Kat Morrisey

I've had this book from the library for almost two months now. It has sat on my table for almost that entire time because I got sick, was in the hospital and even reading was exhausting. But now, I'm back and the first thing I did was dive into this book. 

 

I didn't think I could like a book more than The Bride. But somehow, with each Garwood I read, I end up swooning over the gruff, grumpy heroes and wishing I was transported back in time. (Though, only if there was plumbing. Otherwise, I'll stay here and live vicariously through the books)

 

One of the things I loved about this book was the dual romance aspect. Sure, we don't see a lot of Brigid and Ramsey but the tension is there and my heart was breaking right along with hers over the "stupid man" she loved. And she brought a lot of humor to the book as well. Also, Gillian had suffered hell in her childhood, seeing the horrible things she did and then later, having to deal with Alford and what he did to her. But despite that, she still tried to protect those around her-Alec, Uncle Morgan, and even her friends, and finally, Brodick. It didn't work of course, but she still tried. She never gave up.

 

And Brodick, god he was a handful. A stubborn alpha to the Nth degree and I loved how he cared for Gillian but always was messing up trying to tell her how he felt. The scene with Father Laggan at Ramsey's, where Brodick is trying to tell her what happened on the ride there, well that had me cracking up. And Ramsey's conversation with Brigid, I died! Garwood also did an excellent job with Ramsey and Brodick, groveling at the end, that resolved everything and made me truly believe in their HEA. I'm still sighing just thinking about it. 

 

But, I will say, the scene with her sister tore my heart to shreds. That was so freaking sad. 

 

I could go on and on about this book but I need to finish Garwood's "The Wedding" so I can get these books back to the library. I can't believe I waited so long to read this author. Do you have any recs for other books by Garwood? Let me know!

 

 

 

This is the first Garwood I have ever read and I'm sitting wondering why, WHYYYYYYYYYYY did I wait so freaking long? I started this yesterday afternoon and I didn't stop reading until 2am! You know that a book is good when you forget to eat your dinner; forget to feed the cat (but remember before you go to bed at least); and get annoyed whenever you have to get up from the couch or answer the phone. Yeah, it was that freaking good. I couldn't put it down. The historical facts and concerns of the time (Church edict on women and childbirth being a prime example, as well as midwifery issues) were woven into this epic love story of Iain and Judith.

I fell so hard for Iaian I don't even know if I can think straight after all the action and romance that was going on in this book. When Iain, all surly and brooding, comes to pick her up and take her back to his keep to be with her bff, Frances Catherine, I knew, I just knew it was going to be a book I'd be sighing through. And I was right. Their travels were fraught with bickering, sexual tension, and sweet moments that had even my knees going weak. And when they arrived at his lands? Did he toss her aside since she was English? No. And that had me liking him even more. Despite the clan's issues with her nationality, Iain stayed by her side, comforted her, and ultimatley, made her his. Even when he knew the truth that Judith was sure would make him stop loving her.

This book wasn't all epic romance though. We also get a lot of humor infused throughout the story. Judith and her snarkiness, especially towards Iain and some of his men, cracked me up. And when she and Frances Catherine were together, talking about the men in their lives?! Ha!! I loved those parts. Not only was it nice to see the friendship, but their giggling over the guys was adorable.

Lastly, what perhaps struck me most about this book was not only the growth of the heroine, but the growth, and admission of that growth, by the hero. By the end of the book Iain had changed considerable, for the better, because of his love for Judith. And it didn't just change him in terms of he and Judith. In seeing the relationship between the two women Iain learned something about trust and the human condition that opened his eyes to new things. I'm not saying he's a changed man by the end and won't be big bad ass Laird of the clan, but he did acknowledge that he learned something from a woman (shocker, right?!) to Judith. I think that took a lot of guts for him to do and it made him, for me, even more bad ass. And it's something I don't see a lot in highlander and historical romance. Sure the hero always falls in love and changes but I've never seen this blatant an admission of it and a welcome of change to his lands/clan. (I swooned at how he was so cool with judith wanting to change somethings and he even encouraged her! See! This man is definitely making his way to the tippy top of my book boyfriend list...)

Although I got this from the library I am so snapping this up so I have a copy of my own to read again and again. I think this is on course to be the best book I've read all year, and trust me, that's saying a lot. I can't wait to read the rest in this series!

Omg Bran Turner. Bran FREAKING Turner! He made this book a 5 star read for me. The author made him a strong, protective cowboy but he was also vulnerable and unsure of himself at times and I loved seeing that in a guy. (There wasn't too much, just enough to make him mess something up and have to grovel. I love a good grovel!) Harper was a really well written heroine too. She gave up so much for her family and when it all started to come crashing down, she continued to try and hold it together the best she could. When her heart, at one point, did shatter, she didn't just pack up and run. At least, not permanently.

And the wooing at the end by Bran? The karaoke?! I cracked up. And let's not forget the fainting goats and the bunnies. There were so many times i laughed out loud in this book. And yeah, the sexy times are hot as in so smokin hot I was waiting for the book to catch fire. Even though I got this (and the first in the series) from the library, this is definitely a series I will be buying so I can re-read again, and again, and again. *sigh* Bran...

Alright, off to hunt down the next in the series!

This was cute, sweet, mystery with a writer heroine and a cop hero that had me laughing out at times. The plot wasn't overly complicated, nor was there a lot of angst-and I absolutely liked that. Don't get me wrong-I like angst. But sometimes, a funny, quirky romance is what's needed instead of emotional turmoil. I liked the writer's style and there were several times I was cracking up at the comments and antics of Lucy's friends. And when I found out who "Millie" was, well I'm chuckling just thinking about that again. The scenes with the writer friends were adorable and I appreciated how the author balanced the main character's girl time with the hero. I will definitely be looking for the next book in this series (Claire's story, I think) as the teaser pages at the end have me intrigued.

What could be hotter than a hotshot military guy who was thought to be dead, returned from said "death" to protect the woman he left behind and his son? Well, add some kink into that, with a dash of spying and bit of suspense/action and you have "Safe In His Arms" by Renee Rose.

This is a novella length book and given that, there isn't too much backstory though the reader is given a glimpse into the hot weekend Zac and Becca spent together before he left for Iraq. Back then, she thought he was a Marine. She found out she was pregnant and then, 6 months later, he was killed. Becca then raised their son, Parker, for 7 years. She never anticipated ever seeing or hearing from Zac again. In fact, other than the pension that was available because Parker was his son, Becca never expected anything.

She certainly didn't expect him to show up in her house and battle her nanny in a fight to the death.

But he did. And this book explores the relationship they had-the one that started on their first weekend and, now that Zac showed again, could resume. Or could it? Zac had secrets. And he didn't really exist either. But now he was faced with Parker, his son, and the one woman he hadn't wanted to leave behind. Could he change his life? Did she love him? Did he love her? And what of their kink? Was it just a game to Becca or more?

Well all that is answered in this book and, though I've read a lot of books in my life, I've never quite read one like this, which involves domestic discipline. I'd seen some aspects of it before in other BDSM books but never where both characters are learning about it and putting it into practice like Zac and Becca are. Although Zac is clearly a dom (and Becca a sub) they aren't totally experienced. Mistakes are made, there is some miscommunication between the two (often resulting in some super steamy scenes! Wowza!), but because of the length of the book, the conflict is not drawn out or belabored.

All in all, this was a good way to spend a few hours of the afternoon and though it wasn't perfect, it has got me thinking about checking out more books about this subject. The writing was well done and the plot was well structured and thought out given the length. I didn't see any loose ends left untied by the end nor did I catch any editing errors that jarred me out of the story. In fact, I thought the editing was very well done. I look forward to checking out the author's other books, both those in the past and hopefully, future ones as well.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

I wanted to rate this book a three. I really did. I loved Rose and her glasses and her book smarts and her adoration for Simon. (It was so cute when she said "mine"! Loved that.) And Simon was cute in a "guy has no clue what is going on" sort of way. The part where Rose pulls him into the library (on a few occasions) had me cracking the heck up. And I liked that there was no love triangle or miscommunication issue that stood in the way of our couple.

I also thought it was perfectly sweet that Simon knew what Rose would want and instead of letting her worry and fuss over the arrangements for their wedding, Simon took care of it all, and in so doing, took care of Rose. That melted my heart into a huge puddle of swoon.

As you can see, I loved and liked a lot about this book. However, I feel that, for me, I can't rate it a 3 because of the style of writing used in the book. As I read the book it felt very episodic to me as opposed to a nice flowing narrative. It was just the way each "scene" was written and the transition between them. There really wasn't any, in fact. It was almost as if I was reading a screen play instead of a novel and that just didn't work. I understand, as a writer, the difficulty in writing effective transitions, especially at scene and chapter breaks. They can be tricky buggers and it's a writing skill that can (and is always) being improved upon. And I hope this author does because the plot and characters are intriguing and fun to read about, and I want to read more. It was just that, with this book, I kept getting stuck, having to go back and re-read, or was jarred out of the narrative because of the sudden "break" that occurred.

For someone else, this might be a 3. And please know, that a 2 doesn't mean this was awful, or bad or anything else that would indicate the book was unreadable. But for me, I just couldn't get past the writing style. A two-star from me also does not mean that I won't try this author (or series) again. I will. In fact, I will likely go back to read the first in the series. My rating means just what that, for me, because of my issues with it, it was okay. Not great, not bad, just okay.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

3.5 Stars

I really enjoyed this book and I think it was the main characters that did it for me. I really liked how both of the main characters were so broken and had such tragic histories, but the author didn't rush the two getting together. They fought their attraction, especially Danielle since her attraction to Malachim terrified her for a variety of reasons, and that made when they got together that much better.

I wasn't sure how the author would deal with Danielle's past. Sometimes writing the character of a severely abused and terrified woman doesn't translate well on the page. It's a sensitive subject (obviously) and for me, deeply personal, but I'm happy to say that the situation was handled well.

The only issue I did have was with Malachim's 'father' and when he approached Danielle. I didn't understand why she kept it to herself. Given how terrified she was, I expected her to either tell Malachim or run of the hills. Instead she just left things unsaid for a bit and that bothered. I get she was scared of Christopher (and her ex) but when Malachim came to the hospital at a piviotal point in the book, I thought she'd let her guard drop then and there. (Can you tell I'm sometimes impatient?! LOL)

Anyways, I really liked this author's writing style and the way she wove the pieces of the plot together. She definitely can write a suspense plot really well! The only other issue I have is that I had no idea this was part of a series. Had I known, I'd have read book 1. It's not required to get the gist of what is going on but for me it did bug me knowing there was a book 1 out there with an apparent epic plot to it. (And I noticed here on GR that the books don't have listed #1, #2, etc. Not sure how to go about fixing that, but the author or pub might want to do that so readers don't get ticked when reading out of order. You'd be surprised how many readers are OCD about that!) Looking forward to going to back to read the first and then, hopefully, subsequent, books!

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

This book blew my expectations out of the water. I went into this unsure how I would react to both the characters and the subject matter. It's a historical romance set in England (Sussex and England) with the American Revolution playing an important part in the story-telling. But more than that, it was a story of a young woman who for 6 years had no one to take her back, no to protect her, and no one to help her, as she tried to keep her (and by extension her sister, Lucy) out of the dastardly grasp of Mr. Dodge.

What a jerk that guy was. More than a jerk by the end in fact since he turned into a violent, assaulting douche bag who I wished someone had shot. Sadly, this doesn't happen. However, he does get his. And I loved just how that happened and who the person (or persons) were that saw to his demise.

Ryan. There is so much to say, and swoon over, when it comes to Ryan. When he meets Emily he doesn't hide his attraction, his lust for her. And surprisingly, nor does she. But slowly, and most assuradley, he sees that there is more to Emily than meets the eye. He knows there is a mystery there, secrets that are close to smothering her along with the responsibilities she has to carry as a result of things beyond her control, and soon wants more than just her body. He wants her. Body and soul, all of her. This is of course in direct conflict with his mission but he pursues Emily anyway. There was intrigue and suspense, murder and a lot of heartbreak. There was a woman trying to get between our hero and heroine, one who I wished was thrown in Newgate Prison just because of how mean, dastardly and in a way, evil she is. She cared not for the damage she left in her wake and her selfishness was obvious and deplorable. (As you can tell, I hated Ms. Turner. Hated her!) But through it all, while juggling tasks which could lead him to hang for being a spy, Ryan still looked out for his Emmie. He protected her even when she pushed him away and even when, on the surface it seemed that all hope for the two of them was lost. Ryan was a fantastic hero and has been added to my historical book boyfriend list. Seriously. The guy was alpha, hot, protective, sexy, and bad-ass in the best ways possible and I couldn't get enough of him.

And let me say a few words about Emily. I was worried when I started this book. Worried that, like several of the heroines I've read of in the last week, I'd be annoyed, frustrated and want to throttle her to pieces by the end of the book. I am thankful this was not the case. Not at all. Emily was a strong, independent, fierce, protective, loving and gorgeous woman, with only a small amount of recklessness thrown in. And in Emily's case, her recklessness I approved of 100 percent. I would have done the same in those circumstances for myself and the people I loved. She showed her cleverness and courage and for that, she was rewarded. She did she do what she had to save her family home, her sister's (and family's) reputation), and the love of her life, and she did it fearlessly, or as fearlessly as is possible when the threat of torture and hanging and looming. Emily stood up to French Captains, the King's men, spies, and villains; sacrificed her own happiness for that of those she loved, no matter the personal cost, and endangered her very life, all for the same reason. Love.

Devaux and Lucy were adorable and I loved seeing how their story played out. It was both adorable, sweet and I was happy to see that, in making her final preparations, Emily made sure that the two would have a secure future, unblemished by her "deeds" or "misdeeds" depending on which side you're on. In addition, the fierceness and loyally of Bridey and Mary, and Simon too, was heart-warming. They all risked so much to save Oak Hill, and each other, from ruin. They worked together and protected one another even though doing so risked all their lives.

The end was bittersweet in some ways, given the decision that is made, but also beautiful and in my opinion, perfect. I loved every second of it and I admit, I even gave a heavy, satisfied sigh at the end. I would have loved an epilogue though, to see how everyone fared after the final act, but only because I am an epilogue-loving fool and didn't want the story to end. I know, I'm a bit greedy like that.
The author's writing technique and style was excellent. I only saw one editing error (the word "save" was used instead of, I think "safe". Not trying to be nitpicky and of course such a small issue didn't detract from my rating one bit.) This is definitely a book I could read again and again, and plan to!

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

I think, after marinating on the book for a few hours after reading, I'll go with three stars. I liked it. I did. I just have a few issues with it.

First, let me say that I loved Jake. He was a strong, protective, not perfect, broody alpha who had his issues but once he realized what a catch Gracie was, he stopped messing around and went for it. Sure, there were miscommunications. And of course they argued. But they also felt an immediate attraction to each and, in their own way, explored that while all heck was breaking loose around them. This was because, I think, even though there is a pretty big suspense plot going on, the author does an excellent job balancing that with the hot romance between Jake and Gracie.

There were a couple things left unexplained or that got under my skin. First, at one point there's a pic of Jake and another woman on his computer. That's never discussed again. It seemed like it was placed there to maybe cause some jealousy or uncertainty, then, nothing.

But that wasn't too big a deal. The big deal for me which keeps this a 3 star book (which is a GOOD rating. It means I like it and I'll read more by this author, so don't take 3 as anything bad!). What kept me from hitting a 3.5 or 4 was that Gracie, too many times, drove me up a freakin wall. One minute she was boring plain Gracie, as she referred to herself. The next she was trying to use her looks and sex to get her way. (And this pissed me for a myriad of reasons.) The next she was keeping things from Jake and unsure whether she could trust him even though he never really gave her any indication that he couldn't. For example, when she mused about whether he might be a criminal, I was all, "What? With everything he's done and said how could you possibly think that?" He wasn't acting shady nor did he try to hurt her, so yeah this sudden, inexplicable "maybe he's a criminal too" bothered me.

And I get it. Gracie was scared, unsure of herself and falling in love. So it'd be normal she acted a bit erratic here and there. But sometimes, the things she did and the danger she put herself in (and by extension Jake) ticked me off. Thankfully, the story and rest of the character development is done well so I was able to look over my issues with Gracie. And by the end, she even grew on me a little bit.

Lastly, I didn't see the twist at the end coming. I don't know how I feel about it. It was definitely a good thing-keeping the reader guessing and such. But still. All that work, effort and putting Gracie in a huge amount of danger, and then it's just all easily wrapped up in a few pages.

Loved the epilogue though. It made me grin madly. Great epilogues can make or break for me and this one absolutely made it!

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

So, this book. Hmm. Not sure what to say really. I liked it. Or rather, I loved the hero, Marc. He was hot, broody, alpha and well worth all the swoons. The heroine on the other hand drove me a bit crazy.

First, the lying. Oh how I hate that in a book. I mean, part of it is Marc's fault too. He should have questioned her about just what the hell happened when she showed up at his house. But why the hell did she cower in front of him while also trying to get him to help her while also just being a damn liar about some pretty important facts?! That pissed me off. Marc should have known from the beginning about what had happened to her and why. Or at the very least, be way more pissed than he was when he found out.

Also, it was kinda weird that, even at the end, we see no sign of Alex. We hear about him through the heroine's thoughts and there is a "telepath" glimpse here and there with him and the Tory, but that's about it.

All in all, while I liked the action, there really were A LOT of parts I had to suspend my disbelief over. And I'm fine with that, being as in this genre I do that a lot. But some parts just, well, my mind was boggled at times.

Like at the end, did I miss it or as the two reconciled did Tory forget to tell Marc about the bun in the oven?! I read it three times and didn't see any mention of it other than before Marc got to the house. There was also no scene between Alex and Marc-idk, wouldn't that be important since Marc was in love with Alex's sister?!

And where the hell were the rest of the T-FLAC members?! How is it that Marc did all this on his own, without help or back up other than Angelo? That didn't fit either.

On the plus side, I did like Marc and Victoria together once they got past her being scared of her own shadow. And the tension (and sex itself) was pretty hot between the two.

So yeah, I wasn't overly impressed but I didn't hate it either. It was ok. Average. Meaning I will read more of this author. I will be reading more of this series, despite my issues with this book. I never just stop at the first (usually) since sometimes the first and second are hard as worlds and characters are being established. Guess we'll see how it goes with the next couple books!

2.5 stars. I really loved the romance aspect of this book but there were some issues I had with the book. At times, the writing style was overly descriptive and a bit, well, over the top. There were times that the narrative actually drowned out the action and romance, for me anyways, because I had to keep going back and sift through it all, multiple times. I know some love lots of description, I do too at times, but this, even for me, was a a bit much.

I will say however, that wading through the ocean of words was worth it for the story of Caspar and Nathaniel.

You can check you my full review on my blog: http://lostandfoundinfiction.com/2013/09/arc-review-in-his-command-by-rie-warren.html

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

This was a really short read, only about 10K words. But it was cute and warmed the heart. :)

Check out my full review on my blog at: http://lostandfoundinfiction.com/2013/09/arc-review-last-chance-summer-by-hope-ramsay.html

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own*

I'm waffling with this review and not sure whether I go with 2 or 3 so I'll hit it with a 2.5. (This means, for GR purposes, it gets rounded up to 3). Anyways, I liked this book and loved the story line itself. I know many who reviewed it thought the heroine acted too young for her 35 years, but I'd have to disagree. I'm 35 (though single and no kids) and if I ran into a guy like Slate, I can't say that I'd act very different. He'd have me all confused and tied up in knots and I'd probably act like a moron at times. Hot guys can do that to normally sane, rational women. I know this from experience. I didn't mind his bossiness either. Sure some of his demands were a bit outrageous but nothing out of the ordinary considering other BDSM stories I've read. (Note, there isn't any of this really; he's just a dominant guy, in and out of the bedroom.) And sure, he acted like a complete alpha-hole when he told her not to show up at his place unless he was there and said it was okay (among other alpha-hole behavior), but when all was revealed later on, some of those directives made sense too.

I hated Jack and this was one part of the story that I just couldn't get my head around and why this was a 2.5 and not a 3. Why in hell did she stay with him? I don't care what anyone said or about not letting Jack in on the fact Sammie knew something was up. The first time he hit me I'd have hightailed it out of there and lived out of my Mercedes. (and omg, when he raped her?! No. Just no freaking way! None of this "I'll sleep in a separate room with a lock" crap. No way. No how. Not only was that a stupid decision for her (and for the other person affected though I won't go into details b/c it's a major spoiler) but it also is a horrible lesson for her daughter. I'm not endangering myself or my loved ones because I want to get the upper hand with my douche bag husband. Nope. Not ever. Not ever, ever, EVER. And I hate seeing heroines engage in this behavior. It's a personal pet peeve of mine though and has nothing to do with the writing, style or book itself. I just, for my own reasons, have a hard time abiding by this type of thing. Yes, sometimes it can be in a way that doesn't make me lock myself in a closet; but most often, it's not.

The other thing that bothered me was Sammie never told Slate her name. He kept calling her Sunnie or Diamond Girl and after awhile it grated on my nerves. I know, I know. They were both keeping secrets. But it still went on for way too long. And how did Taz and Donovan not make the connection between Sammie and Slate?! *shakes head* Wouldn't they have had a picture of her in their file? That didn't make sense either.

Despite these issues, I still liked it enough to finish the book. And I will likely read more in this series at some point as I do want to see what happens with Lindsey and Taz. The writing was good, and has the potential to improve with time and experience. There weren't any glaring editing issues I saw that jarred me from the story either so that is a definite plus as well.

*This book was a self purchase. All opinions are my own.*

This was such a fun read. I love books where there is a great balance of humor and romance and this definitely had it. By the end of the book I fell in love with Invertary and its residents-even the eccentric ones! (Or maybe, especially the eccentric ones!) I also liked the message in this book. It's not all fun and games. Kirsty is dealing with some series issues which I go into more depth about in my review.

Check out my full review here and let me know what you think: http://crackedandbrokenglass.blogspot.com/2013/09/arc-review-lingerie-wars-by-janet.html

3.25 stars

Mother Nature can be a scary and powerful force. I can attest this myself, seeing my local community devastated by floods earlier this summer. And just look at what hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes and other forces of nature that can inflict tremendous damage on the world. When such things happen, it makes us all remember just how little control we, as humans, have over our environment.

Now imagine that somehow that power could be harnessed by those who want to cause terror and death around the globe? Scary, huh? Well that’s what this book deals with. The heroine, Svetlana, is a scientist who wrote her thesis on the power of tsunamis and the areas of the world that are vulnerable and could cause mass damage and casualties. Someone has taken her paper –which she wrote as a warning to show those in power, basically, that such vulnerabilities exist—and plans to use it for nefarious purposes. When the book opens we see the devastation that the “bad guys” can cause and we soon learn there is more where that came from.

Enter Jared, a CIA agent and former Special Forces member who just wants to retire so he can help his mother take care of his sister’s children. (His sister died several months before). Jared is tasked with finding Lana and determining whether she is on the evil plot, or just an innocent in all of it.
I’m sure you can imagine that sparks fly when these two meet. Not only is Lana appalled someone would use her research for evil, but she’s also super attracted Jared. And he’s attracted to her. But he has a job to do, so he needs to focus on saving the world, not making out with Lana. And soon, the two are on a plane to stop the baddies and save the world. And of course, if it all works out, fall in love.

This book was a really great mix of suspense, romance and action, and I found myself engaged in the plot (and with the characters) right up to the end. It’s not often that a romantic suspense book is actually written in a, well, suspenseful manner. Often they either drag in the middle, or resolve too quickly at the end, and I’m left unsatisfied. I am happy to say that this book does not leave me in such a state. The author did a great job writing a fast-paced and action packed adventure with a hot hero, a smart, sassy heroine who is no wimp, and a plot that seriously has me questioning ever going to an island again. (I was already more than a bit frightened by the power of the ocean. Now, yeah…I think I’ll stay on dry land!)

The writing was solid and I didn't find any editing errors that yanked me out of the story. In fact, I don’t think I noticed many –if any- at all. Usually I highlight them or something so I can prepare the review and looking back at the ARC, I don’t see anything. I am looking forward to reading more from this author, and definitely can't wait to read the second in this series.

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own*