Tag: Decadent Publishing

Guest Review: Soul Solution by Katherine McIntyre

Posted August 13, 2015 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: Soul Solution by Katherine McIntyreReviewer: Tracy
Soul Solution by Katherine McIntyre
Publisher: Decadent Publishing
Publication Date: July 24, 2015
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three-half-stars

For Erik Anderson, the Copenhagen line is his curse. He takes the train every night en route to collect souls. Like any lovelorn fool, he bargained his own long ago, and now pays the price—a lifetime of loneliness as a grim reaper. Stay distant—that’s been his mantra and what keeps him sane.

Until Mina Castner drops into his life like a whirlwind, one spilled drink leading to staying up until dawn with the woman. He believed one night couldn’t hurt, but he sorely underestimated her determination. Every encounter between them is reprieve from the guilt of reaping souls every night, but it can’t last. Even if she sparks long buried feelings, and even if her sheer presence intoxicates him, he can’t let this continue. For humans, his touch is poison, and if he slips up, it could cost her life

Tracy’s review of Soul Solution by Katherine McIntyre

Mina is at a club on a blind date and having a horrible time when she almost literally runs into Erik. Taking the golden opportunity to ditch her horrid date she offers to buy Erik a drink and they spend all night talking in a lounge. Mina is incredibly attracted to Erik but they don’t exchange numbers when dawn rolls around. Even though she wants to see him again she has no way of contacting him except that she knows that he said that his life consisted of clubs and the Copenhagen line (train).

Erik is a grim reaper and collects souls. His is a very solitary life and the guilt over what he does swallows him up almost every time he has to take a soul. He goes to clubs that are in cities that travel the Copenhagen line – disembarking at the next city every night. As he can tell those who are at deaths door, and don’t even know it, he takes those souls. He is completely intrigued by Mina and her outlook on life. When she shows up at the club the next night on the next stop on the line he’s shocked but thrilled. He can’t touch her, however, as every time he touches her her body will decay more and more (as apparently everyone’s does daily from birth). He feels the same connection that Mina does but will only agree to seeing her every night until the end of the line. Once they reach it in a few days he’ll never see her again.

Mina knows that there’s something strange about Erik but he won’t share and she doesn’t want to push him. She doesn’t understand him as she can tell he feels the same way about her that she feels about him but she’s willing to agree to just the end of the line in hopes that she can change his mind. Unfortunately things don’t end up anything like they thought or could have even imagined.

So, Erik is this grim reaper. We know he became this after he sold his soul for a woman’s life – the woman he loved. Apparently that woman, once she found out what he had become, thought he was a monster and kicked him to the curb. We never actually get the full story on that so we can only imagine what the situation was. Erik has to collect 1000 souls in order to complete his contract. We never find out how long he’s been a reaper or how many souls he has left to collect. We’re given to think that it’s been a damned long time since he began and that it will be a damned long time until he’s done. Now, maybe I’m being way too practical, and I know that the book said that he had spent a bit of time refusing to collect souls at all but…this should not take all that long. If he went to the clubs every night (which it appeared he did) and collected a soul a night this should take him a little less than 3 years. Even at a few a week it would still only take a few more years than that. I was just very confused as to why it was taking so long to fulfill his contract. Now if it was 100,000 I could see how it would take for freakin’ ever. I also wasn’t sure what he became in order to be a reaper or what he became after he was finished. Also, how can no one think it’s weird that someone dies every night in a club in a different city along the train line? Wouldn’t someone suspect? I think my brain was just working too damned hard on figuring all this out. lol

Ok, despite all of that there were some pretty great scenes in the story. I really loved the connection between Erik and Mina and I thought the author did a great job of portraying their frustration at not being able to take the relationship further. I do wish we could have gotten to know the characters better but it is what it is.

This story, from what I understand in a note from the author before the book started, is that this was part of a Decadent Publishing “Beyond Fairytales” Challenge. McIntyre apparently received Hans Christian Andersen’s String of Pearls and this is the story she came up with. I personally thought the whole premise was well done and made the connections to HCA’s story quite interestingly.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

This title is available from Decadent Publishing. You can buy it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

three-half-stars


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Guest Lightning Review: Fool’s Gold by Cassandra Dean

Posted March 27, 2013 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Lightning Review: Fool’s Gold by Cassandra DeanReviewer: Tracy
Fool's Gold by Cassandra Dean
Series: Diamond series #2
Publisher: Decadent Publishing
Publication Date: January 9, 2013
Format: eARC
Genres: Historical Romance, Westerns
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three-stars
Series Rating: three-stars

Christmas Eve, the Diamond Saloon is empty of its people, and Pearl la Monte has a hankering to retire early. A pounding at the Diamond’s door rids her of such a fool notion. Her irritation rises when she sees the prissy, polite-like Garrett standing outside.

Ethan Garrett has a powerful need to gain succor. When the saloon’s voluptuous redheaded singer scowls at him from the threshold of the Diamond, he doesn’t stop to think on how his ire at her has disappeared. Or how he just wants to spend some time in her company.

When a blizzard storms in, trapping them, will they spend their time arguing or find their irritation for each other disguises something more?

Ethan Garrett and Pearl la Monte don’t get along. She thinks that he looks down on her and he thinks she’s amazing in her flirtatious comebacks. The truth is that neither can stop thinking about the other when they’re alone. When Ethan shows up at Diamond’s door Pearl is not a happy woman. He talks her into letting him in and when she learns some some information about him that she finds disturbing she tries to kick him out. The blizzard, however, has rolled in faster than they thought it would and they find themselves stuck together in the Diamond.

Pearl tries to give Ethan the silent treatment but when push comes to shove and Ethan makes his move for comfort Pearl is more than happy to provide it.

This is very short but cute book. The characters were written well and we definitely got more information about each than I thought we would when I first started. There isn’t much of a romance that we’re shown – more that we’re told – but that ended being just fine. Ethan and Pearl were cute together and it was a nice peek into their lives.

Rating: 3 out of 5 

The Series:

Book Cover

three-stars


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Guest Review: Love Revealed by Sorcha Mowbray

Posted March 20, 2012 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Tracy’s review of Love Revealed by Sorcha Mowbray

Lady Katherine Drummond plays by society’s rules, even after the Ton turns on her. Shunned by her peers, she keeps up appearances by day but allows her true self out in the privacy of The Market. There, in the arms of one man, she comes alive. So much so, she signs a contract to be his for six months. Despite never having seen his face and knowing him only as Sir, she fears losing her heart to the man who breaks through her defenses.

Lord Raymond Tarkenton, the Earl of Heathington, despises being one of the most sought after bachelors of the Ton. He could never ask a woman of his circle to submit to his sexual needs, and a mistress would never be an option. For now, one masked woman at The Market holds his undivided attention. When he realizes that his masked lover and Lady Katherine Drummond are one and the same, he must find a way to convince her that they are bound together by more than the straps at her wrists and the contract they signed. He must reveal himself and his love to her. But will she accept him for more than a sexual escape.

Lady Katherine Drummond has invitations into society but not many. Her late husband was known to have syphilis as that is what he died from and everyone assumes that she is infected as well. Since the marriage was never consummated there’s no chance that she could have contracted the disease. Because of her status she has discovered The Market. This is a place where she can go and receive sexual release under the cover of a mask and no one knows who she is. Her most frequent lover is a man she calls Sir. He is dominant and she loves it as she discovers a side to her sexuality that she didn’t know existed but is all for exploring.

Lord Heathington, I believe, feels that he’s almost a deviant for wanting to dominate his partner in bed and hasn’t gotten married because he wouldn’t want to scare off a wife due to his sexual appetites. He heads to The Market and discovers a woman that calls him Sir and he wants exclusively. He proposes a 6 month contract with the woman and she accepts. But when he finds out who’s behind the mask will he be able to accept her for who she is?

This was a short novella and an easy read. It had some great sex scenes that I enjoyed reading even thought I’m not a huge reader of BDSM. It was pretty much BDSM-lite and that was perfect for my reading tastes.

The relationship between Heath and Kat was strictly sexual at first until he found out who she was. I personally think that how he figured it out was a bit far-fetched but maybe that’s just me. I loved that he accepted her for herself but then there’s society to think of. At least Kat was thinking of them…not so much Heath.

The story was enjoyable and since it says that this is The Market book 1 I’ll have to see what comes next in the series.

Rating: 3.25 out of 5

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

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


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