

Falke’s Renegade by Madison Layle and Anna Leigh Keaton is book 3 in the Puma Nights series. This book was a bit different from the others as it starred only 1 woman and 1 man (previous 2 book it was m/f/m). The story was about the Falke sister, Heidi, who is a vet and nurses a black jaguar back to health after being shot. The jaguar is a shapeshifter and he’s not exactly welcomed into the Falke family. I’ll post my full review later this week.

Next I tried to read Cowboys Down by Barbara Elsborg but I just couldn’t get into it. It’s an m/m book about an uptight stock broker from England who goes to a working ranch in Wyoming to learn to relax and get dirty. The guys were ok together but the homophobia being thrown around was just too much for me and it had me setting down the book. I normally like Elsborg’s books but this one didn’t work and I ended up putting it down half way through. DNF

Roses in Moonlight by Lynn Kurland was a great book about an innocent American woman who is thought to be a thief. The man who is hired to get the stolen object back thinks she’s involved but when he finally realizes she’s not their more than attached. I really liked this one. It didn’t have a whole lot of time travel but enough to satisfy. Derrick and Samantha were wonderful together and I loved reading about them. 4.25 out of 5 (read for Book Binge)

A Passion for Pleasure by Nina Rowan is probably not a book I would have normally picked up but it was sent to me (randomly) by the publisher and ended up sounding good so I picked it up. The book has several different parts to the story that all intermingle. Sebastian was a well known pianist but suddenly quit playing and returned home. Clara is a baron’s daughter who is looking for assistance in getting her son back from her father and requests Sebastian’s help. I’ll post more info in my review later this month but it was really good. 4.25 out of 5

My next read was In Plain Sight by Marie Harte. This is a story set in the Cougar Falls series and involves Cullen who is a large man but quiet and shy. He’s got a thing for local waitress Sarah but Sarah’s on the outs with a lot of the townspeople because of vicious rumors that have been spread. Cullen saves Sarah when she’s attacked by other shapeshifters and takes her home to help her heal. Cullen wants her for keeps as he’s been in love with her for forever but he knows that he needs to go slow so he doesn’t scare Sarah away. This was a good novella. I loved Cullen and his shyness. He almost did himself in with Sarah when he just couldn’t get himself to talk to her. This one was short but good. 3.5 out of 5

Last for the week was Gay as Mardi Gras by Lily Velden. Jesse’s grandma is convinced he’s gay even though he just spent 6 years in a relationship with a woman. She sends him on a month-long gay cruise in the hopes that he’ll find a partner. Though he and his roommate spend all their time together it’s not until a couple of weeks in that Jesse starts realizing that the has feelings for Daniel. The story was very sweet and though the sex scenes were more sex-lite (compared to some) they were still very hot. Short but good. 🙂 4 out of 5

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
crickets

Happy Reading!

3 Comments

Tagged: Abigail Roux, Anna Leigh Keaton, Barbara Elsborg, Book Binge, Jessica Clare, Kat Cantrell, Lily Velden, Lynn Kurland, Madeleine Urban, Madison Layle, Marie Harte, Nina Rowan, What I Read Last Week, What I've Been Reading This Week

Review: The Gravedigger’s Brawl by Abigail Roux

Posted October 24, 2012 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Dr.
Wyatt Case is never happier than when he’s walking the halls of his
history museum. Playing wingman for his best friend at Gravedigger’s
Tavern throws him way out of his comfort zone, but not as much as the
eccentric man behind the bar, Ash Lucroix.

Ash is everything
Wyatt doesn’t understand: exuberant, quirky, and elbow deep in a
Gaslight lifestyle that weaves history into everyday life. He
coordinates his suspenders with his tongue rings. Within hours, Wyatt
and Ash are hooked.

But strange things are afoot at
Gravedigger’s, and after a knock to the head, Ash starts seeing things
that can’t be explained by old appliances or faulty wiring. Soon
everyone at Gravedigger’s is wondering if they’re seeing ghosts, or just
going crazy. The answer to that question could end more than just Wyatt
and Ash’s fragile relationship—it might also end their lives.

Wyatt
Case isn’t happy. He’s about to lose his job as curator at a museum in
Richmond, VA because the trustees made a huge mistake. They want Wyatt
to save their asses and frankly he can’t quite figure out how. Wyatt’s
friend and coworker Noah shows up and takes him out for a drink to
distress – oh, and to have him meet a guy he thinks Wyatt will like.
Wyatt’s not thrilled at being set up but when he and Noah head to
Gravedigger’s Tavern he’s pretty happy with the man he’s to meet, Ash.

Ash
isn’t quite sure what to make of Wyatt but the more they talk the more
they like each other. They end up in bed together but Wyatt, who
doesn’t have one night stands, isn’t quite sure what to do once Ash
falls asleep. He makes the wrong choice and leaves. This doesn’t
exactly endear him to Ash and even with Wyatt apologizing things are
tense between the two men. Ash, however, provides an idea for Wyatt and
now the museum curator thinks he has a way to drum up business for the
museum and make the trustees happy.

Wyatt and Noah
have Ash tell them ghost stories that center around Richmond and Wyatt
and Noah then do research to find the “true” story behind the ghost
story/folklore. This is all fun and interesting until they dig up
disturbing information on the house that Gravedigger’s Tavern is now
situated. On top of that nasty bit of information Ash starts seeing and
hearing things and is attacked on his way home one night. The problem
is that everyone blames it on a head injury that he sustained. When
things start getting creepier and Ash starts doubting his sanity more
and more can the bar employees along with Wyatt and Noah try to figure
out what’s causing the unusual activities.

This was an
unexpected find for me. When I read the blurb of the book it looked
interesting but by the cover I thought it was an m/m historical. Though
those aren’t my favorite I was willing to give it a chance. Imagine my
surprise and delight when I figured out it was a contemporary with a
lot of history involved?!

The characters involved in
the story were wonderful. Wyatt and Ash – I can’t tell you how much I
loved them. They each had their own quirks and though they were quite
different they got along perfectly – well, after that initial screw up
by Wyatt. The other characters were Noah who ends up with the own of
Gravedigger’s Tavern and then the other bar employees Delilah and Ryan.
All of them were so comfortable together and you could tell that even
though Noah and Wyatt were new to their group they fit in perfectly.

The
ghost part of the story was, well, scary. I loved the writing in this
book as it really did a great job of pulling me in to the moment and
scaring me more than a bit. It wasn’t horror but it was enough to
really make me more than a bit tense while I was reading. I’m not going
to tell you anything because I think part of the joy of the book was
watching it all unfold.

I loved the way the story played out and I think that this is a great book. A really good read and definitely one I recommend.

Rating: 4.25/4.5 out of 5

Abigail Roux

0 Comments

Tagged: Abigail Roux, Requested Review, Review, Reviews, Riptide Publishing, Tracy's Reviews

What I Read Last Week

Posted October 22, 2012 by Tracy in Features | 4 Comments

Another week goes by – how do they keep happening so quickly? lol

This week was pretty interesting. I had lunch with a couple of friends that I hadn’t seen for a while which was nice. My youngest went to a Halloween/birthday costume party and had a great time, and had a bit of a family thing with my hubby’s side of the family for his dad’s 75th birthday. Lots of fun. I have pictures but I left my phone at home today (I know, how could I have DONE that?) so I’ll post them later.

I managed to buy a used Kindle and have it delivered. I was so damned excited because I only had to be without an ereader for 4 days! YAY! lol Unfortunately I was emailing the company the next day asking them how I can return it. It’s screwed up – defective battery, freezing on me, home screened jacked up – I’m sad again. On the bright side I then bought a used one straight from Amazon and it will come with a warranty (too bad I hadn’t figured that out before I bought the other one – hindsight and all that) and hopefully that will be here by the end of the week. I only had an ereader back for a day so my week went boo, YAY, boo. lol Being without an ereader is HARD!

On to what I read this past week:

I started off the week with my TBR Challenge review book I Kissed an Earl by Julie Anne Long – book 4 in the Pennroyal Green series. This was a wonderful story that takes place mostly on a ship – which I love. You can read my full review here. 5 out of 5

Next up was Charmed by His Love by Janet Chapman – a book that I read for Book Binge. This is the story of a widowed mother of 4, Peg, who is on her last penny but things start looking up when a local resident starts building a resort nearby and have to use her gravel pit. The man negotiating the gravel contract, Duncan McKeage, ends up falling in love with the woman but not before he saves her from many accidents and finds his own power – literally. This was a very cute story that I enjoyed reading. I liked Duncan a lot and loved that he fell in love with Peg’s children as much as with her. 3.5 out of 5

Next up was Unraveled by Courtney Milan. I could swear that I had finished the Turner Brothers series but apparently not. I can’t believe I didn’t read this one before as it was FABULOUS. The story is about Smite Turner who is a magistrate and is called – unkindly – Lord Justice. He listens to everyone and takes the cases that come before him seriously – unlike his fellow magistrates. He doesn’t let class skew his judgment. He sees a woman in his court who he’s seen before but she is in disguise. When he confronts her she runs but he finds her and he ends up asking her to be his mistress. Smite is a tortured soul and Miranda soothes him. It was an amazing story that I can’t possibly even summarize well but it’s definitely worth reading – so good. 5 out of 5

A Cowboy for Christmas by Lori Wilde is the story of Lissette who was recently widowed and just found out that her 2 year old is almost completely deaf – with no hope for a reversal. She’s depressed and the stress is making her crazy. Her husband left his life insurance money to a half brother that Lissy didn’t even know existed so she’s nearing her last bit of money. Rafferty Jones is the half brother who just found out that his brother is dead as he’s been out of the country. He heads to Texas to give Lissy the money as he feels that his brother should have left it to her instead. Rafferty and Lissy don’t exactly hit it off initially but soon they become friends and start something more. There are some issues that need to be dealt with but really it’s the issue of – is this really love or is it just because we’re mourning together? Good story. 3.75 out of 5

Last for the week was The Gravedigger’s Brawl by Abigail Roux. This is the story of a bar called Gravedigger’s Tavern and it’s employees – as well as 2 men who work at a local museum. I’ll post my review in a couple of days so keep your eyes open for that.

My Book Binge Reviews that posted this past week:
Because of You by Cathy Maxwell

Happy Reading!

4 Comments

Tagged: Abigail Roux, Book Binge, Courtney Milan, Janet Chapman, Julie Anne Long, Lori Wilde, What I Read Last Week, What I've Been Reading This Week

Guest Review: Cut & Run by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux

Posted November 17, 2011 by Tracy in Reviews | 4 Comments

Tracy’s review of Cut & Run (Cut & Run #1) by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux

A series of murders in New York City has stymied the police and FBI alike, and they suspect the culprit is a single killer sending an indecipherable message. But when the two federal agents assigned to the investigation are taken out, the FBI takes a more personal interest in the case.

Special Agent Ty Grady is pulled out of undercover work after his case blows up in his face. He’s cocky, abrasive, and indisputably the best at what he does. But when he’s paired with Special Agent Zane Garrett, it’s hate at first sight. Garrett is the perfect image of an agent: serious, sober, and focused, which makes their partnership a classic cliché: total opposites, good cop-bad cop, the odd couple. They both know immediately that their partnership will pose more of an obstacle than the lack of evidence left by the murderer.

Practically before their special assignment starts, the murderer strikes again – this time at them. Now on the run, trying to track down a man who has focused on killing his pursuers, Grady and Garrett will have to figure out how to work together before they become two more notches in the murderer’s knife.

FBI agents Ty Grady – a brash and harsh man who doesn’t give a shit about anything but getting his many and Zane Garrett – a man who has made himself into the perfect agent in order to keep his life on the straight and narrow – are paired on a criminal case to try and find a serial killer. Ty is good with puzzles as is Zane and together the FBI hopes that they will find their killer.

Ty is not pleased to, say the least, to be partnered with a man who has a stick so far up his ass he can hardly turn his head but he soon learns that there’s much more to SA Garrett than he originally thought. Garrett can’t believe his crap luck in getting Ty for a partner but he also finds that there’s more behind the gruff exterior than her first believed. The problem with Garrett is that he’s incredibly interested in Ty in a way that he doesn’t want to be and that’s physically.

The men struggle to find out who is behind the killings – especially when they start to believe that it’s an actual fellow FBI agent that is the killer. They are trying to solve the case, running from the killer and starting a relationship that neither one of them knows how to handle.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I opened this book but it soon had me turning pages faster and faster. I really loved Ty and Zane and their characters. I knew that there were more layers to them than we first saw and I couldn’t wait until they got peeled away and when those layers did get stripped it was well worth the wait.

Ty, as I said, was very harsh and wasn’t afraid to tell anyone, including Zane exactly what he thought of him. But after a while and some serious shit that went down he mellowed. Zane on the other hand was a real structured, dare I say, completely anal guy. He was a by-the-book agent at first but when we got to know him we realized that this was a defense mechanism for him and something he did to keep his anger issues as well as his addictions in check. Once that man let loose he was hell on wheels.

The relationship in this book was fantastic. It really ran the gambit from hate to like to something stronger but the men truly weren’t sure what to do with it and how to handle it. The myriad of emotions that the authors showed us were truly mind-boggling and I was highly impressed with how it was all handled. The indecision, the awkwardness, the tenderness and of course the very hot sexin between Ty and Zane was exquisite and I soaked up every word.

The killer was another mystery and that plot was also well thought out. I wasn’t exactly sure until the end who the killer was even though I had my suspicions.

My one niggle with the story was the head hopping that was constant throughout the book. It didn’t ruin my enjoyment too too much but it did get a bit annoying at times.

This book has definitely made me want to read more in this series and learn more about Ty and Zane and what’s in store for them in the future. If you’ve been thinking about reading this one but wasn’t sold, you should be – it’s well worth the read.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

This book is available from Dreamspinner Press. You can buy it here or here in e-format.

4 Comments

Tagged: 4.5 Reviews, Abigail Roux, Contemporary, Dreamspinner Press, Guest Reviews, M/M romantic suspense, Madeleine Urban, Reviews, Tracy's Reviews

What I Read Last Week

Posted November 14, 2011 by Tracy in Features | 5 Comments

Well it’s back to work for me after having 3 glorious days off. I was a complete slug this weekend and hardly left my house at all. You’d think I would have gotten so much stuff done – either reading or housework or….IDK, something! Yet, I didn’t. I got a couple of books read…the kids and I went to see the movie Jack and Jill which they were dying to see. I had no desire to see it yet I laughed throughout the film. We just hung out at home and played the game of Life. My youngest bought the board game with some birthday money this past July and I think we played about 20 games over the course of the 3 days. I know! That’s a lot but both girls were somewhat addicted, to say the least. I couldn’t resist them batting their beautiful eyelashes at me so I didn’t end up getting a whole lot done. Oh well…there’s always next weekend. 🙂

Then there was the Great Ravioli Massacre at our house. My oldest was making ravioli (from frozen) and doing it in the microwave (she’s too impatient to wait till the water boils and do it on the stove) and had a spot of trouble. She put less than the normal amount of ravioli’s in the bowl but then forgot to adjust the time setting and ended up burning those ravioli’s into lovely charcoal briquets. I smelled something burning (luckily I was at the kitchen table) and ran over before they actually caught fire. My entire house smells like burnt…something, and smoke. lol I think my daughter’s now afraid to use the microwave – poor thing. That was about as much excitement as we had all weekend. 🙂

On to what I read last week. It just didn’t feel like I read that much but looking at the titles it was more than I thought! According to my self-imposed challenge on Goodreads I’m 22 books behind. Oh well, it was a lofty goal to think I could read 400 books in one year! lol

I started the week with Cut & Run by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux. Wow. What a great book! I’ve had this for a long while – I think I got it free at one point from ARe – but had never cracked it open. I’m so glad I finally did! It was a really good mystery and suspense story as well as the start of a burgeoning romance between two FBI agents who couldn’t be more different. There was a lot of head hopping in the story which got a bit annoying, but other than that I loved the story. It’s interesting to see all the different ratings on goodreads as it’s gotten marks all over the board. Just shows you how some books appeal to some and not others. I will definitely be diving into book 2 in this series soon. 4.5 out of 5 (I wrote a review for this and posted it on The Book Binge. It will post on Thursday in case you’re interested)

Next up was Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins. I really love Higgins’ books! Her characters and humor just keep dragging me back in time and again and I’ve not been disappointed yet. This story was about a girl who has a crush on a boy in high school. Now he’s a widower and back in the town with his 15 year old daughter. The pair somehow get together and start a relationship but there are many things at play between Posey and Declan and not all of it good. You can read more in my review posted here. 4 out of 5

Next was Coming Home by Beverly Cialone. This is the story of a couple who were great friends and in love with each other when the girl was 16 and the guy 23 or 24. He leaves town and the girl because he feels that she needs to live her life and that it wasn’t right to pursue anything more. Now her parents have died and he goes back to “take care of her”. The relationship blossoms from there but there’s someone who doesn’t want them to be together. The was a requested review and I will be posting my thoughts on this soon. 2 out of 5

Next up was Vampire in Atlantis by Alyssa Day. I read this one for The Book Binge and my review will post tomorrow if you’re interested. The story was about Daniel the Vampire and a woman, Serai, who has been in stasis for 11,000 years. She gets out of her “prison” and heads off to find one of the stones that belongs in Poseidon’s trident. She meets up with Daniel who she was in love with all those many years ago. They each thought the other was dead so are beyond happy when they find each other again. This was a good book but I just didn’t find anything wonderful about it. It was a lovely romance between the reunited couple and of course the sex was smoking but other than that I just wasn’t wowed by it. 3 out of 5

OMG I can’t believe I forgot to post this in…yikes (I really wish that goodreads had a “date I finished the book” section to their goodreads app!) I read Real Men Will by Victoria Dahl as well! This was Eric Donovan’s story. I really liked the novella that Dahl wrote about the couple in “The Guy Next Door” anthology but I got a bit disappointed in Eric as the series went on. Yes, the book explained a ton of reasons why Eric acts as he does but he still frustrated the bejabbers out of me. I will post my review on this book later this week.

Fire on the Mountain by PD Singer was my next read. This is the story of two men, Jake and Kurt, who are fire rangers in the Colorado mountains. They are a two man team and live in close quarters. Jake, who is gay (the story is told from his pov) has suddenly noticed Kurt in a sexual way and is trying hard to do his job and not show Kurt how attracted he is to him. That all becomes a moot point when they are stuck in the path of a raging fire and may die. The two men get together but then are separated and of course doubts abound as to each others feelings. It was a good book up until the time they were separated. Because it was told in 1st person the internal struggle with Jake got a bit old and then when they did get together it was pages and pages of reunion sex. Not a bad thing but I just wanted more. I’ve heard good things about book 2 so I will keep reading the series. 3 out of 5

Last for the week was Heartbreak Creek by Kaki Warner. I’m usually not a huge fan of historical westerns but this one looked particularly good so I gave it a try. I’m glad I did. Edwina is a true southern lady but with the war, her father dying and the plantation taking too much money she knows she has to do something. She signs the plantation over to the bank and becomes a mail order bride. She heads to Colorado with her half-sister, Prudence (who’s half black), to become the wife of a rancher. The book tells us the story of Edwina (Ed) and her husband Declan and how they manage to get along and eventually fall in love but there’s so much more to the story. We get to see the town of Heartbreak Creek and get to know more about it. Declan has an Indian after him who seeks vengeance and then there’s the little issue of whether they’re actually married or not. It’s a good story and I’m glad I picked it up. This was my first read by Warner but it won’t be my last. 4.25 out of 5

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
Angels of Darkness (anthology) by Ilona Andrews, Nalini Singh, Meljean Brook & Sharon Shinn
Telling Tales by Charlotte Stein

Happy Reading!