Month: May 2012

What’s On My (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand? AKA The Sunday Post 5-20-12

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

It’s Sunday, do you know where your books are?

Mine are back home, after a trip to Cincinnati to see my mom for Mother’s Day. It was a great trip (I also got to see some of my cousins), but it’s good to be back home with my husband and my cats. Also where my big computer and double-monitor set-up is. I work better in my own space.

The combination of My Mostly Virtual Nightstand and The Sunday Post (see Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer for complete details) is a chance to recap, showcase upcoming important events, and talk about the books I have on my nightstand or iPad for the week after this.

Moving right along…

If you are interested in a chance to win a copy of either a fun contemporary romance or a hot romantic suspense story, take a look back at my reviews of Bad Girl Lessons (the contemporary) and Satisfying the Curse (the suspense). The giveaways for both titles (Lessons giveaway) and (Curse giveaway) still have a few days to go.

Coming up this week…LOTS!

On Monday in addition to Ebook Review Central (this week’s feature is Dreamspinner Press’ April titles) I’m participating in a Cover Reveal for Kinley Baker‘s new fantasy romance, Denied. (There’s a tour-wide Amazon GC giveaway)

Also on Monday, I’m also participating in the Diamond Jubilee Blog Hop being organized by Romance at Random to celebrate the upcoming release of Ruthie Knox‘ new book About Last Night. Ruthie Knox will be at Reading Reality on June 8.  Lots of book prizes tour-wide on this blog hop.

Tuesday, May 22, I’ll have the Cover Reveal for Succubus Lost, the sequel to Tiffany Allee‘s urban fantasy/paranormal romance Banshee Charmer. I really liked Banshee Charmer, so I’m looking forward to Succubus Lost quite a bit. I’m interviewing Tiffany on May 31 and I’ll be reviewing the new book in June.

Not to be done with Tuesday, I’ll be interviewing Lauren Clark, the author of Dancing Naked in Dixie, and reviewing her book as part of the Bewitching Book Tours release celebration, which does include a tour-wide Gift Card giveaway.

Wednesday, May 23, Reading Reality will have a guest post from Lilly Cain, the author of the science fiction romance Confederacy Treaty series, and I’ll be reviewing the first book of the series, Alien Revealed also as part of a tour for Bewitching Books.

Thursday I’ll be reviewing Seized, the first book in Lynne Cantwell’s Pipe Woman Chronicles, as part of a Goddess Fish Virtual Book Tour.

Looking forward to the following week, Monday, May 25 is Memorial Day in the U.S. The official start of summer. Living in Atlanta, unofficially, it’s already summer!

I only have a few books that have publication dates next week, or that I have on tour. The holiday may have something to do with that!

The book tour scheduled for next week is Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire by K. Reed. It’s both post-apocalyptic and a Regency romance. I’m really curious to see how that combination works out.

I have four books I picked up from NetGalley. NetGalley is like book shopping, except that I pay with my time to write the reviews instead of my money.

The Bewitching Tale of Stormy Gale by Christine Bell is the sequel to The Twisted Tale of Stormy Gale. Earlier this year, Carina Press gave away some of their early titles to subscribers to their newsletter, and I “bought” Twisted Tales then. But I need to read it to review the sequel. Lucky for me, they are both relatively short.

Black Stiletto: Black & White by Raymond Benson, is also a sequel, this time to The Black Stiletto. But I picked this from NetGalley specifically because I read the first book and was absolutely fascinated. The Black Stiletto is the story of a woman in the 1950s and 60s who becomes a masked vigilante, rather like Batman. Except that in this story, her secret identity isn’t revealed until her son discovers her diaries over 50 years later.

A Gentleman Undone is by Cecilia Grant, the same author who wrote A Lady Awakened. Lady Awakened was a debut romance that no one was neutral about. Readers either loved it or detested it. I quite liked it, enough that I want to see if she can do it again.

Because everyone has raved about Larissa Ione’s Lords of Deliverance series, I grabbed Lethal Rider. But I need to read the first three books first. And before Rogue Rider comes out in November.

I also have something from Edelweiss. I take fewer books from Edelweiss, because they timebomb on my iPad much quicker. But every once in a while there’s something I absolutely can’t resist.

Steampunk is one of my weaknesses. So, when Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris’ Janus Affair  popped up on Edelweiss, I was so there. This is the second book in the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences, and I have the first book, Phoenix Rising, and I’ve been meaning to read it. Getting Janus Affair from Edelweiss should get me to do it.

My other big weakness is science fiction romance. So I have Luminous by Corrina Lawson, the second book in her Phoenix Institute series. And I have the first book Phoenix Rising, somewhere in my iPad, just waiting for me.

And I just did a double-take. Yes, the first book in both the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences and Phoenix Institute Series have the same title; Phoenix Rising. I triple-checked to be sure. Weird coincidence.

As they say, that’s all the news that’s fit to print for the next couple of weeks. I’m going to be busy, busy, busy. I foresee LOTS of caffeine in my future! (My drink of choice is Diet Coke with Lime)

I’d love to know what you’re looking forward to this week!

 

Stacking the Shelves #3

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Stacking the Shelves

This is Stacking the Shelves, my chance to scream OMG!

That’s not supposed to be the actual purpose of the meme. It’s supposed to be an opportunity to show the books we bought, borrowed, received or that somehow arrived on our doorsteps, whether they may or may not get reviewed (hosted by Tynga’s Reviews). This way, everything gets its chance in the spotlight.

But I spent last week at my mom’s. So I did a LOT of late night, insomniac reading. And browsing the shelves of Amazon from my iPad. And browsing NetGalley from my iPad. At 2 am, everything looks good.

The joy of an iPad, or any other ereader, is that I used to read an entire suitcase of books on one of these trips, and require an emergency run to the local Barnes and Noble mid-trip.  My mom has never understood.

Middle of the night shopping from the comfort of my bed is much, much easier. And requires no explanation. The results, however, are almost overwhelming. Obviously I was trying to escape into books!

Looks like I’ll be escaping into this batch for the next several months!

Bought from Amazon
Improper Relations by Juliana Ross
On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves
Freeman by Leonard Pitts Jr.
Phantom Universe by Laura Kreitzer
The Royal Scam by Gina Koch

From NetGalley
Lethal Rider by Larissa Ione
Supercritical by Shawn Kupfer
Undercover Alliance by Lily Cain
Forever a Lady by Delilah Marvelle
Dragon Justice by Laura Anne Gilman
Deadly Secrets, Loving Lies by Cynthia Cooke
Asher’s Invention by Coleen Kwan
Chasing Magic by Stacia Kane
The Sweetest Dark by Shana Abe
Thief of Shadows by Elizabeth Hoyt
Kilts & Kraken by Cindy Spencer Pape
Negotiating Point by Adrienne Giordano
Slow Summer Kisses by Shannon Stacey
Dead Calm by Shirley Wells
Dance of Flames by Janni Nell
No Money Down by Julie Moffett
Pyro Canyon by Robert Appleton

From the Author
Paradigm Shift by Misa Buckley

For Book Lovers Inc.
I Own the Dawn by M. L. Buchman

From Sizzling PR
Forgotten Memories by Theresa Stillwagon

I know that I was a bad girl this week. But how were you? What did you stack your shelves with this week?

On My Wishlist #10

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | On My Wishlist

On My Wishlist is a way for us book bloggers to showcase books that we haven’t read, bought, or borrowed. Or at least, we haven’t, yet. But that we really, really want to.

They might be books that we’ve just found out about, or, as in the case of the two on my list for this week, they might be new books that haven’t come out yet.

The “On My Wishlist” meme was started by Book Chick City, but a little bit ago they passed the baton to Cosy Books.

L. E. Modesitt Jr. is famous (or infamous) for his long fantasy series, The Saga of Recluce. And as much as I love fantasy, and as much as a very good friend has recommended it to me, I’ve never read it. By the time I received that recommendation, I think the series was probably on book 10-plus, and I just wasn’t in the mood. I have The Magic of Recluce, (book 1) and I swear I’m going to read it. Someday.

But the recommendation stuck. So when Modesitt started a new series not long ago, I was more than willing to start it with him. That was Imager. And I’m so glad I did. Imager is not a typical high-fantasy coming-of-age magic series. Oh, it’s a magic series. But the hero doesn’t come-of-age when he learns his magic. He’s an adult. He thinks he’s going to be doing something else with his life entirely.

Then it turns out he’s a magic-user. In the case of the Imager Portfolio, an Imager. And an adult learning magic in a system meant to teach children makes for a very different perspective on the system and the story.

To make a long story not so short. The first three books in the Imager Portfolio, Imager, Imager’s Challenge and Imager’s Intrigue, were all marvelous. And yes, the author absolutely committed trilogy.

Scholar starts a new story, or I think it does. It’s in my TBR pile. Princeps, the book after Scholar, comes out this Tuesday. I want it. It’s on my wishlist.

The other book on my wishlist this week is also a new story in a continuing series. Diana Gabaldon is releasing the latest story in her Lord John Grey series on May 21. At least The Custom of the Army is only a novella, so it’s short! Lord John Grey was a character in Ms. Gabaldon’s Outlander series who took on a life and series of his own. In Outlander he sometimes seems to be a villain, but as we examine the world through his eyes, he is much more sympathetic, and of course, not a villain at all.

Lord John provides the perspective of an upper-class British officer on the political conflicts and military campaigns that Jamie (and later Claire) must face and survive. In addition to the ties to the Outlander series, the Lord John books are always terrific historical mystery/thrillers.

And just as with the Modesitt book, the most recent book in the Lord John series, The Scottish Prisoner, is also on my TBR pile.

I fall in love with many too many books!

What about you? What’s on your wishlist this week?

 

Dark Magic

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | A Reviews> book reviews

Dark Magic by James Swain is one of those books that grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. Take one part Batman, one part A Discovery of Witches, one part Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and one part The Prestige, mix well, and what you have is one hell of a story. I almost forgot, add in a touch of either the X-Files or Men in Black, just for flavor.

Peter Warlock is the leader of the Friday Night Psychics. Who are the Friday Night Psychics? Just what they sound like, a group of psychics who get together every Friday night. Except that these aren’t charlatans, these are the real deal. Peter and his friends all have power, real power, of one kind or another.

They get together every Friday night to connect with the spirit world, to find out if there is anything bad going to happen. Well, anything big and bad. They live in New York City, after all. Something small and bad is always happening. The Friday Night Psychics are trying to prevent major catastrophes.

So when Peter foresees some kind of epic catastrophe radiating out from Times Square only four days in the future, they all start working on how to alert the police. They’ve always sent in anonymous tips before, but this is too big and too imminent for an anonymous phone call.

And they all know what will happen if they reveal themselves. They’ve already lost a friend that way. They’re not afraid that no one will believe them. The government will believe them. The CIA took their friend Nemo somewhere they could pump him for predictions–indefinitely.

But before they can figure out a way to alert the police, the evil forces send an assassin after Peter. Live, on stage, in the middle of his magic act.

Peter Warlock covers his real psychic powers by making his living as a stage magician. He pretends to read minds by really reading minds. He’s hidden his talents in plain sight his entire life.

The attack alerts the police and the FBI. It also blows the covers off Peter’s tortured past. The FBI agent who comes to interview Peter in the wake of the attack is the same agent who interviewed him when he was a child, after his parents were thrown into a car in front of his eyes and driven to their deaths.

Peter’s attacker and his parent’s murderers are members of the same society of dark magic mercenaries, the Order of Astrum. And now the Order is after Peter and his friends.

The police were already hunting for Peter’s would-be assassin. Every city that Jeremy Wolfe has visited has suffered from a series of murders of well-respected psychics, followed by an act of terrorism. Peter knows that his friends and his city are next. What he does not understand is how the deaths of his parents might be linked to this Order of Astrum.

The discovery of his parents’ true history threatens his identity, and his life. Peter finds that his friends have been keeping terrible secrets, secrets that he must unravel in order to find the truth about himself and his destiny. But once he learns all, he then must answer the eternal questions about the nature of good and evil. Will his ends justify his means? And will he always be able to choose good when there is evil in his soul?

Escape Rating A: Dark Magic is the kind of story for which the term “dark fantasy” was invented. Peter Warlock is such an intense character. He does remind me a lot of Batman, I mean Bruce Wayne. He watched his parents die, and he grows up tortured by their deaths. He creates this image of them as being so good, only to discover that they weren’t the people he thought they were.

The suspense factor was also very well done. There’s the part of trying to get one step ahead of the assassin, as he targets the psychics and then there’s the second part, just trying to find out what the heck the real target is.  Very techno-thrillerish and very cool.

If there turn out to be more books in this universe I will be a very happy reader.

 

 

 

Guest Post: Character Interview with Jackson Cope from Bad Girl Lessons plus Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Character Interview> ebook giveaway> Giveaways> Guest Posts

For Reading Reality’s first ever character interview, let’s all welcome Seraphina Donavan and the hero of her delicious (if you don’t believe me, read the review here) story Bad Girl Lessons, Jackson Cope, to the “pages” of Reading Reality.

Seraphina: Jackson, thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to talk with us today. 

Jackson: (With a cheeky grin) Well, Evie does tend to keep me occupied, not that I’m complaining.

Seraphina: You and Evie Harper might be perceived as an odd couple.  What do you say to people who think that you’re corrupting the innocent? 

Jackson: (Shrugging) They’re not wrong.  But as this particular innocent is well over the age of consent and doesn’t seem to mind one bit, I tell them to mind their own damned business.

Seraphina: You’ve got quite a history around town as a ladies man.  Any qualms about settling down with just one woman?

Jackson: Not one woman.  The woman.  The only one that matters.

Seraphina: Oh, you’re good. 

Jackson: (He laughs in response) Or good at it.  Depends on who you’re talking to, I guess.  Seriously, Evie is it for me.  Always has been and always will be.  So, doesn’t matter what people think or what people say.  The only thing that matters to me at the end of the day is that she’s happy and we’re together.

Seraphina: (At this point I had to stop and fan myself a little.  He’s just so hot and he says the SWEETEST things).  You and Evie had something of an unusual courtship.  I believe there were lessons on being bad?  How did that come about?


Jackson: Evie wanted to know what it felt like to walk on the wild side.  And I sure as hell wasn’t going to let anyone else teach her.  Turns out my sweet, little Evie was a vixen all along.

Seraphina: So tell me about a perfect day in the life of Jackson Cope…

Jackson: (With a wide grin) Well, I’d wake up with my girl, and being a gentleman, I’m not going to tell you what would happen next.  Suffice to say, it might be a while before I actually roll out of bed.  Me and my buddy Reed would go fishing, which is really just an excuse to tell lies and drink beer.  Then we’d pack up and head home.  I’d get cleaned up, since Evie doesn’t care too much for the smell of the creek bed these days, then we’d go out to dinner and I’d end my day just like I started it… in bed with my girl.  Life doesn’t get much better than that.  Unless, of course, it’s football season.

Seraphina: Thanks for talking with me today, Jackson.  And before you go, can I just say that Evie Harper is one lucky woman because you are gorgeous from head to toe. 

Jackson doesn’t say goodbye as he leaves.  He just tosses me a wink and another cheeky grin as he heads out the door.  What is it about those Southern boys?  My, oh my!

All I can say is that Seraphina was very lucky to conduct that interview! But if you want to see what all the fuss and fanning was about, your opportunity is right here. As part of the BTS Virtual Book Tour, Seraphina will be giving away a copy of Bad Girl Lessons to one lucky winner. So one lucky reader will be able to find out for themselves. (If you’re not the lucky winner, just buy the book. This was a terrifically fun read!)


a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Bad Girl Lessons

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews

Where does a good girl go, when she wants lessons in taking a walk on the wild side? She goes looking for a bad boy to give her Bad Girl Lessons.

It’s not just an idea, it’s the title of a fun, sexy romp by Seraphina Donovan.

Evangeline Harper has already picked out the bad boy she wants to be her teacher. It’s the bad boy she’s always wanted, Jackson Cope.

Jackson is the local heartthrob. Local football hero, and grown-up bad boy. Jackson’s always been her Evie’s friend, and nothing more. She might have always wanted more, but he’s always had prettier, skinnier girls available.

This time, Evie’s waiting on the dock outside his bar with an offer she’s hoping Jackson won’t refuse. She wants him to teach her to be a bad girl. And she doesn’t care what anyone thinks. She already knows she isn’t skinny enough for her mother, and she obviously wasn’t pretty enough for her fiancee.

He just left her at the altar while he ran off with her cousin. Evie is sitting on Jackson Cope’s dock in her wedding dress.

And Jackson Cope thinks that curvy, voluptuous Evie is the sexiest thing he’s ever seen. He always has. Always.

And the man who jilted her was his cousin Trevor. Whom Jackson hates with a passion. And it’s mutual.

Out there on that dock Jackson gives Evie a tiny taste of the pleasure she’s been missing. And then he lets her go to think about whether she really wants what she’s asked him for. Think about it with a clear head. Because he knows that once he finally gets the girl he’s wanted since he was fourteen, he’s never going to be able to let her go.

And he’s going to make sure she enjoys being a bad girl so much, that she forgets what it was like to ever be good.

There’s only a few problems with Jackson’s plan. After his cousin’s behavior, Evie can’t believe that any man would want her for keeps, let alone the town heartbreaker. She thinks Jackson is all about the fun.

And Trevor comes back for Evie, and not in a good way.

Escape Rating B+: This is one of those stories where you think you’re going to read just a little, and can’t stop until you’re done. If you’re looking for a story to sweep you away for an hour, this is a good one.

Evie is sweet and wounded, and the scene with her on the dock in her wedding dress is absolutely priceless. She’s hurt and angry and she wants to lash out and Jackson is her best friend and her deepest crush. She has absolutely nothing to lose at that point, so why not go for the one man she’s always secretly wanted? I really enjoyed watching Evie come into her own.

And Jackson? Every not-perfect princess wants to find a bad boy like Jackson who loves her just as she is. It was terrific to have a hero love a woman who was not a size 2 for a change.

Let’s just say that there is a romantic suspense element added when Trevor re-appears. And that Trevor gets everything that’s coming to him.

 

Guest Review: Railsea

Posted on by Galen Charlton | Author : | A Reviews> book reviews

In Railsea by China Miéville, the orphan Sham ap Soorap lives in a tangle, travelling the railsea as doctor’s assistant on the moler Medes.  It’s not a job he’s particularly good at, and it doesn’t help he’s not quite sure what he wants to do with himself.

The railsea on which the train Medes travels is a dangerous place — step off the rails, which cover the dry, soft earth-ocean in a Borgesian labyrinth, and you’ll find that the monsters of the deep are rather too close to the surface either for comfort or surviving the next five minutes.  However, it has its rewards for those who travel the rails, switching their way from line to line in pursuit of salvage, moldywarpes, or philosophies.  You might even find your place in life — or so Sham hopes.

Of course, sometimes you also find something completely unexpected.  One day Sham ends up on a crew sent out by the captain to investigate a wrecked train, and comes across some pictures.  In short order, Sham finds himself in the middle of a pursuit by pirates, naval trains, and subterrains for what lies behind those pictures — a truth that will change the world.

Escape Rating A: As with the rest of Miéville’s oeuvre, Railsea works on many levels.  It’s a rollicking adventure tale worthy of Robert Louis Stevenson, a coming-of-age story, and a treat for those who like wordplay.  For example, at one point the Medes finds itself trapped between a siller and the Kribbis Hole (read it aloud to fully appreciate).  I’m at best a reluctant user of audiobooks — I tend to listen to them only if I’m faced with a very long drive in areas of the country with spotty NPR coverage — but after reading Railsea, I think I’ll be making an exception and also getting the audiobook.

The book is like the railsea itself, a dense knot of intersecting story lines, changes in points of view, and allusions.  The entangling lines of the physical setting matches the complexity of the human setting with its array of diverse island city-states, pirates, salvors, and nomadic Bajjer traveling the lonely sea, to say nothing of the detritus of history and alien influence that litters the world and hints at many untold tales.  The book makes it clear that its pages only scratch the surface of a fascinating milieu.

From this knot emerges a meditation on constraint and searching for freedom.  The railsea cannot be escaped, seemingly — as I mentioned, stray off the narrow (though not very straight) tracks and you’ll quickly find yourself devoured by the denizens of the soft earth.  The high sky is the domain of alien beings too strange and obscure to contemplate.  Travel in one direction, and you’ll eventually find the rails looping back on themselves.  Pursue your obsession, as Ahab did with Moby-Dick, and you’ll find yourself in the midst of dozens of captains, each with their own “philosophy” that few of them manage to hunt down.

There’s a lot to be said for staying in the thicket — there are lots of interesting things to find there, as any reader of Miéville has come to expect.  Once you reach the end, however, you’ll find a rather satisfying breath of fresh air.

Q&A with Kelly Gendron, Author of Satisfying the Curse plus Giveaway

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Author Q&A> blog tours> ebook giveaway

Today’s treat for the followers of Reading Reality is an interview with Kelly Gendron, the author of the sinfully delicious treat Satisfying the Curse (review). I had the opportunity to grill Ms. Gendron about her predilection for stories about bad boy heroes, among other topics, and here’s what she had to say:

So tell us a little about Kelly Gendron…

I’ve been a mom for seventeen years. My day job? I’m a nurse. I represent a group of nursing facilities in the WNY area. I perform medical evaluations on the patients prior to their admission. I’m goal oriented and I’ve been told I’m a control-freak. I think I’m a fair and considerate person. Very rarely, am I ever called a B 🙁 tch, at least to my :). Here’s something else, I can tell you about Kelly Gendron, she’s no longer shy.

All of your books are about bad boys. Where does that inspiration come from?

If you’ve been to my website then you’ve seen my motto— “Bad boys…Give ’em a little time and experience and they will evolve into misbehaving men…”

When I was younger, my whimsical heart chased after those bad boys until I realized they were just that, boys. In my stories, I take those little heartbreakers and write them as all grown up men. Really, who doesn’t want a Bad Boy? Me? I just prefer to let them bake for a while. Those Casanovas in the making will rise to irresistible, capable, and dominant men. When cooked at the right temperature they’ll still taste disobedient but with the right amount of heat, they’ll become succulent and tantalizing!

At the beginning of Satisfying the Curse your heroine is certain she’s cursed and your hero believes he’s tainted. That’s a heck of a lot of baggage for one couple to overcome. Why so dark?

It’s an addiction of mine… Make it dark, devastating, and heartbreaking! Make it hot, sexy, and breathtaking! I want to reach inside my readers and touch as much of them as I can—good and bad. If my stories consisted of just roses and kisses, I’d only be getting half the job done, right?

So, what’s your favorite scene from the Satisfying the Curse? and why?

My stories are literally created from the beginning. I don’t write a synopsis or an outline. I figure out how I want the story to start, I sit down and I write. With that being said, it is the very beginning when Juliana kidnaps the one man, she believes, who can take care of her curse. The scene reveals Juliana’s innocence but it also shows her valor and determination.

After reading the story, I’m really curious, do you believe in nurture over nature, or the other way around?

I believe in nurture but whether we choose to accept it or not I think our nature has a great deal of influence on our psyche. A child of an alcoholic may never take a drink. In Satisfying The Curse, Agent T. Ryker’s father is a rapist. Does that make Ryker one? No. But Ryker still fears the nature of the beast.

Who first introduced you to the love of reading?

I’d like to say it was my 5th grade teacher but the only thing I did in school was daydream. My mother is an avid reader. Her books were always lying around. One afternoon, home alone and bored, I picked one up— Johanna Lindsey. It was all over from there. I read for pleasure, to escape reality, and I only read romances.

Who or what most influenced your decision to become a writer?

I’ve always enjoyed writing but never took it seriously, until I was in my early thirties and back in college. I had to take an English course. One of the assignments was to write a short story and read it to the class. Mine was about a man proposing to his lover. It really was a simple story but I was instantly attracted to it— the writing. Once more, it was all over from there…

And are you a plotter or a pantser? Do you plot everything out in advance, or do you just let the story flow?

When it comes to this question, I’m kind of a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. My life and all that happens in it derives from the plotter in me. When I write, I’m a Pantser.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story?

Oh, yes. I depend on it!

What book do you recommend everyone should read, and why?

Well, you know it’s going to be a romance because that’s all I read. Hmm… that’s a tough one! I’d have to say anything from J.R. Ward including Jessica Bird. She’s a writer that can reach inside and stir the good and bad in me.

So, what kind of bad boy story do you have coming up next?

It’s another dark one— my addiction at its best— featuring the all grown up bad boy, Tex McCoy. It is called Fatal Promise— here’s a one-liner— Rainey Ann McKenna always keeps her promises… one of those promises has a murderer moving into her home.

Coffee or Tea?

Coffee with all the fixins!

Marlene, thank you for having me here today, you really got me thinking with these questions!

Thank you, Kelly for being such a terrific guest! And you are so right. Bad boys make do great stories!

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Satisfying the Curse

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews

Satisfying the Curse by Kelly Gendron is a romantic suspense story that starts out by having the hero drugged and tied to a hotel bed to service the heroine’s curse! The scene teases her limits, his libido and the reader’s expectations, but all in surprising, and ultimately satisfying, ways.

About that bondage scene…Juliana Pratt believes that she is cursed. She’s twenty-six, and has spent her entire over-educated life in environments where she keeps herself as far away from men as possible. Her father has her convinced that her mother was a wanton adulteress and that Juliana suffers the same curse. Juliana has never even let herself be tempted to give in.

But Daddy Dearest is facing murder charges, and Juliana is the only witness that can corroborate his alibi. So while he is in prison awaiting his trial, she is free. Well, sort of free. Daddy Dearest (AKA Warren Pritchard) is rich and influential. He’s committed a LOT of dirty deeds, but always managed to buy his way out, until this time. During Juliana’s limited bit of freedom, she is supposed to be doing the talk show circuit, playing up the dutiful daughter image and making sure that any jury is prejudiced in his favor before the trial starts. In return, he has promised to finally give Juliana some of her inheritance.

But this talk-show junket is Juliana’s first experience of life outside of all-girls schools and educational institutions. She’s finally experiencing real life, even if it is a real life punctuated by regular death threats and attempted kidnappings.

Somebody wants her dead, or at least beaten down. And Juliana knows it’s her father. He wants to make sure she corroborates his alibi.

Juliana has a bodyguard. And that’s where the real fun comes in. Her first bodyguard, Josie, introduces her to the fun of watching mixed martial arts. Watching the fighters wakes up Juliana’s curse of wantonness. or that’s what Juliana believes. Juliana asks her bodyguard, her best and only friend, to help her get one particular fighter at her mercy for one night, so she can lose her pesky virginity and satisfy her curse.

The plan works flawlessly. Except…once  she’s got the man tied up and practically begging, Juliana can’t follow through. And her inexperience reveals the fact that she’s a virgin, which leads to the next flaw, the fighter may have done a lot of ring bunnies in his time, but he doesn’t play with virgins. Ever.

Then there’s problem number three, and it’s a doozy. Juliana’s protection detail gets handed off the morning after the curse-removal disaster to a new bodyguard. And the fighter she tried to play bondage games with is her new babysitter. And her curse still wants him, really, really bad.

Too bad Agent T. Ryker still doesn’t do virgins. No matter how much they beg. Or how much he wants to.

That her father is going on trial for murdering his aunt, the woman who raised him? That’s just one more reason to guard his heart from the beautiful woman whose body he’s supposed to be protecting.

Escape Rating B+: The opening scene started out pretty darn funny. The bondage thing was just crazy. And hot. But then things took twists into a little more serious territory.

Juliana (she goes by Ana) thinks she’s cursed, because that’s how Daddy brainwashed her. Ryker thinks he’s tainted because of the circumstances of his birth. As a pair, they have a whole train-load of baggage to sort through, and they really have to work at it. Misunderstandings abound! Neither of them have ever trusted anyone, and it takes them a while to figure out it’s even possible.

The level of sexual torment on both sides is also very hot!

I did spend a chunk of this book wanting to beat Daddy Dearest with a baseball bat. If he has a redeeming characteristic, I didn’t see it. Unrelieved evil is fun to read every once in a while.

There was a very nice twist at the end that surprised the heck out of me. Excellent, excellent!

 

Ebook Review Central, Carina Press, April 2012

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | Ebook Review Central> ebooks> ebooks in libraries

The Carina Press April 2012 list proves, as Carina does every month, that there are high-quality titles published in ebook-only.

It also proves that there is something out there for every taste and variation of romance fiction lover, from science fiction romance to paranormal to male/male to historical to retro to contemporary. Even for those who can’t get enough of Spartacus (the recent TV series, not the old movie).

It does seem like there are some trends.

Looking at both Carina and Samhain, I’ve noticed that the Retro romances don’t get a lot of new reviews.  How that translates to sales is something that I’ll freely admit I wonder about. The reviews for Susan Edwards’s White Series are mostly, but not exclusively, from RT Book Reviews‘ and All About Romance‘s backfiles; they are reviews for the original release of the books. This is also true for the Samhain Retro romances.

The Roman Empire period may be making a comeback. Surrender to the Roman is one of several “blood and sandals” romances that’s come out recently. Spartacus may have started (or resurrected) a sub-genre. There’s a post at Book Lovers Inc. that plays with this question.

New/old sub-genre questions aside, this week’s featured titles are from romance sub-genres that are a little more familiar. Which is pretty interesting, considering that not a single one takes place in a here-and-now that’s exactly the one we know!
The third featured title this month is the erotic historical romance Improper Relations by Juliana Ross. Unlike a lot of historicals that take place in England, this is Victorian Era rather than Regency. Equally unusual, this one is not about a noble rake sweeping a complete innocent off her feet. Not that Leo isn’t a rake, well, not exactly. He appears to be one. It’s just that Hannah is only sort of innocent. She’s a widow. She simply doesn’t know what pleasure is. After watching Leo debauch a housemaid in the library (to both parties clear mutual enjoyment!), Hannah finds herself willing to let Leo teach her everything she’s missed about pleasure. They both learn a few other lessons, ones that neither of them expect. This novella is short, erotic, and surprisingly sweet at the end.

The second featured title is the paranormal entry in this week’s list. Darkest Caress by Kaylea Cross. An ancient magical race, the Empowered, is here on Earth to fight on the side of Good in the coming battle against the forces of evil. While they’re waiting for that battle, they need a place to stay. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the realtor that the leader of those good guys, Daegan Blackwell, hires to help him find some property, turns out to be a long-lost member of the Empowered herself. And his destined mate. And she doesn’t believe him until she becomes a target for the evildoers herself. Reviewers compare this one to Kresley Cole, Lara Adrian and even J.R. Ward.

But this week’s big winner was Ava March’s Fortune Hunter, the second book in her Brook St. Trilogy. This is a male/male Regency and did even better in the reviews than the first book, Thief. Readers definitely love this series, and are snapping up each book as it comes out. The biggest complaint I’m seeing is that because these are novellas, the stories are too short! But Fortune Hunter is the story of Oscar and Julian. Julian Parker is from the poor, American branch of the Parker family. His name gives him entry in wealthy English society, but nothing more. He come to England to find a rich wife to support him in style, even though he knows he prefers men. Oscar Woodhaven is rich, exceedingly rich, but all that his wealth has bought him is loneliness and grasping relatives. He needs Julian’s friendship as much as he needs his love. They have found what they need and want in each other, if they can figure out a way to keep what they have. Especially in the face of a society that will more than condemn them.

So this week we have the Regency, the Victorian Age, and an paranormal version of now where the Empowered fight the darkness. The contemporaries just didn’t stand a chance this month. Next month may be different. Come back and see!

And come back next Monday to check out the Dreamspinner Press April features. We’ll be back!