Tag: Kinsey Holley

What I Read Last Week

Posted December 17, 2012 by Tracy in Features | 5 Comments

Well it’s Monday again and only 8 more days til Christmas. Wow. I can’t believe it’s that close. No, I’m nowhere near ready, as is usual. I never know how I get it all done but I always do. So do you shop in advance or are you like me and get it all done at the last minute?

This is the last week of school for my kids before a 3 week Christmas break. I have no idea why they get such a long damned break but it will be interesting this year. I’m off the week between Christmas and New Year, which I’ve never done before so that will be nice. But the rest of the time I have no idea what I’ll do with them! lol They need entertaining, ya know? Otherwise they get into trouble. 🙂

I don’t think my mom has announced this yet but it’s a big freaking deal in my life as well…my mom is retiring at the end of the year (which I’ve known for a while now) but what I just found out a couple of months ago is that my parents are moving to Tennessee next month!!!! I’m so excited for them but so very sad for me. That sounds selfish, I know, but besides college I’ve never lived more than an hour from my parents…ever. Now they’re gonna be about 2,000 miles and 31 hours away! Arrrrrg. I don’t know what I’ll do without seeing them all the time! I guess I’ll have to plan a long vacation and go visit. sigh

Anyway, on to what I read last week: 

I started off the week with Maya Banks’ In Bed With a Highlander. The story is about Mairin who is kidnapped from a convent where she’s been hiding. Those who want her dowry and know who she really is. She escapes from the evil guy and makes it to the home of a boy she has been protecting. She ends up marrying the boys father, Ewan, but it’s a rocky road for them. This was such a great story. I really loved Ewan and his brothers and while I had originally given the story a 4 star rating I had to up that to 4.5 out of 5. The more I thought about it the more I loved it. :0) I’m now impatiently waiting for my turn at the library for the ebook so I can read book 2!

Next up was my Tracy’s TBR challenge read for the week and it was Finding Chrissten by NJ Walters. This is a story about a half human, half shapeshifter who has been in captivity with a psycho for the past 18 months. Her brothers and a group of their friends have been unable to find her until now. They rescue her but she needs time to heal. She was mated against her will while in captivity and the man who is her mate isn’t gonna let her get away. Then there’s one of her brothers’ friends, Hank, who has been drawn to Chrissten since the moment he caught her scent. They both have a strange attraction to one another and feel at peace when they are with each other. But can they keep away from the evil mate? This was a good story. I really liked Hank and his ability to tread lightly when it came to Chrissten. I did think that for all she’d been through the story went too fast but maybe that was me. These are shapeshifters and obviously think differently than I do. I did like the writing in this one a great deal so will look for more books by this author. 3.5 out of 5

Next was Trouble in Texas by Katie Lane. The story is about a 37 year old librarian who the town thinks is an old maid, but she isn’t. Just cuz she doesn’t want to get married and doesn’t dress in a flashy way doesn’t maker her an old maid. She DOES own a house that use to be the most famous house of ill repute in Texas but she wants to unload that and find somewhere else for the hens who still live there to live. She didn’t plan on the hens shooting and then handcuffing Brant Cates to the bed – or for him and his brother, Beau, to buy the house. You can read my review here at Book Binge. 3.25 out of 5

Next up was Deck the Halls With Love by Lorraine Heath. This is a novella having to do with the Lost Lords of Pembrook. The story is about Chetwyn and his love for a woman that he never wanted to let go of but felt he had to. It’s a very good story and one I really enjoyed. My review will post tomorrow.

Trick of Time by JL Merrow is a book that doesn’t come out til late next month but I couldn’t wait to read it. I love Merrow’s work and of course love time travel so there ya go. This story is about a man who heads back to the late 1800’s and meets a rent boy who he falls in love with. I really liked the story a lot – the setting, the characters, just about everything. Good stuff. I’ll post my review next month. 4 out of 5

Aftershock by Jill Sorenson was a great story about people who are trapped in an underpass after a 8.5 magnitude earthquake. They’re not only stuck in the pass and wonder how they will survive if not rescued by also there was a prison transport and not all the passengers died. You can read my review here. Good book! 4 out of 5

Mommy Midwife by Cassie Miles is the story of midwife Olivia living in the mountains outside of Denver. She gets pregnant and while the father of the baby, Troy, wants to marry her she knows that’s not smart as they’re not in love. When someone starts stalking her Troy takes over her protection but who they think is the stalker may not be the right one. This was a cute story. Olivia bugged me a bit at times but I really liked Troy a lot. 3 out of 5

Ready to Run by Kinsey W. Holley was the story of a girl who from a small town who has really never thought about moving to a big city. She meets Nash but Nash isn’t really who she thinks he is. He’s a werewolf and he’s there to investigate her family. He protects her when her uncle sells her to Euro-werewolves and takes her to Houston. The story was good and the romance nice – I just wanted more of an HEA than I got. 3.5 out of 5

Highland Moonlight by Teresa J. Reasor was my TBR Challenge read for December. Not a holiday themed story but they do have a Christmastide party in the story – does that count? I’ll post my review on Wednesday.

Last for the week was Lord Stillwell’s Excellent Engagements by Victoria Alexander. This novella tells us of Lord Stillwell’s 3 engagements and how they didn’t work out for him. I’ll post a mini review of this soon. 4.5 out of 5

 

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week: 

Courting Carolina by Janet Chapman 
Trouble in Texas by Katie Lane

Happy Reading!

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What I Read Last Week

Posted November 5, 2012 by Tracy in Features | 3 Comments

Hey there!

This was an all around quiet week at home once Halloween
passed.  I did attend my friends funeral
on Saturday which was really difficult but that was ok too.  We have a memorial garden here at the church
I work at and he was buried there and that was nice. I told his sister I can now go bug him whenever I want. 🙂 Here’s my favorite picture of the garden –
its very serene.

So on to what I read:

I started off the week with Never Seduce a Scot by MayaBanks.  As you’ll see if you read my full
review I saw this on Nath’s blog and just HAD to read it.  It was really good and I’m so glad I
did.  Warring clans, a deaf mute heroine,
hot highlanders – what’s not to love? 
You can read my full review here. 
4.25 out of 5

Next up was My Regelence Rake by JL Langley.  This is the newest in the Sci-Regency series
and while I didn’t find it quite as good as books 1 & 2 I still really
liked it.  This is Colton’s story and has him pining after the
Captain of the Guard at the palace, Sebastian. 
Sebastian is also a Lord in his own right and though Colton has made no secret of the fact that he
wants Sebastian, Seb has pretty much brushed him off.  When Colton
finally decides to move on as he feels he’ll never get the man, Seb finally
notices him.  Now this was a good story
but there were a few things that bothered me. 
The main one was the fact that Colton
and Seb had to get married to avoid scandal. 
While this always adds a bit of angst, this is the 3rd book
in this series that’s had that happen. 
Really?  Three boys married from
the Royal family and all of them had to get married to avoid scandal?  I’d like to see just a plain ole romance with
some other angst involved.  Not that this
one didn’t have “other” angst.  We also
got a bit of Raleigh/Steven page time and I enjoyed that immensely.  3.75 out of 5

Some Like it Wicked by Carole Mortimer was my next
read.  This is the story of a Pandora who
is a widow and is being cut by the ton after she gets out of mourning because
her husband supposedly died in a duel with her lover.  She is saved from being attacked at a ball by
a man the ton calls Devil and has a horrid reputation himself but yet never
gets cut.  He saves Pandora and then won’t
go away and eventually ends up asking Pandora to marry him for his own
reasons.  This was a cute book and was
pretty entertaining.  You can read my
full review here. 3 out of 5

Next was a re-read called Kiss and Kin by Kinsey W.Holley.  I wanted to read book 2 in the
series but couldn’t really remember book 1 so I dragged it out again.  I remembered what happened almost immediately
after I started reading but re-read the whole thing anyway.  The story is about a wolf shifter, Taran, who
is in love with his brother’s cousin by marriage, Lark, but she’s a woman who
was basically raised by his parents so it’s a bit weird for him, and her.  Lark’s in love with Taran but has no idea
that she’s his mate.  He’s a cop and
investigating the disappearance of some women in town and when Lark is almost
abducted he has to protect her and one thing leads to another, etc.  I gave this book a 3.75 after the first read
and a 3.5 after the second.  The ending
wasn’t quite as satisfying this time around. 
Yes, the “bad” guy was caught but he wasn’t the only bad guy out there
so the fact that everything seemed A-ok was a bit annoying.  3.5 out of 5

Next in the series was Yours, Mine and Howls by Kinsey W.Holley.  This story is pretty unrelated
to the people in book 1.  The characters
are vaguely connected but it can definitely be read on its own.  The story is about a 30 year old woman who is
bringing the son she raised from the age of 5 to his uncle’s house to meet him
for the first time.  Ally and Cade, the
Uncle, don’t get along but yet their mates. 
Ally actually died and was brought back to life by a deity of
sorts.  The story is about Ally and Cade’s
romance as well as several other things. 
While a good book I thought there was way too much packed in to just one
story.  Too many bad guys for sure, and
when they started getting into the history of Cade’s family it was nuts.  Good, but a lot to take in.  3.5 out of 5

My Tracy’s
TBR Challenge read and last for the week was The Rebuilding Year by KajeHarper. This is the story of 2 basically straight men, John and Ryan who become
friends, then roommates, then lovers. 
The story centers around their romance and the way they deal with their
feelings toward someone of the same sex, as well as issues that come up with John’s
ex-wife, her husband and his kids.  There’s
also something funky going on at the college that Ryan attends and John works
at that causes angst as well.  I really
liked the story a lot.  I thought that the
issue of the problems on campus pulled me away from the romance a bit too much
but it all tied in nicely in the end.  I
really liked how Harper set this up so that Ryan was 30 but just starting med
school and John 37 and starting over without his former family.  It added a depth that wouldn’t necessarily
have been there had the men been younger and not “lived” yet.  I liked the writing and will be reading more
from Harper in the future. 4 out of 5

My Book Binge reviews that posted since last week:
A Cowboy for Christmas by Lori Wilde
Stygian’s Honor by Lora Leigh
Midnight in Your Arms by Morgan Kelly
Her Highness and the Highlander by Tracy Anne Warren
Happy Reading!

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What I Read Last Week

Posted April 12, 2010 by Tracy in Features | 21 Comments

Happy Monday!
At least I hope it’s a happy Monday for most of you. 🙂  My kids are back at school today after having a week off.  I love it when they’re off…I get to sleep in an extra half hour in the mornings and I love letting them stay up a little later and not having to impose the strict bed times.  I think they like it too. 🙂  The kids did spend a few days at my parents house last week which was nice for them and for hubby and me as well.  We got to spend more one on one time together and I got a ton of reading done as well.  
So what I read…
First up was Love and Loyalty by Tere Michaels.  Michaels’ second book and a good one, I must say.  This is the story of Jim, a workaholic cop with great, well meaning friends and Griffin, a screenwriter from Hollywood who is writing a story about a case that Jim was deeply involved in.  The two men meet for dinner “to discuss the script” and one thing leads to another.  They go back to Jim’s place and then are just…together.  I loved seeing how comfortable the two men were together – enough that Jim just let Griffin stay at his place and it just kept going.  It was just a sweet story and I loved it..  I can’t wait to read Duty and Devotion – the newest book  4.5 out of 5
Next up was Winter Kiss by Deborah Cooke.  This is book 4 in the Dragonfire series about dragon shapeshifters and yet another book in my FTSP.  This was Delaney’s story. He was hurt and abducted by the Slayers (the bad guys) and given an Elixir that tainted him.  But he broke free of the hold…or so he thought.  He has his firestorm – the time when he and his mate…well, mate and produce little baby dragon shapeshifters.  The firestorm doesn’t go as planned but Delaney’s determined that he’s the one that must destroy the elixir even if it kills him in the process.  It was a good story.  I had to roll my eyes sometimes at the heroine and some of the things that she did but it was good.  I read this one for The Book Binge so I’ll let you know when my review posts.
Next was a Tracy’s TBR Challenge read for the week.  Bedded by Her Lord by Denise Lynn was, I think, a book I picked up at the very first So Cal Blogger get together I went to.  Yeah, and it’s been sitting ever since.  Anyway, this was the story of a man who had been abducted and forced to kill other men for his own survival.  He escapes and makes it home after 7 years but when he comes home nothing’s as he imagined it would be and they don’t even recognize him.  On top of that he walks in to his wife giving birth.  Oops.  The story is him trying to beat the demon inside him that has grown from killing so many and the struggle between his wife and himself.  Not a fantastic medieval, but not bad.  3 out of 5
Next up was Hide Out by Katie Allen.  This is Trevor’s story and it was a good one.  Trevor is trying to hide from his father who wants to kill him and he’s in a “fake” couple relationship with the cop who’s his protector, Pete.  Only, hey look, they’re both gay! 🙂  It was a great story and another I wrote for The Book Binge so again, I’ll let you know when my review posts.

Another Chance to Dream by Lynn Kurland was my next read.  This was another medieval read and had some angst. *snort* Ok, that’s like saying that candy has some sugar.  I don’t think I’ve ever read a book that had that many things happen to the hero and heroine.  Seriously nothing could go right for the poor couple.  They just wanted to be together dammit and they couldn’t! lol   Gwen and Rhys have a great infatuation with each other from the time she’s 10 and he’s 14 which grows to love over the years.  He heads off to earn mucho money so that he can try to buy land (since he’s only a knight and not a lord) and also possibly bribe someone for Gwen’s hand in marriage since she’s been promised to another since birth.  But everyone and everything is determined to keep them apart.  Oy.  I really like Kurland’s writing but this one was off the charts when it came to Murphy’s Law.  3.5 out of 5
Ok – any Kurland fans out there?  I have a question.  What order should I read the books in?  I swear I stared at the reading order page for at least 10 minutes the other day trying to figure it out and still didn’t have a clue. The page itself is very organized but that didn’t help me. I like her historicals as well as her time travel but some interconnect.  I thought to just read in publication order (barring her fantasy reads) but that confused me to since her first book is #10 in the De Piaget series.  Can anyone help this poor confused soul out?
Next up was Kiss and Kin by Kinsey Holley.  I had read a short free story by Holley at Christmas from The Samhellion and really enjoyed it.  This is the story of Lark and Taran.  A non related pair who were raised as brother and sister due to the death of Lark’s parents.  Because of this they have tried to stay away from each other but Lark is Taran’s mate.  When Lark is in danger not only the cop in Taran but the mate in Taran come forward.  I liked this story.  Sometimes with foster siblings there’s a squick factor involved but I didn’t get this from the story at all which I appreciated.  I liked Holley’s writing as well and will look forward to Nick and TJ’s story (supporting characters in this book). 3.75 out of 5
Oh and while I was at Holley’s site I came across this very funny blog post: Orgasmic wombs and the penises that poke them.
Instant Gratification by Jill Shalvis was next on my list.  Another FTSP book.  (There are just too many of those FTSP books!)  Emma Sinclair has left her NY life as an ER doctor to help her estranged father out at his medical clinic in Wishful, CA where she spent the first 6 years of her life.  At first no one takes her seriously they just see her as Doc Sinclair’s daughter rather than a doctor.  She just wants Starbucks, Thai take out and someone to pay in something other than casseroles.  Then Stone Wilder comes in after falling 50 feet down a cliff.  She patches him up despite his grumblings that all he needs is a band-aid and some sparks fly.  Fighting the attraction is hard for Emma but she’s not about to get involved with someone from a small town when she’s going back to NY.  Yeah, easier said than done.  I enjoyed this book and the ease that Stone and Emma had around each other.  I did have some problems believing that Emma would want to stay in Wishful.  Also, secondary characters Serena and Spencer…that was completely unbelievable to me. (I’m not saying more in case you haven’t read the book and plan to but if you have read it you know what I mean.) 3.75 out of 5
And last but certainly not least was Dark Angel/Lord Carew’s Bride by Mary Balogh.  I’ve only read a couple of other books by Balogh but I really like her work.  These two were great stories that were originally published separately in 1994 and 1995.  Two cousins who show up in both books.  Dark Angel is about  Jennifer who has been unofficially engaged to Viscount Kersey since she was 15.  She believes herself passionately in love with him even though they’ve spent very little time together.  Now that she is 20 and she is officially engaged to him she believes life will be even more wonderful.  But Kersey’s got a sordid past and he’s an evil bugger – for only being 25.  Then there’s the Earl of Thornhill, Gabriel, who wants revenge on Kersey and Jennifer become a pawn in a game that she knows nothing about – her life changes forever.  
Lord Carew’s Bride is about Jennifer’s cousin, Samantha – also changed by Viscount Kersey’s evil ways.  While visiting Jennifer in the country she meets a man, Hartley Wade, who she believes is just a landscape gardener.  They become friends and Sam is very upset about having to go back to Town for the Season.  But Sam, despite her many male followers and the many offers she had from them, never wants to get married.  However when Hartley asks, she accepts because he’s “safe” and he’s her “friend”.  Yeah, that’s not exactly why he wants to marry you.  4.25 out of 5 for both stories.
You can go here for Hilcia’s review
And my review for A Certain Wolfish Charm by Lydia Dare posted on The Book Binge this week.

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