COVER REVEAL - CARESSED BY A CRIMSON MOON

"Consumed by madness and tormented by dark memories of blood and death, Hadrian Lucretius, King of the Validus Clan, has returned after living in self-imposed exile for nearly three hundred and fifty years.

To maintain peace with the vampires, Eva Maldonado is offered as a sacrifice to the crazed vampire king by her father, the alpha of the Silveria Shifter Pack. Hadrian’s reputation is both legendary and lethal; he is ruthless, bloodthirsty, lusty, and soulless. When Eva arrives at the ancient fortress high in the Carpathian Mountains, she is shocked to find a ravaged man with dark burning eyes filled with loneliness and dangerous desire.

Would she be his lover…or his prey? His savior…or his victim? Would Hadrian lure her into madness or would their perilous passion be their redemption?"

Learn more about Rulers of Darkness Series and Amanda J. Greene... 

Website / Blog /  Facebook / Twitter

First, I have loved ( and I mean 5 star loved ) both novel one Caressed by Moonlight and the second novel Caressed by Night so I'm more psyched that ever to read Caressed by a Crimson Moon, I can't wait for the finished product to come out at the change of the year!

Look interesting? Catch up with the series with the links above! If you aren't into historical vampire romance you can skip the first book but It's so good I do recommend reading both!

REVIEW - MEDUSA, A LOVE STORY

"Ariston goes to war with a full heart... and dreadful foreboding. He learns too late of the danger Medusa faces, alone, and a Persian blade sends him into the Underworld. But death, curses, nor the wrath of the Gods will keep him from returning to her. Poseidon will use Greece's war to get what he wants: Medusa. He does not care that she belongs to another. He does not care that she will be damned. He is a God, an Olympian, and she will be his."

Author: Sasha Summers
Pages: 325 pages
Publisher: Crescent Moon Press on May 2012
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Historical Paranormal Romance
Series: Loves of Olympus  #1
Amazon: Buy / $11.49 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $8.39 (Nook)

"It's said love can change a person. Medusa wasn't always a monster...

Medusa is ruled by duty, to her Titan father and the Goddess Athena. She's no room for the tenderness her warrior guard, Ariston, stirs. When Olympus frees her from service, her heart leads her into the arms of the guard she loves... and curses her as the creature with serpent locks.

Ariston goes to war with a full heart... and dreadful foreboding. He learns too late of the danger Medusa faces, alone, and a Persian blade sends him into the Underworld. But death, curses, nor the wrath of the Gods will keep him from returning to her.

Poseidon will use Greece's war to get what he wants: Medusa. He does not care that she belongs to another. He does not care that she will be damned. He is a God, an Olympian, and she will be his." ~From Goodreads

This really is a book for fans of historical romance and lovers of ancient Greece - it's told in a epic, dramatic style and it's not a happy romance, it's very emotional and dark, like I said very dramatic. Even the text has that almost ancient tragedy feel to it.

I loved the plot, it was still romance but it had a Troy ( the movie ) feel to it. If you've been reading my reviews you know I absolutely love forbidden love, there is something very epic about it, Romeo and Juliet started it but luckily romance has those storylines as well and they tend to make me quite happy. I've always been in love with the stories about the Olympian gods and goddesses so this story was right up my alley, though maybe a little bit too dramatic for my taste - I like my romance with the trials and troubles but also with the lightness of love and the joy it brings to it's holders even before it slips their finger, to be returned later. I think Medusa: A Love Story wasn't light enough for my escape from reality.

The romance was lovely, I loved the fact that in the beginning Ariston couldn't even touch  her and that just adds so much to the first touch, the first forbidden kiss, not to mention how hot their first time would be. But even though this was a love story, the love was shadowed by the darkness of the plot, the scheming, war and everything between. It was wonderful reading Medusa's story as a love story, everyone sees her as this horrible witch in the stories so it's great to have a more innocent Medusa, one with compassion and love - for that alone this story is a great read for fans of ancient Greece and romance.

Rating :

DEMONICALLY TEMPTED - REVIEW AND INTERVIEW

"The cold case she's on investigates an odd suicide, the case seems pretty clear cut, but with multiple ghost asking for Tess' help with a darkness invading Memphis and the FBI liaison disapproving on Tess and her choice of a lover ruffling Kipp's feathers life isn't a piece of cake."

Author: Stacey Kennedy
Pages: 169 pages
Publisher: Self Published on April 2012
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Paranormal Romance / Mystery
Series: Frostbite  #2
Amazon: Buy / $3.49 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $3.49 (Nook)
All Romance E-books: Buy / $3.49 (E-book)
Excerpt: Chapter 1

After helping the police catch a murderer Tess has got a new job, her ability to see and speak to ghosts has her helping the Memphis police solve cold cases. The ghost who started it all Kipp, an ex-cop now ghost and Tess' boyfriend is helping her work with his old team.

The cold case she's on investigates an odd suicide, the case seems pretty clear cut, but with multiple ghost asking for Tess' help with a darkness invading Memphis and the FBI liaison disapproving on Tess and her choice of a lover ruffling Kipp's feathers life isn't a piece of cake.

Read Supernaturally Kissed first - this is a sequel and isn't a stand alone. :) That said, I absolutely loved Supernaturally Kissed and was rooting for Tess and Kipp to find away to be together, that didn't get solved in the first novel so I was waiting for things to clear up in Demonically Tempted - and nothing really happened on that front until the very end. Good cliffhanger but still I sort of wanted more romance, like the first book had.

The plot is very Mystery, it's a lot more detective work that the first book, there are still emotions tied in there but Tess and Kipp's relationship isn't as front and center as before - and I missed it. Luckily I also enjoy mysteries so this plot wasn't wasted on me. I liked it a lot, but being a ghost buff I immediately knew what was going on, so I was reading Tess figure out things I already knew. All the ghost business was as fun as in the first book and I happily loathed FBI Dane and his judgement of Kipp and Tess, Boo! ;)

Tess seemed more cranky in this book that in the first one, perhaps because Kipp wasn't antagonizing her as much her annoyance was bit much, but I still loved her fiery attitude and her passion and all the more calm moments alone with Kipp. Now Kipp was just as sexy as in the first novel, playful, confident (even though ghost) and the way Kennedy wrote him very much alive and a main character - he doesn't feel like a ghost even though he walks through doors and can eaves drop like no other.

In conclusion... more romance! And with how this book ended I can't wait to read Mystically Bound! It promises more romance and I'm all for that.

Rating :

Niina : Welcome to For The Love of Reading, Stacey Kennedy, I’m glad you could make it!

Stacey Kennedy : WOO HOO! I’m thrilled to be here!

Niina : Let’s get started! Can you tell my readers here 4 fun unknown facts about you so we can break the ice?

Stacey : Hmm…let’s see… I’m a stay at home mom who is also an author. I’ve been writing since 2009. I’d give pretty much anything up for chocolate. And I have a very busy muse.

Niina : First I have to state that I absolutely loved the first Frostbite novel “Supernaturally Kissed”, like 5 star loved it. ;) How hard was it to make a non-corporeal and corporeal bodies work for romance novel?

Stacey : Thanks!! I’m really happy that people love Tess & Kipp as much as I do. They are fun to write. As for the sex scenes, it’s tricky! It took some time to think up how it would all play out. I knew I’d get them between the sheets, but I wasn’t quite sure how at first. It made me think “outside of the box” when coming up with the sex scenes. And I must admit as painful as it’s been not to have them touch, the thought if they ever will touch is pretty darn exciting! I anticipate if they allow me to (no spoiling secrets here) it will probably be the most intense, sexy, and incredibly hot sex scene I’ve ever written.

Niina : It sure would be! Okay tell us little about your second Frostbite novel “Demonically Tempted”, what’s it about?

Stacey : DEMONICALLY TEMPTED is definitely darker than the first, SUPERNATURALLY KISSED. I knew going into it that it would be. I also knew that it would step more into the paranormal and leave the cold-cases behind. It’s basically Tess’s next step in her adventure. She’s finally accepted her abilities to see and talk with ghosts, so now she finds out more about the gifts she has. Of course, that comes with a bunch of trouble since Tess is about to realize that she knew very little about the spirit world.
Also, in this book a big question that comes up in SUPERNATURALLY KISSED is answered. And it sets out the foundation for the next two books. Tess is going to get herself into one seriously big mess. But it’s going to be so much fun watching her dig her way out!

Niina : Are you working on anything fun right now? Like a sequel?

Stacey : Right now I’m finishing up a new urban fantasy romance story, THE CAT’S MEOW. If all goes as planned it should come out this summer. It’s a fun, sexy story that I’ve been dying to get out there, especially since I’ve had this one sitting around for a while. After that, I’m going to write the next Frostbite book, MYSTICALLY BOUND, which will be released in the fall. Lots of fun books will keep me busy for the next…oh, few years! LOL!

Niina : Can’t wait to read more! I’m about to open Demonically Tempted today! What are the three words each that would describe Tess and Kipp the best?

Stacey : Tess – snarky, funny and emotional.
Kipp – sexy, sweet, and alpha.

Niina : What chapter did you most enjoyed writing and why?

Stacey : My favorite chapter in Demonically Tempted was the scene between Caley and Tess in Tess’s living room. I can’t spill too much because it will give away secrets, but it was a really tender moment between two best friends. And it wrenched my heart to write it. Caley can be really something, but that was just how her character developed. She’s a very strong, overbearing woman, and always is in Tess’s face. But for me, that scene showed why Tess loves her, and I enjoyed seeing Tess lean on Caley. There’s just something so special between girlfriends… and I loved that scene because of that very reason.

Niina : How did you find your cover and if you didn't take part in the search, what is your opinion of it?

Stacey : Luckily, I had the privilege to design this cover, which was simply fun! I had the chance to go and pick the model for the cover and the background. It wasn’t a hard thing. The second I saw the woman she instantly clicked. She’s pretty much exactly how I see Tess in my mind and the background just “fit” the story so well. Needless to say, I love it!!

Niina : The covers gorgeous. :) Good job! Flirting with the idea of bringing a new mythological/paranormal creature to page, what would be exciting to write about?

Stacey : I’d love to at some point write a female demon. Any demon I’ve written they’ve always been male, so the idea intrigues me. So I’ll let it simmer in my mind a little longer and see if she finally decides to step forward so I can write her story.

Niina : Now to more personal questions! What’s the sexiest article of clothing on a guy?

Stacey : A tank top. Well, you see, I’m a total arm junky. So a tank top—especially a black one—can make my knees weak. I sure do love seeing those sexy muscles.

Niina :  Oh yes, who doesn’t. ;) Your Top 3 dangerous fictional bad boys, and why them?

Stacey : Bones (Night Huntress series) - I want him to talk naughty things to me in that accent of his.
Vlad (Night Price series) – Well, it’s just Vlad and he’s a total smexy bad boy that I’d love to spend a night with…or maybe a thousand of them.
Azriel (Dark Angels series) – Oh, the Reaper just makes me squirmy. There’s not a word that comes out of his mouth that I’m not drooling over. I’m eagerly awaiting the next book to come out in July so I can get more of him. He’s delicious!

Niina  : What is your signature dish?

Stacey  : Chicken Cordon Bleu…so yummy!

Niina  : What’s on your night stand?

Stacey  : My Kobo.

Niina  : Before we finish, here are some Quick Fire Questions:

Boots or Heels?  Heels.
Cocktails or Shots? Cocktails.
M&Ms: With or Without Peanuts?  M&Ms with peanuts.
Date: Going to Park or Going to Movies? Movies.
Jewels or Chocolates? Chocolate.
Men: Alpha-male or Submissive? ALPHA!
Men: Clean Shaven or Stubble? Clean shaven. Stubble hurts…ouch!
Men: Bad boys or Good guys? Bad boys in the bedroom. Good guys the rest of the time.
Tattoos or Piercings on a guy? Tattoos.
Brunettes or Blonds? Blonds.
Romance: Vampires or werewolves? Werewolves.
Romance: Fallen Angels or Sexy Demons? Sexy Demons.
Romance: Cops or Cowboys? Cops.
Romance or Erotica/Erotic Romance? Erotic Romance.
Male POV or Female POV (Point Of View)? Male POV.

Niina : Thanks for visiting the For The Love of Reading, Stacey ! Any news would you like to share with your readers, or websites they can check out?

Stacey : There’s always great news that seems to pop up weekly and I love to chat, so please come find me on Facebook and Twitter! I’ve got quite a few new releases coming up in the next year, and my baby WEREWOLVES BE DAMNED will hit the shelves in the Summer of 2013. I can’t wait for that one to come out!

Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Amazon Author Page

REVIEW - THE RISQUE TARGET

"Marcus and Rebecca have instant chemistry, burning hot and dangerous, they're chance meeting at the airport and in a tech convention leaves them both hot and contemplating a fling. But the things is Marcus and Rebecca don't exist... Tantum and Nala do and they have sworn to bring each other down only neither knows what the other looks like."

Author: Kelly Gendron
Pages: 202 pages
Publisher: Red Sage Publishing on February 2012
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Erotic Romantic Suspense (+18 Only)
Series: National Elite Security Agency #1
Amazon: Buy / $8.91 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $5.75 (Nook)
All Romance E-books: Buy / $4.94 (E-book)
Excerpt: Sexy excerpt with a gun

Marcus and Rebecca have instant chemistry, burning hot and dangerous, they're chance meeting at the airport and in a tech convention leaves them both hot and contemplating a fling. But the things is Marcus and Rebecca don't exist...

Tantum and Nala do and they have sworn to bring each other down, only neither knows what the other looks like. As NESA agents they know nothing more of each other than their ID numbers.

When Nala learns Marcus/Tantum is the man who killed her partner three years ago nothing will stop her vengeance. And when Tantum learns Rebecca/Nala is the target he's been hunting for for the bombing three years ago he swears to leave the lust and protectiveness he feels for her behind him and catch the killer. But nothing is ever fair in love and espionage...

First things first, when I started reading The Risque Target I simply couldn't put the nook down until I was all done with it. And that my friends is a tell tale sign that I am reading an awesome book! The Risque Target is full of the most delicious sexual temptation that never gives up, it's literally there all the time and it's so so yummy! But sexual temptation would be nothing if the writing wasn't excellent, and in Gendron's case it is! Gendron's a joy to read, the text is easy flowing, modern and laced with tons of excitement to keep the reader hooked!

I loved the plot, it was so good, three dimensional, there were sub-plots, bad guys, guns and an agent with superpower weapon of seduction. Without revealing too much I loved how someone was puppeteering both of them to attack each other and turn a blind eye to them. I really enjoyed hearing from both Nala and Tantum, it gave the book the urgency of erotic romance without having sex in every corner - though with these two I would have not mind seeing that - such hot chemistry!

The romance was so hot! And it build to the actual act, it was a slow burning seduction one that every woman wants to experience, so, lucky Nala! What I especially loved about the romance was the instant attraction they had, the playful flirting when they didn't know they were after each other. But even after learning their real identities they still couldn't do the hands-off, and that ladies is what great romance is all about!

The only critique I have is Tantum's name, it almost put me off reading the book - see I have this pet peeve about weird/altered character names I just can't stand them, like Jamie/Jaemie, Christina/Crisetina or Elizabeth/Eleasabet... I could go on. In this case though Tantum was such a great character that my mind was okay calling him Tatum in my head. ;) Serious note to all writers: there is nothing wrong with normal names.

Rating :

REVIEW - RULES OF ENGAGEMENT (+18 ONLY)

"Jake handcuffs the attacker in his bed, the woman is gorgeous but he has no idea why she's stalking around the cabin - when Katarzyna comes to the strangers learns they've been set up. The mutual attraction leads to hold no bars nine day romp in the sacs with one condition, the sex won't turn into a relationship."

Author: Ann Bruce
Pages: 80 pages
Publisher: Self Published on November 2011
Form: E-book (from my personal library)
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance (+18 Only)
Amazon: Buy / $2.99 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $2.99 (Nook)

Jake's taking a well-earned vacation, after having been shot in chest three times by a woman while on a mission his family's cabin in the middle of nowhere woods sounds friggin' ideal.

Katarzyna three times almost married woman has just been jilted on the altar, swearing off all men she takes her friend's offer to use her cabin in the woods, far away from all men sounds friggin' ideal.

Jake handcuffs the attacker in his bed, the woman is gorgeous but he has no idea why she's stalking around the cabin - when Katarzyna comes to the strangers learns they've been set up. The mutual attraction leads to hold no bars nine day romp in the sack with one condition, the sex won't turn into a relationship.

This short erotic romance is for all the romantic suspense lovers! You got yourself a black ops operative with great bedroom skills, a town cop with chips on her shoulder about men and intact virginity, well at least for the first 20 pages. And of course handcuffs and cast iron headboard. Can it get any better than that? Yeah though so - pretty damn hot!

This is almost bordering on erotica except the story is good and the characters are lovable and totally three dimensional. I loved the little plot, the revenge and pudding love story and of course all the damn hot dominating bedroom/kitchen/anywhere scenes. Can't beat an alpha male who knows what he wants in the bedroom and isn't afraid to be really open mouthed about it. ;)

This story needed a happy ending, and it got it, it would have been way too sad had it ended with a dud like erotica usually does ( crash course: erotic romance has story and plot whole way through, erotica doesn't -  erotic romance has romance and love, erotica doesn't - erotic romance has happy endings, erotica doesn't ), for romance happy endings are essential! And these two really did have great chemistry and were a great match.

You'll love this is you like your romantic suspense with tons of great sex, some plot that is good and with an alpha male who's demanding in the bedroom and heroine who's in to learn few new tricks! ;)

Rating :

ABSOLUTION - REVIEW, GUEST BLOG & GIVEAWAY

"When the son of a Pit Lord is murdered in Hollywood, the celestial beings in charge of the Four Realms ask Raymond Adams to figure who did it and find the victim’s missing soul. Without memories of his life, he accepts the case to gain eternal peace."

Author: Louis Corsair
Pages: 230 pages
Publisher: Self Published on June 2012
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Supernaturals Mystery/Detective
Series: The Elohim Trilogy  #1
Amazon: Buy / $3.44 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $0.99 (Nook)
Smashwords: Buy / $0.99 (E-book)


"In 1947, a gangster murders private investigator Raymond Adams. In 2011, he’s brought back to life for 24 hours to solve the supernatural murder of a Hollywood Adult film star. 

When the son of a Pit Lord is murdered in Hollywood, the celestial beings in charge of the Four Realms ask Raymond Adams to figure who did it and find the victim’s missing soul. Without memories of his life, he accepts the case to gain eternal peace. But the job is daunting:

24 hours to nab a killer...
24 hours to find a missing soul...
24 hours to unravel the victim’s exotic private life...
24 hours to stop a plot to send the universe into chaos...

With only the help of a possessed cop and a medium, Adams must trek through a Hollywood underground filled with pornography, prostitutes, the homeless, and sadists, along with supernatural monsters. But can he solve the case when his own haunting memories keep surfacing, telling him exactly what kind of man he was in life?" ~From Goodreads

I fell in love with Corsair's writing right away! It captures the noir right and it's just entertaining to read. Raymond's struggle in modern day, both mental and psychological I loved, seriously always the best part about time-travel novels ( though this really wasn't one )! Absolution is well written, fun and dark!

I loved that Raymond was out there in the current day with a suit and fedora looking like a zombie the first few hours, after all his body was reanimated so I can't be perfect right away. He was all kinds of fun to read, he definitely was a detective through and through, hard edges and all - but he definitely had a little bit of that survival mode where he could adapt to modern Hollywood.

I loved the language, the dames and other novelty words that made Raymond more believable. I won't go into the plot too much, so I won't ruin it for anyone, but it's Good! If you enjoy the 40's detective stories then you'll love this! I sure did!

Now don't forget to see the Guest Blog below from Corsair on Noir!

And below that will be the Giveaway! Check this swag out! This Fantastic swag is composed by: 1 paperback of Absolution, 1 keychain, 1 bookmark, 1 magnet, 1 hat, 1 magnifying glass and 1 pair of shades and it's INTERNATIONAL!

Rating :

Absolution is only $0.99/£0.77 for as long as the tour lasts! ( until July 3rd! )

Noir

by Louis Corsair

It was a defining moment for me, that very last scene in the movie, The Maltese Falcon, when Humphrey Bogart bitterly remarks that the lead bird is "the stuff that dreams are made of."

That piece of dialogue is not in the wonderful novel, The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, but the theme behind it is there. In the novel, The Big Sleep, Marlowe, another private investigator, comments that a dead person, "sleeps the big sleep" and they don't care about where they're buried or who mourns them. These are dark sentiments. It makes sense that the film version of Raymond Chandler’s and Dashiell Hammett’s novels fall into what is known as Film Noir.

In classic Film Noir, the protagonist wasn't always a detective. Sometimes they were gangsters or simple men who had committed crimes for their self-benefit. And they were always doomed in the end--if you really paid attention you could see that they were doomed from the beginning. Some examples of this are the two movies named above and also: Double Indemnity; Murder My Sweet; In a Lonely Place; and Touch of Evil. I named my favorites, but there are dozens of others.

These were post-WWII stories that looked at the world in a cynical way, intermingling lust and greed. Their immoral protagonists trudged through muck easily because they were muck. They gave us that special lens into the type of darkness that exists in human nature. These sentiments already existed in written fiction, particularly crime fiction and the hardboiled detective fiction of the 1920 and 30s. I happened upon this genre thanks to the movie version of The Maltese Falcon.

Up until then I thought that detective novels were like the novels of Agatha Christie and Conan Doyle--those that included a mental puzzle that the reader and detective could solve together. They didn't appeal to me as much because the murders they depicted are very precise and lack the cruelty and raw passion of real murders. But Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe showed me a different sort of detective fiction.

As I said, it was a defining moment because that was when I knew I would someday write stories like that. Detective fiction has since become a favorite of mine and had things gone just a little bit differently in my life, I like to think I would be wearing a detective badge instead of writing about them.

When I began to give some serious thought to Absolution, I knew I would have a detective in the novel. The original seed for the novel was a news-story about the gruesome murder of an adult film actor. And right away I included magic in it; the murder was supernatural. To help me realize my vision, I turned to the experts on the subject.

Laurell K. Hamilton, Jim Butcher, Mike Resnick, Simon R. Green popularized the Urban Fantasy detective. In my research, I noticed that these detectives were (at least in their first novels) similar to Philip Marlowe. The reason for the Marlowe characteristics is obvious: We all share a love for the hardboiled detective and Marlowe is the easiest to get behind as a reader. He is our moral compass in a tough city; a blueprint for the protagonist of Heroic Fantasy, but in the urban setting.

And only a blueprint; Resnick’s John Justin Mallory is more of a comedic homage to the hardboiled detective; Dresden is closer to Marlowe, but he has since grown; Anita is also a hardboiled protagonist. For all their death and bloodshed, most Urban Fantasies are remarkably chaste when it comes to social issues (especially controversial ones), but not so much when it comes to sex. This is not surprising since there is no bigger buzz kill than talking about how fast our society is going downhill. Yet, I didn’t dismiss this thought right away.

What I wanted was a more "urban" Urban Fantasy. I needed a protagonist to confront the existential crisis of the setting, of the men and women lost in our Hollywood. And I also wanted that sense of doom that accompanied the protagonists of Film Noir. My detective would be doomed from the very beginning and he would fight this nit and grit throughout the story.

But the kind of tale I had in mind did not mesh well with the types of stories found in current Urban Fantasy detective novels. And I didn’t want to surrender the fantasy. I had to reconcile the two visions I had: 1) Have a realistic setting that did not hide or shy away from the nastiness of urban Hollywood and with a true Noir feel; 2) Use Hollywood as the setting to an Urban Fantasy that would incorporate magic and action and other fantastic things.

I decided that a wizard or a human with a supernatural gift or a vampire or vampire hunter just wouldn’t be right for this job. They are too much a part of fantasy-heavy Urban Fantasies.

I played with the idea of magically rejuvenating a detective in a retirement home. The problem with that was that this detective would have lived through the 1950s and 60s and 70s, etc. and would have lost his 1940s edge. My next idea was to have the ghost of a dead detective possess a detective from today. But I don't really like ghost stories. Call that my prejudice.

The simplest idea was the one that came to me last: Why not bring back to life a dead 1940s detective?

This excited me so much that I ran with it. I would have the hardboiled detective from the 1940s wander through a realistic Hollywood setting, which would give my novel a noir edge, while at the same time keeping the fantasy element of most Urban Fantasy detectives

Swagbag containing 1 paperback of Absolution, 1 Keychain, 1 Bookmark, 1 Magnet, 1 Hat, 1 Magnifying glass and 1 Pair of Shades! ( international ) 

( Unfortunately I don't have the Rafflecopter Code for this so just drop by HERE to sign up on the Rafflecopter for the Swag! )

REVIEW - DEADLY FETISHES

"Kelly is a quiet conservative woman who is prone to panic attacks; Marcus is a walking manual on sexual pleasure that just happens to work in a fetish club and takes full advantage of every perk of his job. He is captivating and dangerous and knows exactly what he wants. With a single-minded purpose, he scoops Kelly up from her abnormal, disillusioned life and shows her the pleasure immortality has to offer..."

Author: Kayden McLeod
Pages: 258 pages
Publisher: Eternal Press on February 2010
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Paranormal Erotic Romance (+18 Only)
Series: Cornwall Coven  Novel #1
Amazon: Buy / $6.99 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
All Romance E-books: Buy / $6.95 (E-book)
Excerpt: Hot snippet

"If you could have immortality, would you take it? Running in fear of her life and that of her best friend's, Kelly would definitely say no to such an age-old question. Kelly is a quiet conservative woman who is prone to panic attacks; Marcus is a walking manual on sexual pleasure that just happens to work in a fetish club and takes full advantage of every perk of his job.

He is captivating and dangerous and knows exactly what he wants.

With a single-minded purpose, he scoops Kelly up from her abnormal, disillusioned life and shows her the pleasure immortality has to offer, if one knows where to look for it. His obsession and desire for her body knows no limits and only burns hotter every time he touches her. He is never sated, and she drives him insane with blinding need to hear her scream his name with absolute abandon. Marcus fully intends to show her their new world of vampires, which isn't anything like what Kelly has ever dreamed of. And she isn't sure if she wants any part of it, whether that world includes Marcus or not."

Deadly Fetishes is hot, just like erotic romance is supposed to be! It's the main plot which I have nothing against. ;) Of course there is the sub-plot of Kelly and her friend adapting into the vampire society, which is entertaining too. The combined plots make for a good read, it's just a tad bit short for great, but only little itty bit!

I loved horny Marcus, well he is horny like all the time, he even himself admitted to being a sex addict. ;) His character was the most fun to read, even though the whole novel was from Kelly's point of view - Marcus was sexy as hell, bit scary but never to Kelly which is how a bad boy is best portrait in paranormal romance!

I liked Kelly, I really did but I had one little beef with her. ;) She was super nervous and panicky at the beginning of the book, and that's completely believable - but then undivided attention and one good shag from Marcus and she's talking back and acting confident... that was bit of a stretch. She still had insecurities but her scared persona vanished. I would have liked to have seen her confidence grow bit by bit.

Mcleod writes great, no fault in that, she has the engaging writing style and it keeps a reader clue to the book - the reason why this is just a bit below 4 stars is the two plots mixing, as the erotic part is the main plot I felt like the vampire coven plot was interfering with the erotic plot, lol! Does that make any sense? If there had been bit more balance there this would have easily gotten 4 stars from me.

A really good novel and very much worth reading, my fellow paranormal erotic romance fans! If you like your vampires with horny tendencies go for this one!

Rating :

REVIEW - PUPPY LOVE

"Ollie brings the dating-phobic Theo into contact with Westvale’s hottest bachelor, Dr. Brent Knight. Despite her best friend Lorna’s urging to go after him, Theo hangs back due the eleven year age gap and her past romantic history..."

Author: Morgan K. Wyatt
Pages: 51 pages
Publisher: Secret Cravings Publishing on June 2012
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Amazon: Buy / $8.04 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $4.99 (Nook)
Excerpt: Chapter 1

"Theo decides to give up on love when she catches her sister in bed with her husband. Instead of blaming her sister or her husband, she blames herself, divorces her husband, distances herself from her sister, and shuts her heart to love.

Her son inadvertently pushes her back into the dating game when he drops off his puppy, Ollie, as he heads out to deployment abroad. He fails to inform her that the puppy isn’t even close to being trained or even somewhat obedient.

Ollie brings the dating-phobic Theo into contact with Westvale’s hottest bachelor, Dr. Brent Knight. Despite her best friend Lorna’s urging to go after him, Theo hangs back due the eleven year age gap and her past romantic history, but it doesn’t stop Ollie from barreling ahead.

When her high school rival Jenny shows up, Theo decides to fight for her man with comic and passionate results."

The synopsis pretty much tells it all, the whole novella. Puppy Love wasn't written very engagingly, it jumped all over the place. The character thought of something to do and skipped right into doing it in the middle of a paragraph... ugh. Both main characters aren't deep at all and I got the feeling they are just saying and doing corny stuff and things that one would think is generally sexy.

It is a story that had a decent plot, though unbelievable - but hey romance plots don't always have to be believable - what confused me about the story was how the main character just popped into all different places, situation and dialogues, sure this was a novella, but it felt messy.

So I can't say I liked it. I'll tell you few things that I did like, I liked the nerdiness of the male lead and the possibility of more puppies, though the puppy was forgotten when the doc stepped into the picture.

I've read Secret Cravings' novels before with good results so this kinda blindsided me.

P.S: I wouldn't pay 8$ or the 4.99 for US for this, I think 0.99$ would have been a fair price. First it's too short, and it's not as great as the synopsis. Read the first Chapter HERE.

Rating :

REVIEW - BANSHEE CHARMER & GIVEAWAY

"Half-banshee detective Kiera “Mac” McLoughlin is convinced a serial killer is on the loose. Incubi are extinct, her boss insists. But what else can kill a woman in the throes of pleasure? When her partner is murdered after using witchcraft to locate the killer and Mac is thrown off the case, her frustration turns to desperation."

Author: Tiffany Allee
Pages: 159 pages
Publisher: Entangled Publishing on January 2012
Form: E-book (from tour for an honest review)
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: From the Files of the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency #1
Amazon: Buy / $5.74 (Kindle) ( EU price, click to see yours )
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $2.99 (Nook)
Excerpt: Chapter 1

"When she’s sent to a crime scene and finds her second dead woman in as many weeks, half-banshee detective Kiera “Mac” McLoughlin is convinced a serial killer is on the loose. Incubi are extinct, her boss insists. But what else can kill a woman in the throes of pleasure? When her partner is murdered after using witchcraft to locate the killer and Mac is thrown off the case, her frustration turns to desperation.

Certain the killer is an incubus, Mac works behind her department’s back to chase down slim, sometimes perilous leads. While the killer eludes her, she does discover handsome Aidan Byrne, an investigative counterpart from the enigmatic Otherworlder Enforcement Agency. Mac typically runs her investigations fast and hard, but with Aidan at her side, she’s running this one "hot" as well. But Aidan knows more than he’s letting on - something that could shatter their blazing romance and add Mac to the killer’s growing body count…"

Fast-pace actions mystery of a paranormal romance! Banshee Charmer was a great addition to my paranormal romance novels, it was fast and entertaining - I personally like mysteries and serial killer story lines with a strong romantic element so Banshee Charmer was right up my alley.

I loved the plot, the incubus killing women and Mac and Aiden trying to catch clues to save people and revenge Mac's partner while battling their own growing attraction to each other.

I loved Mac's tough cop attitude, which wan't just acting tough she had to be due to her past, but also her vulnerable side which she was shocked she ever let Aidan see. She had the perfect balance going on for her.  And as this was only from Mac's point of view I have to say I liked Aiden even though I couldn't get inside his head. He was mysterious, bit spooky there for a while but had the good cop written all over him - with sharp edges. ;)

The romance was sorta an supporting character, the mystery and cop work came first. Yes, there was the attraction and some heated looks, but it wasn't taken too far, or as far as I would have liked. The one love scene they did have was hot though, don't get me wrong on that, but I would have loved more for 150 pages. Usually in paranormal romance the sex is more frequent and more to the point - Banshee Charmer was more subtle, good, but subtle.

While the story was great, the lack of romance lowered the number by half star, more bedroom action and it would have been a four star novel for me!

Rating :

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