Shannon K. Butcher

HOT new author!!!

A book-lovin' friend told me about this author's debut book No Regrets, which was released last February. So, of course, book-hog that I am, I ran out and bought it the next day and now I'm completely enamored with this author's writing and she's going on my auto-buy list.

Here's the blurb:

NO SURRENDER
Renowned cryptologist Noelle Blanche refuses to have blood on her hands. So when the military asks for her help in a covert operation, she refuses - until masked gunmen raid her home and threaten her life. Suddenly it’s all too clear that the blood spilled may be her own. Noelle has no choice but to trust the dangerous stranger sent by the military to safeguard her. A stranger who is everything she detests, everything she fears…and everything she desires.
NO LOOKING BACK
Former Delta Force operative David Wolfe thought he left it all behind—the horror, the hurt, the guilt. But now the men who savagely murdered his wife have set their sights on a brilliant cryptologist who can lead them to the cache of weapons they prize. As passion ignites between David and the woman he’s sworn to protect, what began as just a mission escalates into the fight of his life. But can he prevent history from repeating itself?
NO REGRETS

I was totally into this book from the first. It's a great example of romantic suspense that is strong in both the romance and the suspense plot-lines with incredibly engaging characters. It did have some pacing issues at a few points where I was ready for more action to further the suspense element but that is literally my only complaint.

As much as I enjoyed No Regrets, I was totally blown away when I got my hands on No Control the next book in the series (just released).

Here's the blurb:

No Hiding
Lana Hancock knows all about danger -- and betrayal. Eighteen months ago, she was captured by a terrorist group known as the Swarm while one of its member, a rugged man with sinfully dark eyes, did nothing to help her. Now when she’s freed and desperate to put it all behind her, the unthinkable happens. The Swarm is targeting Lana once again and the man who stood silently by has become her protector. But can she trust him?
No Escape
Delta Force operative Caleb Stone will never forget the hatred shining in Lana’s eyes. Ordered to take down the Swarm by infiltrating its ranks, Caleb couldn’t blow his cover to save her -- no matter how much it haunted him. Now, gifted with a second chance, he vows to move heaven and earth to protect her…and fulfill her every desire. But the Swarm has reorganized. It’s more powerful than ever and hell-bent on revenge…
No Control

Once again, Butcher created both a strong romance and strong suspense plots and blended them together with finesse. We met the hero (one of a trio of friends including David) in the first book and I was immediately intrigued by him. He brings tortured hero to a new level and suffers immensely from the remembered horror of standing by, watching as the lives of innocents were taken and someone with such a beautiful spirit as Lana was beaten so brutally. He had to stand firm to wait for the opportunity to irradicate the entire terrorist group and save the lives of many others but, despite the fact that he would make the same choice again if he had to, it haunts him.

Lana is an amazing heroine, strong and giving. After rising to the challenge of survival and recovery, she is compelled to devote herself to her cause of helping children. Sounds too perfect? Not really, she is very realistically created. She still has a good-sized dose of survivor's guilt and has nutured her hatred for the operative that stood by and did nothing while her friends were murdered and she was brutalized beyond recognition. However, after seeing the torment burning in the eyes and soul of Caleb she discards all of her daydreams of expressing her hate for him, lets the hatred go, and gains a greater understanding of the choices forced upon him. She still gives him a hard time because not only is he a reminder of that terrible time but she has secrets that she fears could put her families safety in jeopardy.

It's really and excellent read. It also introduces more Delta Force men that I hope we'll see in the future and gives some insight on the third member of this trio of friends, Grant, who freely admits that he's waiting for his "turn" at happiness and love. Since he is so willing to embrace the future and emotions, his heroine will probably have to be the one convinced that HEA's do exist. I can only imagine what type of heroine he will be paired with and the hurdles he will have to scale to convince her that they belong together.

Learn more about Shannon K. Butcher.

A little after Christmas reading....

The Christmas-rush is over - thank goodness! I love the season but every December 26th I'm a veggie lying limply on the couch all day trying to "recover". Here's what I've been reading during the after Christmas let-down...

The Accidental Vampire
by Lynsay Sands

This book was kick-ass! Then again... most of Lynsay's books are. Victor is an enforcer for the council that is sent to a small town to investigate a woman who placed an ad in the personals claiming to be a vampiress looking for a relationship with a male vampire and the rumor going through the club scene that there is a female vampire residing in a certain sea-side town. This is a big no-no according to the 'laws' because it draws attention to their kind. When he arrives, under the guise of a potential suitor who has been corresponding with said vampiress for weeks, Victor discovers that the woman, Elvi, didn't place the ad or correspond with him (or rather his friend at his behest) at all- it was her well-meaning but very meddling friends. And he is not the only immortal to respond to the personal, which results in a cast of characters that add to the opportunity for many an amusing scene.

It also becomes quickly apparent that the personal ad leading to possible exposure is the least of Elvi's offenses, the whole town knows who and what she is and she's been biting mortals. To make matters worse, because she had no Sire to train her not only is she ignorant of their laws, the very laws that my result in her losing her head... literally, but she's been sleeping in a coffin and *gasp* stopped eating real food (including cheesecake and chocolate!!) for the last 5 years due to the fact that she used the movie Dracula as her guide to living as a vampire.

When Victor realizes that she's his life mate he is torn between duty to the council and joy at finding someone to spend the rest of his days with. Then the attempts on Elvi's life begin and Victor (along with the other immortal men who answered the ad) are in a race against Elvi's independent nature to keep her from further injury.

The only issue I had with the plot is part of the ending where the threads (most of them at least) are tied off. Things were a little to conveniently wrapped up in conclusion with the people trying to kill Elvi, the threat of the council's wrath, and even the other immortal men brought to town by the personal ad. It was just a wee bit too pat.

This book has a good dose of Lynsay Sands' trademark humor mixed in with the romance, mystery, and light intrigue. I found myself laughing out loud at several points. I can't wait for the next Argeneau vampire romance to come out in February!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Double Vision
by Fiona Brand

I was intrigued by this one because it appeared to be a romantic suspense with a bit of a psychic paranormal element - which it was... sort of. There was nothing particularly wrong with the author's writing but this book should not be classified as a romance, in my opinion. The romance was VERY poorly developed and the hero was a pretty flat character. I was highly disappointed. However, I'm betting that readers who like mystery/suspense books would find this very enjoyable. I just don't recommend it for romance readers.

Contests... contests... and more contests....

Here's a rundown of some of the interesting contests I found during my recent search:

My top contest pick.... *keeping my fingers crossed*
For November, Angela Knight is giving away a signed Advanced Reading Copy of BEYOND THE DARK, which contains her novella, Dragon Dance.
Enter Contest Here!

Win a copy of Shelly Laurenston's THE MANE EVENT and PACK CHALLENGE along with a Shelly Laurenston carry-all bag.
Enter Contest Here!

Enter Meljean Brooks' contest for an Advance Copy of the 5th book in her Guardian series DEMON NIGHT.
Enter Meljean’s Contest Here!

Win a bounty of books from Kathryn Caskie.
Enter Contest Here!

Enter Linda Conrad's to win a $30.00 gift certificate to Walmart, a box of Godiva, and the entire six book set of Linda’s Night Guardian series! I won one of Linda's contests for the whole Night Guardian series previously so I'm not entering this one but I thought I'd let y'all know about it - the series is interesting and well-written.
Enter Linda’s Contest Here!

Starting November 10th and going through Dec. 22nd, you can enter for a chance to win a signed copy of Julie Miller's AT YOUR COMMAND, along with one backlist title--winner's choice! All you have to do is email her your answer to a multiple-choice question about which cover is HOTTEST. This one was my choice...

Is this smokin' or what???
Enter Contest Here!









Win a signed ARC of Gemma Halliday’s upcoming release UNDERCOVER IN HIGH HEELS and some High Heels goodies.
Enter Contest Here!

And finally, Bertrice Small is giving away a $50 gift certificate to Borders Books this month.
Enter Contest Here!

Happy Entering!!!!

True Deception by Patricia Waddell

The Blurb:
A man who lives for revenge and a woman who clings to hope. Together they fight a common enemy . . . and discover a passion neither one dreamed could exist.

Aedon Rawn’s world died the day his wife and child were murdered by Conglomerate pirates. Now, his only reason for living is to avenge their deaths. The Directorate gives him that opportunity when he’s selected to become their first undercover agent. His mission: infiltrate and destroy the oppressive government of an outer region colony.

Kala Char’ari is a woman in need of a miracle. She’s dedicated her life to freeing her people, but they're on the edge of extinction. Risking everything, she dares to trust a dark stranger with the hardened heart of a warrior.

My thoughts:
The storyline of True Deception is pretty basic and one familiar to lovers of futuristic romance. The people of Hachyn are being oppressed and abused by the government and Kala is the second-in-command to (and being trained to be the next) the leader of the resistance. When her mentor is killed she has to put her trust in Korcian undercover agent, Aedon Rawn (although she doesn't KNOW he's an undercover agent). She's attracted to him and despite the fact that their first sexual encounter seems to be more of a result of her grief over the loss of her father-figure/mentor than true lust, she falls in love with the man that she knows is keeping secrets but cannot resist following her instincts and believing he means to help them fight the Conglomerate.

Aedon's wife and daughter were killed by the Conglomerate (the same gov't responsible for oppressing the people of Hachyn, and he wants revenge - his assignment is to assist the freedom fighters of Hachyn in overthrowing the conglomerate reps there and destroying factories that the Directorate (the good guys) believe may be producing weapons. When Aedon meets Kala he begins to feel emotions he thought he'd never feel again after the loss of his family

I really liked the first book in this series, True Blood. It was a wonderful futuristic romance - the perfect blend of romance, danger, and suspense.

This second book was a bit of a disappointment though. It was not bad, it was actually an OK read but I felt the story itself was kind of blah and the attraction between the H/h didn't feel very 'sparky' or real. I wasn't pulled into the story -probably because is was heavily detailed on the suspense side and not developed enough in the romance - I didn't really get to know enough about the main characters' "inner" selves enough to care or feel connected. But the part that took this book from a "Keeper" to a "Library" rating was that the ending felt somewhat incomplete and there were several random threads in the story that were never resolved, had no discernable purpose but seemed important at the time they were introduced, or were resolved too easily - that frustrates me because I have such a curiosity problem.

On the other hand, Ms. Waddell did an excellent job portraying Aedon's need for revenge and sorrow over the murder of his wife and child without it becoming an overblown conflict or letting it detract from the relationship between the H/h. While I don't highly recommend True Deception, it was a decent read - I have definitely NOT given up on this author or this series. I do highly recommend the first book True Blood though - it was a total keeper!




My rating for TRUE DECEPTION by Patricia Waddell:

Here an ARC, there an ARC, everywhere an ARC ARC

Alright.... y'all will have to rush on some of these but here are some of the interesting ARC contests happening this month:

Alexis Morgan (*sigh* Paladins make me HOT!) is having a contest for an ARC of her upcoming book Redeemed in Darkness. It's real easy to enter.
http://www.alexismorgan.com/contest.html

Enter Sarah McCarty's contest for an ARC of Caine's Reckoning at http://www.sarahmccarty.net/contest.html

Win and Advanced Reading Copy of Lucy Monroe's upcoming book Deal With This.
http://www.lucymonroe.com/contest.htm

Now, I've never read this author (she looks a little too tame for me) but just in case any of you are interested: Lauren Willig is offering an ARC of The Seduction of the Crimson Rose.
http://www.laurenwillig.com/diversions/contest.html

Cynthia Eden has a Halloween giveaway on the Bradford Bunch blog for an ARC of A Red Hot New Year. http://www.thebradfordbunch.com/cynthia/arc-giveaway-and-another-contest-too/

There were more great contests but my fever is back and I'm going to bed now. Damn cold! But I do want to make mention of a contest that Casee posted over at Book Binge for an autographed set of Robyn Carr's trilogy. Check it out! http://thebookbinge.blogspot.com/ This one ends Friday so BE QUICK!


On the upside, at the bookstore today I got:
Star Shadows by Colby Hodge
True Deception by Patricia Waddell
Embrace the Darkness by Alexandra Ivy
Highland Guardian by Melissa Mayhue
Howl at the Moon by Christine Warren (who has her website updated now and it looks GREAT!)

YAY!!

New Rating System

So I've finalized a 'rating' system - & created corresponding graphics - for the books that I read and talk about here. Here are the 4 categories:

My VERY top rating: "Absolutely Amazing!" - these are the books that I ADORE and will highly recommend to EVERYONE. This will be used VERY RARELY. It would be for books like Nalini Singh's Psy/Changeling books, for example



"Keeper" is my rating for books that are.... you guessed it... going on my keeper shelf. These are books that I love - ones that I will re-read again and again. I think these books are worth buying and recommend them.



Rating a book as "Library" means that it was an OK book but not worth the money. These are the books that I wish I had gotten it (or am glad that I DID get it) from the library. They're not a recommended read but not a total stinker either.



Finally, this rating is for books that I "wish I'd passed on..." These are books that I REALLY didn't enjoy - basically, the books that I thought sucked.


What do you guys think... good system?

Denise A. Agnew

I'm hooked.
I'm a junkie.
I CANNOT seem to stop buying and reading and loving this author's books!

I know I recommended her in another post but I've been on a real Denise A. Agnew binge so I want to share it with you all. She writes paranormal romance with suspense and some contemporary romantic suspense.

So far I've read:
Over the Line (SIA)
Primordial (SIA)
Night Scream - Novella (SIA)
Impetuous (SIA) -- one of THE worst covers... UGH!
Sins & Secrets (SIA)
Shadows & Ruins (SIA)
Jungle Fever (SIA)
Hideaway (SIA)
Clandestine (SIA)
Instinct (SIA) -- HOTTEST cover!! YUMMY!
and Male Call which I reviewed for RORR. Unfortunately, you can't view that review because it's not posted yet.

I've also got Dark Fire sitting on my shelf waiting, The Dare loaded onto my PDA just begging to be read - hey, any book that starts with the heroine seeing the hero through the window buck naked has my vote!!!

The only one so far that's been a 'stinker' to me was Hideaway. It was just kinda slow and boring. I found myself skimming parts and not really connecting with the characters.

My favorite is probably Instinct because of the characters (Lucas and Mina are HOT!) but as far as storyline goes Over the Line and Sins & Secrets take first and second.

All of them are available from Ellora’s Cave except Male Call which is published by Samhain. SIA is short for Special Investigations Agency and the books in that series are about people who work for a highly secretive agency that specializes in dealing with supernatural threats/beings/investigations. Some of them are heavier on the suspense than the paranormal but they're highly enjoyable and well-written IMO. Ms. Agnew has a talent for characterizations which make even the novellas (which I don't normally like as much) great.

So now I've got a new author addiction... I'm sure I'll be reading ALL of her books within.... oh, the next week or so at the rate I'm going. LOL!

I really recommend this author to lovers of suspense and paranormal romance. Now I'm off to read more. I've also got Serati's Flame, the newest book by T.J. Michaels waiting for me... it's been calling to me for the last hour in addition to the Agnew books. It's so hard to decide where to start!

Happy reading!

Something Wicked by Catherine Mulvany

SOMETHING WICKED
Catherine Mulvany

The BLURB:
Investigative reporter Regan Cluny is in hot pursuit of a reclusive philanthropist who is financing a mysterious archaeological dig in the California desert. Attempting to convince Charles Cunningham Nash to grant her an interview has proven impossible long distance, so Regan sets off uninvited for his dig to woo him in person. Instead, she meets with deadly trouble; a biker gang corners her at a remote rest stop, sabotages her car, and leaves her for dead on a country road. Miraculously, Regan survives with only one strange memory of her attack...and the man who comes to her aid is Nash himself.

Strongly attracted to her handsome protector, Regan can't know that Nash is a vampire tied to her attackers by a vicious blood feud that dates back to the Civil War - or that he has hungered for the life and soul of a mortal for nearly two centuries. With the local sheriff determined to nail Nash for the violence perpetrated by his dire enemy, Regan must decide whether the dark secrets of a lover she can't live without are something wonderful...or something wicked.

My Thoughts:
I have never read Catherine Mulvany but I saw the cover for this book a couple of months ago and put it on my 'to be considered list'. KICK ASS cover!!! Plus a 'kudos' from Christine Feehan on it!

Something Wicked was a decent paranormal romance. There was nothing wrong with the book and it's actually well developed and written. It was just a bit... well, dull-ish. Sort-of. I know this is SO unhelpful in helping others make a decision to purchase the book so I'll just say I wasn't bored but neither was I wow'd by either the characters or the plot. This would be more of a 'library' choice to me. Good to read but not run-out-and-get-it-now worthy. Actually, people just getting into reading the paranormal-romance sub-genre would probably enjoy this one. It's about 65% on the darkness scale. It's not a dark book but neither is it middle of the road either. Plus, it doesn't have a convoluted world or a system of paranormal beings that can make new readers long for a glossary so that they can figure out what's happening.

POTENTIAL SPOILERS!!!! BEWARE!!!!
This would REALLY be full of spoilers if I went indepth but here are a few issues I had with the book: 1) The whole 'reincarnation of past lover' thing.... doesn't really do it for me. It can be done well or it can be done VERY badly so I always worry when books have that element. Mulvany actually did pretty good - it didn't take over the story or cause any awkwardness in the heroine's internalization of her feelings for the hero. But still not my favorite. 2) The relationship between the hero's 'past love', the villian, and the reason for the animosity between the hero & villian has a bit of an ick factor for me. 3) How Nash was made a vampire - although that's kind of related to #2. Also, this didn't really bother me but some people will be irritated by the ending - the solution to how a vampire and mortal end up together. To me, the way it came about was a little too 'pat' but I know some people who won't enjoy it for other reasons - which I can't tell because that would be WAY spoiling.

Overall, it's worth reading but I wouldn't put it at the top of the TBR list. I'll be watching for her next one though and check it out at the library!

RATING: B-

It's my lucky day!!

Well, more like my lucky couple of days.

Yesterday I won an e-book from Samhain's weekly contest. I chose Always Yours by Shiloh Walker. These contests are weekly and a new one started today at: http://samhainpublishing.com/contests

Then today I received an e-mail from Linda Conrad that I had won the GRAND PRIZE in her contest - 6 books of her Night Guardian series including an ARC of her upcoming September release and tote! YAY! I haven't read any of the books in this series (although I have read Linda Conrad) but I saw the most recent book in the used bookstore a couple of weeks ago. I was intrigued and wanted to know more. Here's a link to some 'background' on the series: http://www.lindaconrad.com/nightguardians.html.
Check out the 'fun stuff' link on the page because it's not too late to win the series and a $30 gift certificate to B&N!

Many thanks to Linda & Samhain (LOL! Because I'm SO sure that they'll be coming to my blog anytime soon to even SEE my thanks) - but there it is anyway.

White Heat by Cherry Adair

White Heat by Cherry Adair

This book grabbed my attention right away with an action-packed beginning. In general, I don't really like books with a 'lovers reunited' theme but I found both characters entertaining and well developed. The plot was good, although there were some elements that were just too coincidental to be believable.

The only real problem with it for me was that the climax of the suspense and the conclusion weren't great. There was a lot of build-up and I liked the rest of the book but then the conclusion just felt slightly contrived - not awful, just off.

Overall, the majority of the book was great with an interesting plot and characters I could get into. If you like romantic suspense, you'll probably enjoy this one.

RATING: B-