Romance Byte: Jayne Castle's The Hot Zone

Author: Jayne Castle
Series Connection: Harmony, A Rainshadow Novel
ISBN: 978-0515154726
Genre: Futuristic Romance
Publisher: Jove

Purchase Link: Amazon

Description:

The world of Harmony has its wonders, one of them being Rainshadow Island.

Just beneath its surface, a maze of catacombs hides a dangerous secret…

Halloween—with its tricks and treats—is a dust bunny’s dream come true. Just ask Lyle, Sedona Snow’s faithful sidekick. But for Sedona, it’s a nightmare. Though her new job managing a small hotel and tavern on Rainshadow is helping her move on from her tragic past, a bizarre disaster down in the catacombs has brought a pack of rowdy ghost hunters to her inn.

And now, Sedona’s ex has arrived on the island, claiming he wants to get back together, just as a newcomer appears to have a strong interest in her. Cyrus Jones is the new Guild boss in town. He has his own agenda when it comes to Sedona, but even the best-laid plans are no match for the passion that springs up on Rainshadow…

Romance Byte: Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Heroes Are My Weakness

Author: Susan Elizabeth Phillips
ISBN: 978-0062106070
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: William Morrow

Purchase Link: Amazon

Description:

The dead of winter.

An isolated island off the coast of Maine.

A man.

A woman.

A sinister house looming over the sea . . .

He’s a reclusive writer whose macabre imagination creates chilling horror novels. She’s a down-on-her-luck actress reduced to staging kids’ puppet shows. He knows a dozen ways to kill with his bare hands. She knows a dozen ways to kill with laughs.

But she’s not laughing now. When she was a teenager, he terrified her. Now they’re trapped together on a snowy island off the coast of Maine. Is he the villain she remembers or has he changed? Her head says no. Her heart says yes.

It’s going to be a long, hot winter.

Romance Book Review: E.A. Price's The Librarian and the Wolf

Author: E.A. Price

Series Connection: Grey Wolf Pack Romance Novellas

ISBN: n/a

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Shapeshifter Romance

Publisher: E.A. Price

Librarian Terri has moved to a new town and taken on a new job to get away from the past and a bad relationship. She hasn't given up completely on men, but decided that less meaningful relationships with younger men is the best plan for her right now. Her current fling is a sexy 19 year old wolf shifter named Mal and she's just fine with that. 

Terri and Mal start to spend more time together, Terri worries she's getting a little to attached to Mal. At 28 she's starting to think about settling down and with Mal only being 19 she doesn't think he is, but what she doesn't realize is maybe Mal wants more too. 

The author has created a world where we aren't too shocked that paranormals and supernaturals exist in this small town, which I liked, however the I wasn't too crazy about the characters. I wanted the heroine to be stronger. She'd broken up with her ex quite a while ago and had been having flings with younger men who seemed to find her attractive, so she should have more confidence in herself. The hero was just too young. I get that he's a 19 year old, but he could have acted a little more mature. Otherwise the book setting and secondary story lines were interesting and it was a short quick read so it gets some extra points for that. I will definitely try some of the other books in the series and see how they go before I give up on this author. 

Description:

Terri Lin, human, librarian. Following a devastating heart break Terri came to the town of Rose to start over. Not wanting to suffer the same heartache she dated younger men who like her just wanted a bit fun. She thought her latest young wolf would be just the same. He’s handsome and charming, but also childish and inconsiderate. She knows he’s still young and wouldn’t want to be tied down. So why does she yearn for more? 

Mal Tanner, wolf, Enforcer. He never expected to find his mate so early in life and yet from the moment he met the curvy little librarian he was smitten. Can he convince his mate that he’s the right wolf for her? Can he show her that he wants them to be together forever? 

Or is someone else vying for her affection? Someone else who thinks dead birds nailed to her front door make a heartfelt gift... 

Romance Book Review: Georgette St. Clair's Purr for the Alpha

Author: Georgette St. Clair
Series Connection: Timber Valley Pack
ISBN: N/A
Genre: Shapeshifter Romance, Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Georgette St. Clair

Purchase Link: Amazon

In the second installment of the Timber Valley Pack, Ty Battle, cousin to Max Battle (Bride of the Alpha) and owner of the shifter club, The Zoo, fell for lynx shifter Karen over a year ago after she disappeared on him while they were getting reacquainted at his club. With her father in trouble with Ty's family pack now he has her right where he wants her.

When Karen's father was caught stealing from the Battles Ty give Karen a chance to get her father off. She has to move to his packs compound with her brother and sister, as well as work at his club as a waitress. Karen has been burned twice already by Ty and she doesn't want to spend any more time with him then she needs to, but she sees no other way to save her no good father. Now that Ty has her in his clutches, he's never letter Karen go, but with a father like Karen's it may be harder than he thinks to get her trust.

Well written, quick read for the second installment to the Timber Valley series. Great turn of events that will add to a secondary story for the rest of the series. Should be interesting to read how the series continues.

Ty is a strong alpha, but not quite as arrogant as Max's character. While I don't mind light BDSM, this case didn't really seem necessary in the story. Ty made a strong alpha, but the BDSM didn't seem part of his personality.

Description:

Cats and dogs don’t traditionally get along, but there’s one pussycat that Alpha shifter Ty Battle wants to set a-purrin’: sexy lynx shifter Karen Padfoot. Unfortunately, he’s got a terrible reputation as a player, and she’s scorned all of his advances after one interrupted encounter a year earlier. 

When she comes to the Battle compound to plead for the release of her troublemaking father, who stole from the Battle’s warehouse, he’s finally got his chance; she’ll have to work for him as a waitress at his nightclub to pay off her father’s debt. Karen may be hissing and spitting mad, but if Ty has his way, he’ll collar this sexy kitty for good. Unfortunately, someone else wants to cage the feisty feline, and Ty’s the only one who can keep her safe. Will Karen let her barriers down and trust the sexy bachelor with the bad boy reputation before it’s too late? 

Romance Book Review: Diana Palmer's Invincible

Author: Diana Palmer

Series Connection: Wyoming Bold, Long Tall Texans, Renegade, The Winter Soldier 

ISBN: 978-0373778805

Genre: Western Romance, Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Harlequin

Purchase Link: Amazon

As formulas go, Diana Palmer has hers completely set and while there are those who think that she writes books that countlessly sound the same and the setting should be changed, she still sells millions of copies each year. Probably because why stop a good thing. 

In Invincible, readers are back in Jacobsville and Comanche Wells, where Chief Cash 

Grier's (Renegade) secretary, Carlie, life is threatened and Grier calls in Carlie's nemesis and man of her dreams, Carson. Carson is a jaded mercenary that deeply attracted to virgin Carlie. Carson knows better than to touch a preacher's daughter, especially when the preacher in question shares more in common with Carson then many know. 

This story picks up where Wyoming Bold leaves off working on solving the mystery of the man who is pulling the strings behind the murder of a San Antonio DA. As with all of Palmer's heroes Carson has a history that has sent him into the mercenary business and Carlie knows that she isn't going to change the man, no matter how much love she sends his way. 

While the romance formula is pretty much the same as many other Diana Palmer's series books, this one actually had a few different elements I appreciated. The writing didn't appear as stilted as I had notice in the previous few that I've read by this author. Fans who like business as usual with Diana Palmer will appreciate this book. 

Description:

He's everything she fears… 

and everything she wants 

Mercenary by name and by nature, Carson is a Lakota Sioux who stays to himself and never keeps women around long enough for anything emotional to develop. But working with his friend Cash Grier on a complex murder investigation provides Carson with another kind of fun—shocking Cash's sweet-but-traditional secretary, Carlie Blair, with tales of his latest conquests. 

Then Carlie lands in deep trouble. She saw something she shouldn't have, and now the face of a criminal is stored permanently in her photographic memory…and Carlie is the key piece of evidence that could implicate a popular politician in the murder case. 

Her only protection is Carson—the man she once despised. But when she learns that Carson is more than just a tough guy, Carlie realizes she's endangered herself further. Because now her only chance to live means losing her heart to the most dangerous kind of man….

Romance Book Scene: Vivian Arend's Under The Northern Lights

Author: Vivian Arend
Series Connection: Granite Lake Wolves, Print Anthology 1

ISBN: 978-1-60504-794-2

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Wolf Shifter Romance, Shapeshifters Romance

Publisher: Samhain Publishing

Purchase Link: Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Vivian Arend brings back her popular Granite Lake Wolves' series in three two book sets with new titles.

In Under the Northern Lights, books one and two are featured together. In Wolf Signs meet a young, deaf woman, Robyn, who sets out on a lone venture on a ski trip for the first time. A familiar area she expects to have a fun trip of exploring the slopes by herself, until she finds that she is sharing her cabin with two brothers and learns something about herself that never knew.

In book two, Wolf Fight, Robyn brother, Tad, is experiencing some adventures of his own while Robyn is alone on her trip. Seeing his first crush again sets Tad's dormant wolf genes raging. Is she the perfect answer to bringing is wolf to life, or will he have to sacrifice ever having the chance to turn into wolf form because of her strong feelings for him.

Wonderful descriptive surrounding scenes makes you wish you were visiting the sight of Alaska and the Yukon region even in the blistering 25 degree temps. The characters we well established for such short books.

Wolf Games, the third book in the series has already been reviewed previously on my blog... here.

Description:

A split second is all it takes to pull the trigger on destiny.

Wolf Signs
Robyn’s deafness doesn’t stop her from taking the backcountry trip she’s been craving. Meeting a hot, ripped hunk-of-male at the Yukon cabin starts cravings of a different kind. And raises questions about wolves, mates, and duels to the death.

He wanted a quiet retreat before challenging for the pack Alpha position. Keil wasn’t planning on meeting his mate or discovering she’s not aware she has the genes of a wolf to go along with her attitude...

Wolf Flight
Tad’s workaholism keeps his bush-pilot company in the air, and his inner werewolf in check. Letting it loose would mean compromising his human principles. Then Missy re-enters his life, and their chemistry is off the charts, pushing him closer to the step he’s not sure it’s safe to take.

A wolf pack is a dangerous place to have secrets, and Missy’s corrupt Alpha has sniffed out her carefully hidden Omega powers. Her only choice is to get to Tad, and hope like hell his untapped powers are strong enough to negate her own…

Romance book Review: Lora Leigh's Taken

Author: Lora Leigh

Anthology

ISBN: 978-1250045454

Genre: Suspense, Erotic Romance

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Purchase Link: Amazon

Lora Leigh brings back six favorite novellas featuring stories with some of her sexy heros from SEALS, spys and former soliders and the woman they want love. Taken gives a look at several of the peaks into a few of military series and other erotic romance series. All of these books have been previous published and true Lora Leigh fans are bound to have read one or more of these stories in the past, but any of these stories are worth re-reading. 

Description:

Reno’s Chance

Ever since she was a girl, Raven has longed for her friend's brother, Reno, a Navy SEAL. What she doesn't realize is that his true mission is to get into her heart.

For Maggie's Sake

Maggie is in custody with Joe's SEALs team.  Joe, her ex-lover, thinks Maggie is hiding information.  He plans to seduce her to get it, but when an enemy captures Maggie, only Joe can save her.

Atlanta Heat

Em has wanted Macey forever. But as a SEAL under the command of her overprotective godfather, Macey is off-limits…until a kidnapping attempt forces them to share close quarters—and a forbidden desire.

Night Hawk

For three years, Travis “Black Jack” Caine and Lillian “Night Hawk” Belle have been meeting, late at night. No names given. But tonight is different. An enemy has returned, and Travis and Lillian may never meet again.  Are they brave enough to give in to desire and stand together?

Cooper’s Fall

Former ranger Ethan never expected to get an eyeful of prim Sarah Fox from his window. But now his blood is on fire for her.

Sheila’s Passion

As an ex-Marine, Nick's been through some hard things.  But when it comes to Sheila, he has his biggest challenge yet. Sheila has sworn off love, but when Nick tempts her into becoming friends with benefits, he intends to make her his forever