Category Archives: Romance

Hex in High Heels

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Jake’s past is finally catching up to him.  His former pack has moved into the resort next door to town.  His mother has set eyes up on the two witches who have lived there for at least a hundred years, Stasi and Blair.  Of course, Blair is a more interesting prey as she seems to have encouraged an interest in Jake which his mother does not approve of at all.

51o-XgMfVIL._SL160_ Now Jake hasn’t wanted anything to do with his pack for quite some time.  He left them, and believed they left him as he is not like the rest of them.  (Saying what that is, would be telling.)  He is the family black sheep, or so it seemed.  He smells trouble on the wind and wants to keep his favorite witch, Blair, out of the way.

Blair, of course, has different intentions.  Matters are not helped when the town starts creating more magical trouble by hiring elves for their winter festival from the most disreputable supernatural temp agency around.  The elves that show up are not as advertised, but Agnes, the town busybody, seems determined to bring the supernatural forces to heel much to the chagrin of Blair and Stasi.

Did I mention those loveable bunny slippers, Fluff and Puff are spending some quality time with Blair?  This adds a whole new dimension of trouble with weres, elves, and witches running around.

Hex in High Heels by Linda Wisdom is a wonderful summer read.  Nothing too serious or taxing, a number of grins, and a good time for the reader.  Wisdom’s books really do keep improving and I am anxious for the next book after reading the tantalizing teaser at the end. 

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The Renegade Hunter

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41xsSyPFa-LThe Renegade Hunter: A Rogue Hunter Novel (Argeneau Rogue Hunter 3) by Lynsay Sands is the latest in the Argenau Vampire series. This book follows Nicholas – the rogue hunter introduced in the last book – with the dark past. Supposedly he killed a pregnant woman some 40 years earlier and has been on the run since.

The book opens with Nicholas staking out a party at the new hunter headquarters as he has been following a various dangerous, possibly insane, rogue, Ernie. The party is for Sam’s sisters in an attempt to find them lifemates among the various immortals. Her youngest sister takes a fateful walk around the compound where Ernie attempts to take her life and Nicholas saves her – at the expense of being caught by the other hunters.

The story follows the general formula of Sands’ other Argenau books with Jo putting herself in danger and Nicholas repeatedly saving her. The ending is very, very unsatisfactory as though we are told that Nicholas didn’t really murder the woman from 40 years ago we get no resolution in the novel over that continuing theme through half the book. This is very disappointing.

The Renegade Hunter: A Rogue Hunter Novel (Argeneau Rogue Hunter 3) is a decent but not great addition to the Argenau series. Perhaps Lynsay Sands needs to step away from these characters for a little bit and come back when she feels refreshed. Or, perhaps her publisher should let her complete a plot within a single book since readers were used to that in her previous (best-selling) books.

Me and My Shadow (Silver Dragons, Book 3)

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51n96R8g6eLMe and My Shadow (Silver Dragons, Book 3) by Katie MacAlister would have been better if it had been about May instead of constantly going back to Aisling’s pregnancy. I picked this up to read about May not Aisling. I understand that there is some intersection, but adding the entourage from Aisling’s series just made for too many characters to keep track of for what is supposed to be very light reading.

That isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy the parts that had May in it. I did. May finds herself trying to rid herself of the dragon shard while deciding just who she is. Matters are not helped when she finds that as consort to one of the former prince’s of Abaddon, she is given responsibility for him and his powers. She does come up with a rather unusual and entertaining solution to that problem.

Now, since Aisling’s entourage is part of the story, Drake’s mother makes an appearance. She is intrigued by Magoth, and he by her. While I enjoyed Me and My Shadow (Silver Dragons, Book 3), it felt off compared to the other dragon books.

Curse the Dark (Audiobook)

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Curse the Dark (Retrievers, Book 2) by Laura Anne Gilman, read by Emma Woodbine, is the second book dealing with the business of The Wren and Sergei.

51VCbq07CxLIn Curse the Dark (Retrievers, Book 2), The Silence calls in its chit and asks Wren to retrieve a very dangerous manuscript. She and Sergei find themselves traveling to Italy where, while they settle some of their own tension, tensions rise back in New York among the magical folk. And, through PB – Wren’s demon friend – Wren is being drawn in despite everything she has ever said about avoiding politics.

Danger seems to be seeking everyone in New York. Danger also seems to be attracted to New York through impossible means. Factions of the fatae, The Council, lonejacks, and The Silence all seem to have agendas that may be causing more trouble than helping.

None of this is helped by the oppressive heat that is baking the city. How is a Retriever supposed to further her own career goals when everyone seems so short-tempered and insistent in involving her in their dealings?

This is a fun listen. Curse the Dark (Retrievers, Book 2) is not great literature, but it is a nice diversion.

The Accidental Demon Slayer

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The Accidental Demon Slayer by Angie Fox is a major disappointment. I wanted to like this book. It had an interesting concept but there was an underlying meanness to the book and its characters that I had a lot of trouble getting past.

51FW77h8qGLThe main character, Lizzie becomes unlikable and unbelievably inconsistent as the story wears on. First, she indicates that she figures her biological family was probably nuts and thus never wanted to find them. As time wears on, she suddenly seems to seethe with resentment towards her adoptive parents and have trust in a group of people who have been nothing but abusive to her in the few days since she met them! Make no mistake, the way she is treated is just plain abusive.

I had a great deal of trouble getting past that. The last thing the world needs is yet another glorification of someone being abused into being someone great. The novel indicates that the constant berating Lizzie undergoes at the hands of the various characters in the “biker roadkill witches’ coven” is responsible for transforming her into a kick-ass demon slayer. Huh? This is a group that literally physically beats her up while trying to kill her and she starts believing they are her real family? WTF?

Not only is the white trash biker coven physically abusive, they refuse to give her a straight answer about anything and then she muses that they have been “nothing but honest”?!!??!?!

Avoid this book! Do not encourage such books to be written. The glorification of abuse in any form is a bad thing.

Wicked by Any Other Name

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51dqq8jXj0LWicked by Any Other Name by Linda Wisdom centers around Jazz’s friends Stasi and Blair. Stasi finds herself being summoned to Wizard’s Court by fellow townie Carrie who blames Stasi for her husband leaving her.

Now Carrie is no sympathetic figure but she manages to get one Trevor Barnes to represent her in Wizard’s Court. The Wizard Lawyer has no idea what has hit him when stars appear above Stasi once he lays eyes on her.

Stasi can’t believe Cupid is serious with this particular arrangement. A witch does not fall in love with a wizard – they just don’t mix. Of course, she has been being wooed by the new bakery’s owner, Reed. For some reason he just will not be rebuffed. Whose bed does she find herself in?

Blair has been finding herself allowing her heart to allow a stray collie to share her bed and steal her covers while she is trying to capture one Jake, the handyman. Of course, her talents don’t fall in line with capturing a man’s heart as she sends all sorts of mixed signals. Of course, Jake is keeping secrets of his own.

Linda Wisdom’s Wicked by Any Other Name is a wonderful read for a leisurely late summer afternoon. Witches and wizards as you would never expect to see them. As light as this romance is, it is still a pretty well written and well-imagined world that can pull you in and keep your attention.

The Lords of the Underworld : The Darkest Kiss (Audiobook)

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51raP-t5WGLThe Darkest Kiss (Lords of the Underworld, Book 2) by Gena Showalter read by Max Bellmore is a fun listen with lots of distracting (in the good way) text.

We find the minor Greek goddess Anya pursuing Lucien. She is utterly fascinated by the scarred warrior and cannot remove him from her mind.

Anya has a problem. Chronos has declared she either give him the key her father entrusted her with, or, Lucien, the embodiment of death, must kill her. She, however, cannot be separated from the key without losing everything that makes her who she is.

Anya joins forces with Lucien and the other Lords to find weapons that may allow them to defeat Chronos. The Lords are finding life under the new regime much harder than anticipated. Zeus may have been bad, but Chronos is even more paranoid and demanding.

This installment has us watching Anya and Lucien in a race against time to find an artifact to use against Chronos. The plot may be simple, but this makes it a great listen while knitting, cleaning, or doing any activity that doesn’t take too much concentration.

Crimson Rogue (Audiobook)

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Rebecca Rogers reads Liz Maverick’s Crimson Rogue (Crimson City) with such relish that the listener feels as if she a participant in the action. Cyd, the scientist and B-ops operative that disappeared into Orcus at the series start returns to find both she and Crimson City have changed in unimaginable ways.

41R0PAYS2ZLSeeking refuge, and trying to rely on her former good graces among Crimson City’s underground, Cyd finds herself begging for work from the mysterious Finn – the mech who went off-grid in the first book. Both Finn and Cyd are keeping deadly secrets that could get not only themselves killed, but could endanger everyone in Crimson City.

As their own romance heats up, new alliances and enemies rear their heads. Who can these two trust? Who are their enemies? Each must find their way through shifting alliances to trusting one another.

Crimson Rogue (Crimson City) is a fun read for a summer’s afternoon. It is an even more fun listen while knitting away the day. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good action romance.

The Immortal Hunter

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41mgtByvFMLThe Immortal Hunter: A Rogue Hunter Novel (Argeneau Vampires) is the latest novel in Lynsay Sands Argeneau Vampires series. Decker Argeneau/Pimms has been roped into working during his supposed vacation. It seems they have found clues to a rogue vampire who has given them the slip for decades – Nicholas Argeneau. Or, did Nicholas leave those clues to be found?

Decker and the younger vampire, Justin follow Nicholas into a den of kidnappers and torturers who are feeding off unsuspecting mortals. Danielle McGill and her sister, Stephanie, are being held captive by the brutes and Decker rushes in to save them. Of course, Decker finds that he cannot read Dr. Dani McGill – much to Justin’s amusement.

The story is formulaic, but perfect for a beach read. It also has a darker undertone than many of Sands’ earlier novels. It was amusing seeing Decker muck up his meet-up with his lifemate. Especially remembering how he swore he would not be that bad as he watched older and more staid vampires / immortals fail to be their normal suave selves when they met their lifemates.

There, was, of course, as is becoming increasingly common, a number of loose ends where the ending should be. The reader knows more than the protagonists because memories are erased. Just how will Stephanie and Danielle adapt to being involved with the vampire / immortal world?

The Immortal Hunter: A Rogue Hunter Novel (Argeneau Vampires) is worth reading. It felt like Sands, who had lost some of her footing in some of her more recent Argeneau books, finally found it once again. I cared what happened to the characters and rooted for them. Something that was missing in some of her more recent entries in the Argeneau series.

Barbie & the Beast

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Looking for a good beach read during your leisurely summer break? Barbie & The Beast (Love Spell Paranormal Romance) by Linda Thomas-Sundstrom is a good bet.

51Htr6+EoaLBarbie and her best friend forever (bff), Angie, are looking for a man. This, of course, brings them to a Miami cemetery late at night where Darin, a werewolf, is the night watchman.

Darin just can’t resist this lovely woman who has stumbled into his world and pursues her in a most gentlemanly way – after an inauspicious meeting. Of course, Barbie, won’t cooperate with him as she jumps to a number of wrong conclusions from Darin’s attempts to keep her from learning his secret.

Angie, of course, pushes Barbie to seek other opportunities once Barbie decides that Darin is nothing but a cad. After all, what man runs off from a heated date just because the moon starts rising? And who was that little blonde he was talking to in the cemetery?

Barbie & The Beast (Love Spell Paranormal Romance) is a fun little book that ends with an opening for a sequel without leaving the reader unsatisfied with the current story. (An art lost on many authors, I fear.)