Tag: Robyn DeHart

Guest Review: Misadventures in Seduction by Robyn DeHart

Posted September 25, 2014 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: Misadventures in Seduction by Robyn DeHartReviewer: Tracy
Misadventures in Seduction by Robyn DeHart
Series: Masquerading Mistresses #3
Also in this series: For Her Spy Only
Publisher: Macmillan
Publication Date: September 8th 2014
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

With five siblings to care for, Prudence Hixsby's duty comes first, even if it means becoming a spinster. When the eldest - and most cherished - of her younger brothers decides to join the war, however, Prudence is determined to keep him safe. So she strikes a bargain with an old acquaintance: her body in exchange for her brother's safety.

In the dead of the night, she slips into the bed of a man whose touch is both fierce and passionate... little knowing she's just seduced the wrong man.

Harrison Carlisle, the Duke of Sutcliffe, never imagined that the lovely Prudence would honour his bed, or just how bewitching those lush curves could be. Yet he keeps a gentleman's silence. After all, a spy for the Crown can ill afford to marry. But when Prudence's brother is killed, they find themselves uniting to track down the traitorous murderer. And while death lurks within the shadowy world of espionage, there is also passion... and the unbidden thrill of a seduction!

 

Tracy’s review of Misadventures in Seduction (Masquerading Mistresses #3) by Robyn DeHart

Prudence is determined to keep her brother Johnston safe even though he’s joined the war effort. She accepts a proposition from a man who can keep Johnston in England and away from the fighting. She sleeps with him for a night and he keeps her brother safe. Except…she enters the wrong room and ends up sleeping with the Duke of Sutcliffe. She has no idea it was him but is completely surprised when the man she though she slept with denies her request for her brother’s safety. The duke overhears Prudence and takes it upon himself to Johnston a job that will keep him safe.

Four years later and Johnston is dead. Unfortunately being kept from the fighting didn’t save his life. Prudence is trying her best to take care of her remaining family members and moves them to London. Upon entering the city she decides to pay the Duke of Sutcliffe a visit with the idea in mind that she can force him to try and find her brother’s murderer. She picks a very unfortunate time to arrive as the Duke has been accused of treason and the duke ends up sweeping Prudence and all of her siblings away to a safe house. The duke must try and find the person who is framing him and hopefully find Johnston’s killer at the same time. He’s distracted by Prudence as he’s always had feelings for her but having her with him ends up being the thing that gets him his answers.

This was a cute little novella. I love that the Duke was already half in love with Prudence before she ever entered his room. It was his chance to show his feelings without getting caught. He never wanted to marry so didn’t want to be force into it. He feels bad not telling Prudence it was him but eventually she finds out. She’s certainly not happy but under the circumstances she realizes that’s the least of her worries. I think that she was a very intelligent woman who still had very romantic feelings. She ends up liking the excitement that surrounds her when she’s with Harrison and that makes him love her even more.

While the story told us of the love in this story I didn’t feel it as strongly as I did in the previous novella in the series. IDK, there was just something missing from both Prudence and Harrison relationship and that stopped me from having the smiling, sighing moment when they finally profess their love. I did enjoy the mystery as to who was framing Harrison though and felt that was well done.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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

 

three-half-stars

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Guest Review: For Her Spy Only by Robyn DeHart

Posted August 11, 2014 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: For Her Spy Only by Robyn DeHartReviewer: Tracy
For Her Spy Only by Robyn DeHart
Series: Masquerading Mistresses #2
Also in this series: Misadventures in Seduction
Publisher: Entangled
Publication Date: July 21st 2014
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

England, 1814

When Winifred is rescued from her snow-stranded carriage by the notorious and reclusive Alistair, Marquess of Coventry, she is instantly drawn to him. Jilted by her betrothed and socially ruined by untrue rumors, Winifred is tired of paying for crimes she didn't commit and decides to play the seductress London society claims she is. Thinking a night of passion shouldn't leave any lasting effects, she instead finds her heart marked forever.

Six years later, Alistair is working for the Regent as a spy. A search for Napoleon's English supporters leads him to the beguiling Winifred, recently widowed with a young son. He hasn't forgotten how the unconventional beauty warmed his bed, and the heat between them rekindles immediately. The spymaster is determined to uncover all of plucky Winifred's secrets. Especially the one regarding her son.

 

Tracy’s review of For Her Spy Only (Masquerading Mistresses #2) by Robyn DeHart

Winifred and her maid have carriage trouble and are left on the side of the road while the driver goes off to get help. Fortunately for the women they are rescued by the Marquess of Coventry and taken to his home for the night. He’s not a sociable man and is brusque, his speech clipped, and he’s more interested in his books, than he is in the women.

Winifred, however, finds Alistair quite appealing. She was recently left at the altar and then smeared by her ex-fiance. He told everyone that he had caught her in the arms of her lover – a complete lie. She is now rejected by the ton and with Alistair she sees her chance to be the wanton woman she is claimed to be. Alistair isn’t stupid. He sees a beautiful woman trying to seduce him and he takes her up on it.

Six years later Alistair, who works for the Crown, is working on a case. He must use some maps to try and decode a book so he heads to the man who is the Royal Cartographer. Unfortunately he finds that man is deceased but Alistair is assisted by the man’s widow – none other than Winifred.

Winifred is shocked to see Alistair again…and scared. While she married the cartographer she only did so because she was pregnant with Alistair’s son. She doesn’t know how to tell him and as he has stated, adamantly, that he never wants children she wants to keep the two separated.

As Winifred and Alistair work together to decode his book the attraction they had years before is rekindled. Winifred, however, fears that she’s losing her heart to the man and she can’t let that happen as she knows they will part ways and then she will be heartbroken once again.

This was a short but sweet novella. The story is fast moving and kept me engaged for the entire story. I didn’t read the first book in this series so I wasn’t completely filled in on the Seven (the group of men that Alistair works with for the Crown) and not too much info was forthcoming. Despite my curiosity where the Seven was concerned I didn’t feel it took too much away from the love story that was blooming.

Alistair was not a people person and he didn’t care that he would rather have his books than a person to talk to. It made him an individual and one I could understand (sometimes I like books better than people too!). He was kind to Winifred, however, and that had me liking him all the more.

Winifred was a loving and caring woman and I liked seeing how she interacted with her son and understood his “quirks.” I thought she was perfect for Alistair.

This story had a nice blend of angst, passion and romance and I enjoyed reading it.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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

three-half-stars

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What I Read Last Week

Posted August 5, 2014 by Tracy in Features | 2 Comments

Ok.  I’ll be the first to admit it.  I’m a slacker. That’s the reason that this post, which is normally up on Mondays, is going up just now.  And in the middle of the afternoon, no less!  Sorry about that. I’ll try to mend my slacker ways but I fear it’s all set in stone. 🙂

So…getting the girls ready for school.  Holy shit it’s expensive.  As my oldest gets older the prices just go up and up!  Oy.  I had to register them both today and for the oldest it was $215.00 and the youngest $70.00.  That last number seemed like a dream compared to the high school charges. Geez.  Oh well, whatcha gonna do, right?  I certainly hope so.  

Giveaway: Violet…I sent an email last week but haven’t heard from you.  I just sent another so please check your spam folder to make sure it didn’t end up there. 🙂

On to what I read last week:

I started off the week with Lick by Kylie Scott.  I really liked this story of a woman who wakes up after a 21st birthday binge in Vegas and finds herself married to a rock star.  The book tells us their ups and downs and everything in between.  You can read my full review here. 4 out of 5

Next up was The Right Wrong Number by Barbara Delinsky.  This was a free story I picked up about a woman who is excited about a business deal and calls a friend to tell them about it.  She doesn’t get her friend, however, she gets a guy named Charlie.  The two actually hit it off and have a long conversation but then the woman drops her phone and the call ends.  She tries to get him back on the phone but has no idea which wrong number she dialed.  The story was cute and sweet but really short.  3 out of 5

Blurred by Kim Karr was next on the list to read.  The story, if you’ve been following this series, shows us Ben’s side of the story.  Ben was Dahlia’s boyfriend at one time.  The novella takes us through Ben’s emotional turmoil after his mother dies and him trying to get his life back together.  I think it was a good story as it takes care of all the details and back story for Ben that won’t crowd up his love story, Frayed, when it releases. You can read my full review here.  3.5 out of 5

Her Secret, His Surprise by Paula Altenburg is the story of a couple who have a one night stand.  She finds herself preggo but when she calls the bar that she met him at (he was the bartender) they say they’d never heard of him.  Two years later and the man who is the father of her child shows up to be her administrative assistant.  She’s not sure she wants someone who is a drifter, from job to job, to be in her daughter’s life.  Unfortunately for her the minute he sees his daughter he knows.  He’s not what he seems but he’s not sure he can make her believe he’s solid.  Good story – very enjoyable. 3.75 out of 5 (read for Book Binge)

For Her Spy Only by Robyn DeHart is a novella about a woman who has a one night stand with a noble who has no desire to marry and no desire to have children.  Six years later the noble is looking for a certain cartographer and he finds her instead – who is the cartographer’s widow.  This was a short but sweet story.  I liked both the characters and the story.  3.5 out of 5 (read for Book Binge)

Rock Addiction by Nalini Singh.  I know this isn’t coming out til Sept. 2nd but when I got the ARC I couldn’t stand to not read it.  Unfortunately I didn’t care for it as much as I wanted to.  Still a good story but I did have some issues with it. I’ll post my review closer to the release date. 3.5 out of 5

Wilder’s Mate by Moira Rogers is a kind of a paranormal western but set in an alternate universe.  The first book in the Bloodhound series, the story is about a woman who is searching for her mentor who was kidnapped by vampires and the man who helps her – that she happens to fall in love with.  It was an interesting story and I was intrigued.  I wish it had some more back story about the Bloodhounds, one of which our hero was.  Definitely needed more on that.  3.5 out of 5

Claimed by the Alpha by Renee George is a short story about a woman who has been fighting cancer for 4 years.  The man who loves her dearly is a wolf shifter and wants to change her but she refuses.  The story is about him taking some definite risks and trying to make her see his side of things.  It was cute but very short. 3 out of 5

 Last for the week was Fangs of Anarchy by Dakota Cassidy
– a 5 part story.  It’s really a (approx.) 200 page book that’s broken
up into 5 parts.  The story follows Claire who is a werewolf and has
just killed her alpha.  She is aided in disposing of the body by Irish
who is a vampire and president of his MC.  The men in this story might
be in MC’s but really it’s not an MC read.  It’s a love story between
Claire and Irish with a mystery that is the catalyst to throw them
together.  I liked the stories, the world building, the romance and the
humor in these.  I’ll definitely be reading more of this series in the
future.
Fangs of Anarchy – 
Killing the Alpha
(Part 1) 4 out of 5
Forbidden Alpha (Part 2) Girl Most Lycan 3.5 out of 5

Forbidden Alpha (Part 3) Were in the World is Gannon Dodd? 4 out of 5

Forbidden Alpha (Part 4) In the Zone 3.5 out of 5

Forbidden Alpha (Part 5) Revelation 4 out of 5
 
My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
Silver Wolf Clan by Tera Shanley
 
Happy Reading!

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Guest Review: The Secrets of Mia Danvers by Robyn DeHart

Posted June 26, 2013 by Tracy in Reviews | 0 Comments

Guest Review: The Secrets of Mia Danvers by Robyn DeHartReviewer: Tracy
The Secrets of Mia Danvers (Dangerous Liaisons, #1) by Robyn DeHart
Series: Dangerous Liaisons #1
Publisher: Intermix
Publication Date: June 18th 2013
Genres: Historical Romance
Pages: 301
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

A lone witness finds her protector…

Since losing her sight in a childhood accident, Mia Danvers has resided in a small cottage on the vast Carrington estate. Thought to be dead, Mia lives a life of virtual seclusion—until one night, while walking home, she happens upon a horrendous crime.

Alex Foster, Eighth Duke of Carrington, lives according to society’s expectations for him. He’s never met the woman who lives in the cottage at the edge of his property. But when she arrives at his door in the pouring rain terrified and claiming she has witnessed a murder, she seizes his attention.

Mia is determined to help the authorities track down the culprit, even though the only person willing to accept her aid is the handsome, arrogant duke. Working closely together proves difficult as Mia’s beauty and independence tempts Alex to ignore convention and follow his desire. But what neither of them know is that this murderer has struck before in Whitechapel, taunting the British press only to vanish—a ruthless killer who knows that Mia is the only living witness to his crime…

Mia Danvers was just 16 years old when her mother dropped her off at a cottage on the Duke of Carrington’s property and never went back. Mia was blinded in a riding accident and because of this her family told everyone she was dead and moved on with their lives. Luckily Mia had her friend and former governess, Rachel, who stood by her side. Now it’s 9 years later and Mia is on her way home from the park when she hears a murder committed. She’s understandably upset and heads to the Duke’s house (which she’s never been in) to inform him of the crime.

Alex Foster is not ready to be a Duke. He was never supposed to be a duke but after his father passed and his older brother got himself killed in a ridiculous scandal there was Alex. He’s peeved when he gets a visitor late one night and when he finds out it’s the girl who lives on his property he’s even more put out. His mother had told him that she was a mad woman so when she comes in, soaking wet from the rain claiming to have witnessed a murder – and obviously blind so how can that be? – he’s totally skeptical. Alex placates Mia and sends her home but is soon calling the police when he finds that Mia was telling the truth.

Alex and Mia end up being friends and try to find the killer together but the police actually have a suspect in mind, and that’s Alex’s brother, Drew. They do get distracted from their investigation when the killer shows up at Mia’s cottage and Mia and Rachel end up moving into the duke’s residence. This puts Alex and Mia closer together and as much as Alex likes that he knows he shouldn’t as he’s practically engaged to someone else.

Mia wants Alex in her bed. She’s not shy or quiet about her attraction to the man and eventually gets her way and gets him into her bed. She loves it but knows it can’t continue as Alex is now engaged to someone else. Alex doesn’t know what he wants. He wants to be with Mia and he loves being with her both in bed and out of it but he has a duty to his family and he doesn’t want to shirk that. With his brother under suspicion, his mother spouting her evilness all over the place, the revelation of Mia actually being alive and a killer on the loose Alex is damned confused and more than a bit frustrated.

I wasn’t sure what to expect here as the premise sounded good when I read the blurb of the book but I hadn’t ever read anything by DeHart. I have to say I wasn’t disappointed. This was a lovely story and made me definitely want to read more by this author.

Mia had every right to be a sullen, bitter, angry woman because of her past but she was the exact opposite. She was kind, giving and happy. She saw the best in people, even sometimes when she shouldn’t (read: her sisters) and had a backbone I so admired. I loved that she was so honest with Alex about her wants and desires. She did hold her feelings back but that was understandable under the circumstance. She wasn’t Superwoman but she certainly didn’t let her blindness hold her back in any way.

Alex was a good guy. Yeah, he was in denial about his feelings for Mia and made some stupid, stupid, stupid decisions but for the most part he was just trying to please everyone. Once he decided that his own feelings shouldn’t be put to the wayside so that everyone else could be happy (read: his mother) he was a much happier man. He didn’t always do or say the right thing but I still liked him an awful lot.

The murder part of the story was decent. It centered around Jack the Ripper but in this story Jack was in Mayfair as well as Whitechapel. It was an interesting take on the Ripper and I thought the author did a good job of portraying the guy as whack but he so obviously was.

I look forward to the next book in this series as I’m looking forward to reading more about Alex’s brother, Drew as he was so obviously hiding something from his brother.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

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

 

three-half-stars

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What I Read Last Week

Posted June 17, 2013 by Tracy in Features | 2 Comments

“It’s just another manic Monday. Wowo wowo” (Starting with a little Bangles music from 1986.)

Actually I think the Monday so far is going alright but I’m still manic from this past weekend. On Saturday we helped some friends move and that was tiring of course. Then on Sunday morning I helped, with 3 other parent, run a youth group car wash fundraiser in the church parking lot. The adults moved cars and the youth group washed and dried while the car owners were in church. The wash was free we just asked for donations. We ended up raising over $1,000.00 so we were exhausted afterwards but quite excited. The money will help pay for the mission trip the youth will be on at the end of the month. They’re headed to the Diocese of Navaholand to help out. I think it will be great. My oldest is going – hopefully she’ll have a good time.

After I got home from car wash I wound down a bit and then my youngest asked the hubby and I to rearrange her room and add the bookshelf that’s been sitting in the garage forever. She’d asked before but the weekend schedule just never left enough time. Well it was mostly the Tracy show with the hubby coming in when he needed to muscle things around but it finally got done and looks great. It should after spending 5 hours moving, trashing and reorganizing the place! lol  Needless to say there wasn’t much time this weekend for reading but I did get some done this past week:

So, what did I read last week? 

I started the week with The Secrets of a Runaway Bride by Valerie Bowman. This is book 2 in the Secrets Brides series and I have to say I liked this one much better than book one. In this story we have Annie or Anne who is love with a complete milktoast man who can’t seem to keep his own opinion. He’s always going with what others. If he’s with his father he goes with his pov. When he’s with Anne, he goes with her pov. Frustrating. Anne is making a bit of a mess of things as she can’t seem to leave Arthur alone and she’s pursuing him so that he’ll propose once again. They were stopped from getting to Gretna Green in the last book but that was 6 months before and she’s ready for the relationship to go to the next level. Her sister is on her honeymoon but before she left she asked a friend, Jordan Holloway, to look after Anne. He gets frustrated as well as he’s constantly trying to save Anne from herself but then falls in love with her himself. It was a very cute book and an enjoyable read. A bit predictable but fun, nonetheless. 3.5 out of 5 (read for Book Binge) 

Next up was Flirting With Disaster by Ruthie Knox. This story is about Katie who took off with her boyfriend when she was just out of high school and got married but he eventually took off leaving her high and dry. She’s back in her hometown of Camelot and her brother has gotten her off the couch and into the office in his security firm. He lets her take a case along with one of his security guys, Sean, who has liked Katie since he was in high school. He has a stutter though so tries to refrain from speaking as he’s sure he’ll much it up. They eventually work together on the case as well as in the bed but they both get more involved in each other than they planned. This was a good read as well. I liked that Sean stuttered and Knox didn’t have him magically saved by the end of the book. He was who he was and I loved it. You can read more of my thoughts here. 3.75 out of 5 

My next read was Damned if You Do: The Complete Collection by JL Merrow. This is the story of a male succubus and a police officer with the Paranormal Enforcement agency who meet and can’t keep their hands off each other. There are 4 novellas/stories in this m/m collection and they’re all very entertaining and sexy. I’ll post my review for this one later this week. 4 out of 5 

The Secrets of Mia Danvers by Robyn DeHart is about a woman who is blind. She lives in a cottage at the corner of a Duke’s property but was abandoned by her family and the ton was lead to believe she was dead. When she witnesses a murder she heads to the Duke’s home and from there the duke and Mia become friends and then so much more. I really like blind heroines as they give a level of depth in a story that might not otherwise be there. Things get heated, especially when Mia thinks that the killer might be the duke’s brother. 3.75 out of 5 (read for Book Binge) 

Last for the week was Life of the Party by Kate Davies. This is the 3rd and final story in the Girls Most Likely to… series. This story was Tess’s and it’s about her friend and kind of co-worker, Luke, getting together. She has self-esteem issues and he’s been burned by previous girlfriends due to his American Indian heritage. It was a good story and a good way to pass the time but nothing made it really stand out. 3 out of 5

My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
Unforgiven by Anne Calhoun
Ellie’s Gentleman by Georgiana Louis

Happy Reading!!

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