Huntress of Thornbeck Forest ARC Review

What did I think of...

Huntress of Thornbeck Forest by Melanie Dickerson

 

Description:

 

"Swan Lake" meets Robin Hood when the beautiful daughter of a wealthy merchant by day becomes the region's most notorious poacher by night, and falls in love with the forester.

Jorgen is the forester for the wealthy margrave, and must find and capture the poacher who has been killing and stealing the margrave's game. When he meets the lovely and refined Odette at the festival and shares a connection during a dance, he has no idea she is the one who has been poaching the margrave's game.

Odette justifies her crime of poaching because she thinks the game is going to feed the poor, who are all but starving, both in the city and just outside its walls. But will the discovery of a local poaching ring reveal a terrible secret? Has the meat she thought she was providing for the poor actually been sold on the black market, profiting no one except the ring of black market sellers?

The one person Odette knows can help her could also find out her own secret and turn her over to the margrave, but she has no choice. Jorgen and Odette will band together to stop the dangerous poaching ring . . . and fall in love. But what will the margrave do when he discovers his forester is protecting a notorious poacher?

 

Genre: Hic-fic, Romance, Fairy Tale Retellings, Christian Fiction
Series: Medieval Fairy Tale Romance
Published on: May 12th, 2015
Pages: 320 pages
Format: Digital ebook -Kindle
Source: NetGalley
Average rating: 4.03 stars
My rating: 4 stars

I've read every single one of Melanie Dickerson's works (at least I think so), and even though I don't always agree with the ways of the time period she writes (my feminism was screaming at me the entire book), and I don't like reading Christian Fiction, I've always enjoyed the stories she spins, and her writing never fails to capture one's attention.

Melanie Dickerson retells Fairy Tells in such a realistic and rustic way, that you can't help but be captivated. I never read Christian Fiction, and a Historical Fiction book is a rarity to see on my shelves, but Melanie Dickerson never fails to disappoint on neither her stories, her characters or her writing!

There's a reason Dickerson continues to be one of the most preferred voices in retellings, and her books, well-placed in their time period, each offer a both unique and historically accurate glimpse of a time undiscovered by her intended audience. Challenges woven throughout the piece force deeper thought and introspection through subtle weaving rather than italicized prayers. Dickerson has found a strong audience with her young adults, but are equally gobbled up by adults.

The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest was a somewhat more mature read that allows itself to unwind slowly, and ponderously, focusing on different, yet equitable strengths of a remarkable young woman, consumed by the need to help the poor, and a very loyal and honorable male lead that I just gobbled up!

Medieval romance with cross-dressing heroines is Kat catnip, as a tale that praises the virtues of women outside of their traditional roles at the time. Dickerson plays to her greatest strengths in this novel, and results in a well-realized tapestry of a world so extraordinarily different from our own, yet contemporary in its questions of faith, identity and finding God outside human expectation.

This read, while well outside my usual preference, had me absolutely captivated from the beginning.

XOXO,
Kat

 

 



Sweet the Sin ARC review

What did I think of...

Sweet the Sin by Claire Kent

 

Description:

 

In the first novel in USA Today bestselling author Claire Kent’s deeply sensual story
of love, lust, and deception, a woman searching for the truth discovers that
she’s sleeping with the enemy.

 

Portrait artist Kelly Watson keeps her relationships simple and steamy, with no strings attached. She’s had a hard time trusting other people since she was a child, when her father was murdered for trying to blow the whistle on corporate corruption. Nearly twenty years later, Kelly finds herself in the arms of a seductive stranger—the very same man who may have ordered her father’s death. And even as she plays him, using hot sex as a means to revenge, Kelly is tormented by one question: Is she committing the ultimate betrayal?

Caleb Marshall has spent decades forging a high-powered career, rejecting intimacy for the convenience of fast women and cheap thrills. But Kelly intrigues him, pushing commitment buttons he didn’t know he had. Still, something is wrong. Despite their physical and emotional chemistry, Caleb feels the fear inside of her. Now the only way to keep her safe is coming clean, before secrets and lies destroy their connection—no matter how deep, intense, and addictive it may be.Sweet the Sin is intended for mature audiences. Includes a special message from the editor, as well as an excerpt from another Loveswept title.  

 

 

 

Genre: Mystery/ Romance/ Contemporary
Series: Revenge Saga
Published on: July 7th, 2015
Pages: 184 pages
Format: Digital Copy (PDF) -Kindle
Source: NetGalley
HEA: No

Cliffhanger: Yes

Average rating: 3.62 stars
My rating: 4 stars

 

Sweet the Sin was amazing! I'm going to be honest, and say I didn't expect to like it nearly as much as I did, maybe three stars-ish was the expectation, but I found myself captivated from the beginning, with the intriguing plot and characters.



 

The plot had me absolutely captivated... and I was intrigued from the first word, "Kelly"...

Nope. That did not have the dramatic effect I had hoped.

 

The characters in this story very real. They were conflicted, confused, angry and completely flawed. At times, I have to admit, they were not even that likable. That being said, this book had an impact on me, nonetheless.

 

I'm unsure I can really even tell you why this book was so impactful with me, why all these characters resonated with me, and why it took me two freaking weeks to write this review.

 

Claire Kent did a beautiful job writing this book, and I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel!

XOXO,

Kat

 

 



 

Lion Heart ARC Review

What did I think of...

Lady Thief by A.C. Gaughen

Description:

The eagerly-awaited conclusion to the Scarlet trilogy delivers another action-packed
and romance-filled adventure.

 

Scarlet has captured the hearts of readers as well as the heart of Robin Hood, and after ceaseless obstacles and countless threats, readers will finally find out the fate of the Lady Thief.

Imprisoned by Prince John for months, Scarlet finds herself a long way from Nottinghamshire. After a daring escape from the Prince's clutches, she learns that King Richard’s life is in jeopardy, and Eleanor of Aquitaine demands a service Scarlet can’t refuse: spy for her and help bring Richard home safe. But fate—and her heart—won’t allow her to stay away from Nottinghamshire for long, and together, Scarlet and Rob must stop Prince John from going through with his dark plans for England. They can not rest until he’s stopped, but will their love be enough to save them once and for all?

 

 



Genre: Historical Romance/ Adventure/ Fairy Tale retelling/ YA
Series: Scarlet
Published on: May 19th, 2015
Pages: 348 pages
Format: Digital Copy- Kindle
Source: NetGalley
Average rating: 4.28 stars
My rating: 2 stars

I first read Scarlet about 6 months to a year ago, and immediately fell in love. But, when I started Lady Thief, I was disappointed, and DNF at 70%. It wasn't bad, it just... stalled for me. Then a better book came along, and I switched. It wasn't so much of a "I'm not reading this anymore" as a, "I'll pick it back up later". When I saw Lion Heart was on NetGalley, I was thrilled! Because I was still in love with the heart of the story, the one in Scarlet, and hoped that Lion Heart would have gained some of that spark... but it didn't, and today, I officially marked this, too, a DNF, albeit reluctantly.
Don't mistake me for saying the book wasn't bad, because it wasn't. The story just, couldn't capture my attention, and couldn't hold me down to the pages like so many others- and the first book- have done.

I was SUPER disappointed when, at the beginning, Scarlet turned into a lady. I don't mean that she was treated as such because her secret was out, I mean this as her thoughts and her actions were all defeated and broken, and as such she was treated like such, let others defend her. There's a difference between being weak from imprisonment, and being broken and dispirited.
This ruined the book for me, and I couldn't get past it.

Some of you might get past it, recognize it as the landmark on the journey that it was, but that person was not me.

XOXO,
Kat

Outside the Ropes ARC Review

What did I think...

Outside the Ropes by Ashley Claudy

 

Description:

 

In the ring, Regan has control. Outside the ropes, she fights to survive.

Regan Sommers spent her life fighting. Fighting foster parents, kids in the group home, and classmates. But the night she has to fight for her life changes everything.

Now, she's fighting for money in the ring, and from the first punch she's addicted. Every addiction has a price though, and this one is the gym's star boxer, Gage Lawson. He may come in an enticing tattooed package, but his demands are more than she can handle.

The responding officer from that night, Anthony Fields, comes with no demands. He wants whatever she's willing to give, and Regan can handle that. She can definitely handle him.

But no help comes string free, and Regan's not the only one with a hard past and scars to cover. The life she was trying to escape is nothing compared to the danger she's in the middle of now, and she can't fight her way out.

***Reader please be aware: Story contains mature content such as: Drugs, sex, abuse, and explicit language that may be upsetting for some.****  

 



Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Outside the Ropes
Published on: January 1st, 2015
Pages: 438 pages
Format: ebook, Digital PDF
Source: NetGalley
Average rating: 4.13
My rating: 1.5 stars

This is going to be a short one...

I'm going to start by saying that I did not enjoy Outside the Ropes in the least, and after two weeks of forcing myself to pick it up, only to set in back down in favor of actually doing work (I know, it says a lot, doesn't it?), I will officially mark it as a DNF.

The description sounded very interesting, but even after I clicked the "Request" button of NetGalley's, I started second guessing myself.

The main reason I didn't like the book: The writing.

The writing in a story is everything. I've read books where the plot wasn't very good, but the writing was amazing, and I still thoroughly enjoyed the book because the writing was making me laugh my ass off  *cough* Charley Davidson *cough*.

The writing in this was just very... flimsy and non-genuine. Instead of being immersed into the story, I felt like I was staring at a drawing of a rectangle and being told it was a cube.

 

The Characters are a different story. I've never read anything from this author before, so I have nothing to compare it to, and I don't know if she procrastinated until two days before the deadline to write the parts of these books, but I felt the authors desperation for the writing and the characters big time.

 

The characters seemed very superficial, in the way of personality, and the "passion" (or lack thereof) between Gage and Regan just seemed very surface an overdramatized, not to mention how tired reading about them made me. Gage, as both a character and a lover, was very disappointing. Miss Claudy tried very hard to make him this solid, unmovable force of closed-offness, to make him seem like the biggest jackass ever and made him the "cute off from the world by his own making" kind of guy. Yes, you know the type; very cliché. Sometimes this works, and sometimes it doesn't. This didn't. Unfortunately, her efforts were very obvious in the writing and instead of trying to develop her characters as people, she wrote them as puppets. Gage just sounded and looked so ridiculous in reading and mind, that I'm almost embarrassed to admit that anytime he opened is mouth, my eyes were rolling- rotten teenager style. I have to admit, when I started this book, I was worried about Regan. The really strong, fighter chicks are often over-written and very unenjoyable... which is exactly what happened. She tried so hard to make Regan this strong, surviving person that she came across to me (on the "inside) as impetuous, needy and fake, which was very much unenjoyable.

 

I also like to be able to differentiate between my characters... but Regan and Gage were so similar... that I could never picture them together, doing anything but maybe having sex... even when scenes were written where they were doing other things, which is never good.

 

Bottom line, I didn't even pay much attention to the content here because the writing makes of break a book... and I'm afraid this book is pretty broken.

 

XOXO,

Kat

Mystery Man Review

What did I think of....

Mystery Man by Kristen Ashley?

 

Description:

Night time is the right time...

Gwendolyn Kidd has met the man of her dreams. He's hot, he's sexy, and what started as a no-names-exchanged night of passion has blossomed into a year and a half-long pleasure fest. Sure, it's a little strange that he only appears in her bed at night, but Gwen is so sure he's the one, she just can't turn him away...

Hawk Delgado knows more about Gwen than she could ever imagine. She's gorgeous, headstrong, and skittish about relationships. But Hawk is facing his own demons, demons that keep him from connecting with anyone. Yet when Gwen is drawn into Denver's lethal underground scene, Hawk's protective nature comes out full force. The problem is, when Gwen gets a dose of Hawk's Alpha attitude in the daylight, she's not so sure he's the one anymore....

Genre's: Romance, Contemporary, Adult, Erotica, Dirty Romance, Chick-Lit, Romantic Suspense, Women's Fiction.

I absolutely adore Kristen Ashley, and this book only proves it.

Gwendolyn Kidd has had a visitor about once a week for a year and a half. She doesn't know his name. All she knows is he gives out-of-this-world orgasms, can easily get in her house without a key, and that the last part is partly because he can probably walk through walls. Oh, and she's sure that he is the one.
However, when her sister, Ginger, gets in trouble, Gwen turns into a target. Drive-by's, Fires, kidnappings and some serious amounts of cookie dough become the result. Oh, that, and when Gwen tries to tell her visitor that their "fling" is over, she learns his name, and finds that he is, in fact, not a vampire and her Great MM (Mystery Man) can be in sunlight.
Hawk Delgado knew that a relationship for him was impossible and gives Gwen everything he can. But when she's in danger, he steps up to the task of knight in cargo's, and learns more about his woman, and he can't stop himself from pursuing her.

The writing is superb, as usual, and makes you just sink into the story like you would a comfortable couch. The story is action-packed, hilarious, romantic and HOT.

Gwendolyn was a hoot to read, and I thoroughly enjoyed her.
But I think it's safe to say I enjoyed Hawk more. Vicariously, of course.

Gwen's friends, Cam and Tracey and Elvira, were great, and made me laugh so hard! Especially Elvira, Hawk PA. Cam's husband, Leo, was even better than Cam and Tracey, though. He was sweet, but so clueless! Love him!

My first pet peeve is Insta-love. Unless done really well, I call BS by the truckloads.
My second is love triangles. Again, unless done really well, I say neither.

Mystery Man had a love square. We had Hawk (obviously), we had Tack (President of the Chaos MC), and we had Mitch Lawson (Detective with Gwendolyn's case). They will have their own books later, but damn. My girl, Gwendolyn, was surrounded by HOT-ness!

I've always admired KA's love triangles/squares, because they are all done really well and with class. There is no hemming and hawing, dithering and eenie-meenie-minie-mowing. The women always know who they want. The others are just really hot eye candy.

I know, if you read it, you will love Mystery Man of the Dream Man series. Highly recommended.

XOXO,
Kat

Recent New Find

New Gem?

Attraction (Elements of Chemistry #1) by Penny Reid

 

 

 

This whole series recently came to my attention... and all I could find were five star ratings, wow! Must be a real winner to have a 4.49 average star rating!

 

Description:

One week.
Private beach.
Invisible girl.
Jerk-faced bully.
What’s the worst that could happen?
Kaitlyn Parker has no problem being the invisible girl, which is why she finds herself hiding in various cabinets and closets all over her college campus. Despite her best efforts, she can’t escape the notice of Martin Sandeke—bad boy, jerkface bully, and the universe’s hottest, wealthiest, and most unobtainable bachelor—who also happens to be Kaitlyn’s chemistry lab partner.
Kaitlyn might be the only girl who isn’t interested in exploiting his stunning rower’s build, chiseled features, and family's billionaire fortune. Kaitlyn wants Martin for his brain, specifically to tabulate findings of trace elements in surface water.
When Kaitlyn saves Martin from a nefarious plot, Martin uses the opportunity to push Kaitlyn out of her comfort zone: spring break, one week, house parties, bathing suits, and suntan lotion. Can she overcome her aversion to being noticed? Will he be able grow beyond his self-centered nature? Or, despite their obvious chemistry, will Martin be the one to drive Kaitlyn into the science cabinet of obscurity for good?

 

This sounds really good guys... has anyone read it that can give me their opinion? Or other books by this same author that they either really enjoyed or really hated?

 

Genre's: New Adult, Romance, Academic/College, Contemporary, Humor/Funny, Short Stories, Women's Fiction/Chick Lit

 

 

XOXO,

Kat