Review: The Sixth Choice

The Sixth Choice by M.L. Buchman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Free in M.L. Buchman's Ides of Matt November 2018.

On his 17th birthday Hartane the Younger visits Cantel Kingdom's Lifemark Shop to choose his lifemark, his one special power or aptitude. Will he choose to be a mechanic like his father or a different path?

Rania shares a birthday with Hartane, as Cantel's princess she too has to choose her lifemark.

Together Rania and Hartane explore the meaning of lifemarks and choices.

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Review: A One Night Stand on a Planet with 3 Suns

A One Night Stand on a Planet with 3 Suns by Hanna Dare
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Free prequel novella from Hanna Dare.

How Jaime met Xin and got his coat. A sweet, funny novella.

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Review: Dues and Don'ts

Dues and Don'ts by Devon Monk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Free prequel novella https://www.devonmonk.com/freestory/

The story of how Ryder Bailey and Delaney Reed first meet again after Ryder returns to Ordinary, Oregon - the town where Gods and Goddesses vacation and the Reed family keep the peace.


All our favourites (Odin, Zeus, Crow) make an appearance.

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Review: The Wayward Prince

The Wayward Prince by Hanna Dare
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Captain Sebastian Garcia stole his ship, The Wayward Prince, from a young wealthy nobleman. Now the nobleman has grown some muscles and he wants his ship back. Prince Ren of Arcadia offers Sebastian a difficult choice, be prosecuted for stealing the ship or assist in the daring rescue (theft) of his planet's most treasured artefact, the Heart of Arcadia, which has been stolen.

Romance, space-heists, crewmembers who can speak to computers, sentient ships, mysterious pasts - this book has it all. Not as funny as the first book (IMHO) but still a great space caper. The ongoing Firefly comparisons remain valid.

On to book 3 (and the free prequel from Hanna Dare's subscription list).

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Review: To the Stars and Back: A Glittering Romantic Comedy

To the Stars and Back: A Glittering Romantic Comedy by Camilla Isley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

Lana is an eco-friendly rocket scientist Professor who doesn't watch TV. After catching her fiance and her best friend having an affair in a hotel she is having a bit of a weep in the janitor's closet when the World's Sexiest Man, actor Christian Slade also decides to hide from the paparazzi in the same closet. Intrigued by a woman who has no idea who he is, Christian is smitten but can romance really flourish between a Hollywood superstar and a down-to-earth 'normal' woman?

This was a sweet and engaging romance, even better it was a Kindle freebie.

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Review: Machine Metal Magic

Machine Metal Magic by Hanna Dare
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great sci-fi m/m romance in the Firefly mould.

Jaime Bashir is a wizard, a freak, a human that can interface with computers.. After an attack by the Purists on his training facility he's on the run until he gets captured by a group of pirates (sorry smugglers) and kidnapped to help them transport a mysterious cargo across the galaxy.

Romance, politics, space, AI, shenanigans and laughs - what more could you ask for? Loved it and about to start the second book in the series.

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Review: Love Repaired

Love Repaired by Deana Birch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

Amee is a divorce lawyer and is herself a divorced mother of two daughters. Shortly after her divorce her husband drove drunk and killed a man, now he's in prison. Now she feels like she is carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. Matters peak when she collects her car from the mechanic at the end of the day only to find the cupcakes she was supposed to give to her daughter's ballet camp are sitting on the passenger seat where she left them first thing in the morning.

Ben is the young, ripped mechanic who fixed Amee's car, he also ate one of the cupcakes - hey they looked amazing and Fridays are his cheat day when he can eat carbs. Amee can't believe this gorgeous guy is so kind, cares for his nephew, listens so well and sympathises with her, so much so that she nicknames him a unicorn (trust me that gets old really fast) and Ben nicknames her cupcake.

But aside from rampant lust can there be anything real between them given their age, income, professional and educational differences? Ben doesn't want this to be just a one-night stand, he's over that, he's looking for a wife and a family and he won't settle for less so he refuses to give into their animal attraction, forcing Amee to woo him.

This was a cute romantic comedy. There was a little too much repetition of unicorn and cupcake for my tastes and most of the female characters seemed a little overdrawn, too loud, too potty-mouthed, failing at life. Now while it's refreshing to have a wealthy successful professional career woman who is also a successful mother be the heroine in a novel, it did feel like she was the one who did everything wrong and Ben was (I'm gonna go there) the Unicorn that could do nothing wrong. It seems like sometimes women just don't want other women to have it all. Anyway, it's way early in the morning and this is straying wilding off-topic.

The star of this book is the cutest moppet ever, Amee's youngest daughter Shae, she deserves a star all to herself, with a vocabulary beyond her years and her huge collection of dolls she is a delight on the page.

If you love an opposites attract, tables are turned romance then this is the one for you.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Say Yes

Say Yes by Elle Kennedy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A spicy free novella from one of my favourite authors.

Emilia is maid of honour at her BFF's wedding, which is a bit of a surprise as they have fallen out of touch, nevertheless she has turned up to the wedding venue for three days of wedding madness. Emilia has arrived a day early and decided to use a hook-up app to find a friend for the night. She finds a companion with the unlikely name of Dirk and he rocks her world, unfortunately the next morning she realises that 'Dirk' is actually the Devon, the groom!!!

Because this is a really short novella (57 pages) I'm pretty sure you know the plot but it was cute, sexy and funny - all I want from a quick romantic read.

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Review: A Highlander Walks into a Bar

A Highlander Walks into a Bar by Laura Trentham
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 27%.

Isabel Buchanan and her mother run an annual Highland Games event in their town of Highland Georgia to help maintain their huge mansion, but this year her mother has returned from a holiday in Scotland with a Scottish guy in tow. Now her mother is besotted with her real-life highlander and neglecting the games leaving Isabel to organise everything herself.

Izzy's mother Rosie's boyfriend Gareth isn't who he seems, what seemed like a harmless deception in Scotland, pretending to be a gardener rather than the wealthy laird of the estate has become a concern now that he has followed Rosie to the US. Gareth's sister-in-law is concerned that Rosie is a gold-digger and has despatched her son Alasdair Blackmoor to extract his uncle from Georgia with all possible haste.

Alasdair is an Acquisitions and Development Risk Manager (nope, not a scooby), he's highly paid but his boss is an ass and he works ridiculous hours, he can't afford to babysit his uncle but when his mother gets a bee in his bonnet he has no option but to do as she commands. But when he gets to Highland he finds Izzy utterly charming in a wacky, ditzy way. But as he digs into Highland's finances he can't help but wonder if his mother's concerns are justified.

27% into this book and we don't seem to be getting anywhere. Alasdair lives and works in New York yet he and Izzy have the Scottish/American language confusion conversation. It just feels like groundhog day and I'm not seeing the humour - sorry maybe I'm having a sense of humour failure.

Overall, I must be honest I'm not a fan of any romance with kilts or a Scottish accent, I made an exception when requesting this ARC because it was set in Georgia but it plays to all the old Scottish stereotypes and I just wasn't feeling it.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Blueprint for Love

Blueprint for Love by Jenn Hughes
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Two and a half stars.

Marley is a divorced single mother. A former hacker and CIA nerd she has come to Port Bristol to start over and work with Sam, her BFF Lilian's husband in his new tech start-up. Byron Gallagher is a single father, he owns his own construction business and is looking to develop a block of apartments on the property next door to fund his daughter's future college dreams. Then Marley buys the property Byron has his eye on and it's all-out war between them - until Byron suggest a compromise that could make them both happy.

On paper this is absolutely my cup of tea, contemporary romantic comedy, opposites attract, nerd and the construction worker. Indeed, I actually enjoyed (most of) the plot. Unfortunately I really did not get Jenn Hughes' 'humour'. A grown woman and mother of a pre-teen should not need to use the word 'fork' instead of the four-letter expletive it sounds like, and certainly not 30 times in one novel! All of the humour was overblown and felt like it was written by a horny 12 year old boy. Don't even get me started on the use of the phrase 'her throbbing go-button' !! None of the characters, except maybe Byron felt real they were all 'characters' with no personal motivations other than furthering the plot.

Overall I felt Jenn Hughes just needed to tone it down a bit, stop repeating the same joke over and over again like a five year old and think about why the secondary characters behave the way they do - Marley's ex-husband is a case in point, he changed his attitude so fast he must have got whiplash - no character integrity.

However, underneath it all was a sweet small-town romance.


I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: One Summer Weekend

One Summer Weekend by Shannon Stacey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Noah Stafford told his boss he had a girlfriend to stop his boss' fiancé trying to set him up with girls. When making up a girlfriend of course you tell everyone it's your best friend Carly - one because it's the first name that springs to mind and two because you spend practically every waking moment of free time together.

Now Noah has been invited to his boss' destination wedding and he needs Carly to be his fake girlfriend, but when romance is in the air will these two friends find more?

This is a super short novella, its cute and fun but the length of the novella means that there isn't really any character development or plot development, even the resolution of the "issue" is a bit wham-bang thank-you ma'am.

Overall, it was pleasant but I wanted more.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: A Drop of Magic

A Drop of Magic by L.R. Braden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Alex Blackwood works in a bookstore and is also a metalsmith in her spare time, having some success selling her art in a local art gallery.

Following the Faerie Wars all fae have to be registered and live on a reservation unless they have a special licence to live outside but tensions remain high between the fae and the humans. A serial killer is on the loose, apparently randomly targeting unrelated people, and one of Alex's best friends has been murdered. It turns out her friend may have been half-fae and in possession of some mysterious fae artefact. Indeed, it turns out that all the victims were half-fae, entrusted with fae artifacts - is someone trying to amass power or start another war?

Soon Alex is embroiled in trying to track down the killer and avenge her friend's death, but not everyone is as they seem - who can she trust?

I thought this had some potential as the start of a new series, the world building of a contemporary world in which the fae are out in the open (although hidden by glamours) but other paranormal creatures are still considered myths was good. I liked the various factions and not knowing who to trust.

However, I can already foresee at least a love-triangle if not a love-square with some of the characters - apparently everyone finds Alex irresistible and she already possesses special talents (sigh). Also, there was so much world-building that at times concepts were just thrown into the mix and not really explored further - maybe they will be the main thrust of the second book?

I will definitely look out for the second book to see how this series develops.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.


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Review: The Cornish Cream Tea Bus

The Cornish Cream Tea Bus by Cressida McLaughlin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Spend the summer in an idyllic Cornish cove feasting on delectable cakes.

Charlie is a baker, when her beloved Uncle Hal leaves her Gertie, his vintage 1960s Routemaster bus in his will he gets a madcap idea to convert the bus into a mobile tea room and tour local shows and fetes advertising the bakery where she works in Ross-on-Wye. But after her first outing was less than spectacular Charlie's boss and friends persuade her to take a few weeks holiday with her best friend Juliette in the seaside village of Porthgolow.

Undeterred by her initial lack of success Charlie is determined to spend her holidays getting Gertie refurbished and starting up a business selling cream teas on the beach, however the owner of the luxury hotel and spa on the hill is less than pleased to see a tatty old bus in the local municipal car park.

Porthgolow might have a fabulous beach and amazing sunsets but the village itself is a little drab and unloved, there aren't many tourists and local businesses are flagging but Charlie loves it anyway and wants to help revive the village's fortunes.

There's cute kids, cute dogs, gorgeous food and a smidge of romance, perfect summer reading.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: The Kissing Contract

The Kissing Contract by Amy Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A private island, an unwanted inheritance, a benevolent gift and a whole load of fertile bunnies!

Marshall Dyson wants to open his grandfather's private island to single parent families to obliterate the memories of his past and his grandfather's inhumanity to the ground. Unfortunately a population of wild rabbits has grown on the island and the American Bunny League opposes his plans to eliminate them. Instead, a court orders Marshall to cooperate with the American Bunny League to humanely trap all of the rabbits and put them up for adoption. Much as he loathes the court's decision Marshall can't help his attraction to the American Bunny League's spokesperson, veterinarian Dr Augusta North. Now Marshall and Augusta are spending four weeks trapped on a small island, surrounded by horny bunny volunteers and lots and lots of rabbits.

This is a zany romantic comedy between a dedicated bunny scientist and a successful construction company CEO, full of sexual tension, smokin' hot smexy times and some of the cutest bunnies you could ever imagine. Loved it.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Sweep of the Blade

Sweep of the Blade by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

All the feels.

I read this as it was serialised but I can assure you this feels completely different.

A glorious romance between a kick-ass (mostly) human single mom (and her half-human, half-vampire five year old daughter) and the Marshal of one of the most powerful space-faring vampire clans complete with intrigue, politics, battles and aliens.

Loved it just as much as the first time, I have no words, Maud and Arland forever.

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Review: The Bookish Life of Nina Hill

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There have been a recent spate of contemporary novels' predominantly romances, in which one of the protagonists is, in layman's terms, somewhere on the autism spectrum. Whilst I have enjoyed these novels I did feel like it was the latest 'thing' that authors were using to make their novels different, so while I liked the blurb for this book I was also kind of dreading that jump on the bandwagon vibe. Luckily I was wrong.

Nina Hill might be more devoted to her carefully scheduled life of books, the bookshop where she works, her quiz team and her cat Phil but she has friends, it's just that as an only child she values her solitude. Okay, not everyone would schedule "nothing" as an actual activity once a week which cannot be missed, not even say for a date with a hot guy, but I think that just makes her a little eccentric.

Nina's quiz team "Book 'Em Danno"'s greatest rivals are "You're A Quizzard, Harry", Nina loathes (but also fancies) the rival team's captain, a big athletic looking guy who knows more about sports than Nina's team. Tom, her quizzing nemesis, turns out to be Nina's opposite, a man who rarely makes a plan but he also has the same sense of humour, likes the same nerdy films and seems really sweet, even if he doesn't read books.

Then Nina discovers that she is not an only child. Her mysterious father turns out to have been married three times (as well as having a short-lived affair with Nina's mother) and she now has half-siblings ranging in age from fifty-nine to ten, nephews, nieces, great nieces and great nephews. She has also inherited something from her father, who turns out to have been very wealthy, and so parts of her new family worry that she is a gold-digger.

This was sweet, funny and relatable, I love books and quizzes (although I don't pretend to the sort of in-depth knowledge that Nina possesses) and my idea of heaven is scheduling reading time. If you are looking for a quirky romance I can highly recommend this novel.

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Review: A Thief & A Gentlewoman

A Thief & A Gentlewoman by Clare Sager
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Quin Guldan is the daughter of a former favourite of the Sultan in the harem, but after the former Sultan died the first concubine assumed the throne as regent for her daughter and ruled harems outlawed. The child of the first concubine was declared legitimate and all children by lesser concubines were deemed illegitimate, the concubines fled and Quin's mother Livia went from wealth and luxury to living from hand to mouth on the streets.

Quin is a master of the long con, although she isn't averse to picking pockets and stealing trinkets from the rich, she favours fake engagements to wealthy lordlings who then are happy to pay non-existent blackmailers or other scams before she and her crew disappear into the night.

After years travelling she has returned to her home of Arianople under the name of Countess Quinta Sabia for her biggest con ever, she wants to trap one of the wealthiest Pasha's Atesh Shahin, cousin to the Queen into an engagement. But what starts as a standard seduction soon becomes real, Atesh seems immune to Quin's practised flirtation techniques but reacts positively when she shows him her true personality. Soon the lines between love and a con have become blurred, until a horrific murder and Atesh seems guilty - can Quin prove his innocence or will she save her own neck?

I enjoyed the world-building in this novel, the use of magic through playing cards that people hand-paint themselves to enhance attributes like stealth or hearing, the political machinations the detective plot and the exotic sabrecats which people use instead of horses.

In terms of plot, I felt the novel lagged a bit in the middle, there was a lot of investigation and fighting which was interrupted by dips into Quin's (and Atesh's) backstory, or by an explanation of the history of the playing cards which slowed the pace and distracted from the sense of urgency. I also felt the identity of the plotters was obvious from early on and couldn't believe that Quin and her friend/servant Derry didn't piece it together sooner.


But overall, this was an exciting swords, sorcery and magic story set in a fictional land similar to Turkeywith concubines, slaves, Sultans and Pashas. I look forward to reading the continuing adventures of Quin and Atesh and their loyal servants.

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Review: The Prenup

The Prenup by Lauren Layne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ten years ago Charlotte Spencer was desperate to escape her Upper East Side parents and their judgemental attitude so she agreed to marry her brother's nerdy friend Colin Walsh - she got access to her inheritance from her grandmother and he got a green card.

Fast forward to the present day and Charlotte has built a highly successful business selling social media skills to large multi-nationals from her base in San Francisco and Colin is a successful lawyer -and he wants a divorce. However, when they read their prenup they discover that Charlotte's brother (who wrote it as a favour ten years ago) inserted a clause which states they have to live together for three months before they can get a divorce.

This is the sort of zany comedy I love and which Lauren Layne can excel at, it reminds me of those old Doris Day films - all glamour and sass and gorgeous men. Of course Colin has an ulterior motive, of course when thrown together Charlotte and Colin are like chalk and cheese but there is a also a spark …

This is a perfect easy-reading, cheer-you-up, read on the beach summer romance.

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Review: Hooked On You

Hooked On You by Kate Meader
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Violet Vasquez is the illegitimate daughter of Clifford Chase, the result of her mother's scheming to net a wealthy NHL player/owner in a one-night stand in Las Vegas. Following his death Violet and her two half sisters jointly inherit the Chicago Rebels. Oldest sister Harper manages the Rebels, middle sister Isobel coaches some of the players but Violet drifts from job to job, never finding a career. Of course having cancer and a preemptive double mastectomy can mess with your head a bit too.

Bren St James is the captain of the Rebels. A divorced father of two little girls his life imploded after years of heavy drinking and he checked himself into rehab. He and Violet met when she first moved to Chicago, she was looking for a quick hook-up with a hot stranger following the reading of Clifford's will and he was sitting in a bar after leaving rehab, looking for some self-respect which wouldn't come from a random hook-up with a tattooed bad girl, even if every part of her appearance speaks deep into his soul. Then Bren found out that Violet was technically his boss, ever since then the two of them have been at loggerheads.

Now Bren's ex-wife needs to 'look after herself' and has checked herself into a facility leaving Bren to look after his two daughters alone. The Rebels rally round but it ends up with Violet acting as temporary nanny, can the two of them put aside their attraction (and their animosity) to co-parent two cute but difficult little girls?

Loved it, just loved it. Sassy heroine, sexy hero, cute kids, a dog and hockey!!

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Review: Nothing But This

Nothing But This by Natasha Anders
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Greyson Chapman made a terrible mistake. Believing himself sterile he was devastated when his new bride announced they were pregnant, already jealous of the easy friendship she had with his twin brother he leaps to a conclusion and accuses Libby of passing off another man's child as his own on the day his daughter Clara is born.

Libby leaves the hospital and eventually starts up a new cafe serving amazing desserts with her best friend Tina in the small town of Riversend (a setting for several of Natasha Anders' other novels). She might live alone with Clara in a ramshackle home with unreliable heating, water and electrics, have a new business with a business partner who seems disengaged and feel lonely but hopefully things will improve.

Less than 24 hours after voicing his suspicions Greyson realises he has allowed his natural insecurity and jealousy of his more popular, outgoing twin Harrison to jump to ridiculous conclusions. After trying to drown his sorrows Greyson determines to win his wife back no matter what but this uptight, buttoned-up, dour millionaire is going to have to pull out all the stops to get her forgiveness, especially since Libby doesn't even know all the details.

When I read the previous book in this series, More Than Anything I wasn't blown away by Tina and Harrison's story, mainly because I found Tina to be irritating but I was chomping on the bit to read Libby and Greyson's story and it didn't disappoint. Watching (well reading about) a three-piece suit wearing millionaire businessman changing baby nappies, trying to cook breakfast and repairing ancient plumbing was a joy to watch. If I was being really picky I would have liked more prologue to explain why Greyson and Libby got married, what prompted this reserved man to continually propose to Libby, even on their first date, and more about the self-doubt/jealousy that could lead Greyson to believe that his wife and twin could be having an affair - but I understand that this would delay getting to the more humorous part of the novel.

Overall, a charming, funny second-chance romance between a couple who married for all the wrong reasons and need to examine their lives closely before deciding whether they can take a second chance.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Undone By You

Undone By You by Kate Meader
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dante Moretti, a former player, is the first openly gay GM in the NHL, although his sexuality has estranged him from his New York Italian parents he could not live with the lies any longer. Now he has joined the Chicago Rebels, working for the Chase sisters who inherited the franchise after the death of their father.

Cade Burnett is a young player for the Rebels, Dante can't believe his eyes when he sees Cade in a private club for gay men, especially since he thought the gorgeous guy was dating one of the Chase sisters. Desperate to avoid Cade accidentally outing himself, or being outed by one of the members or employees Dante whisks him away from the club, he tries t remain strong despite being propositioned by one of the hottest guys he's ever seen.

This is a super hot m/m romance between two of the sexiest guys, I enjoyed the push and pull of Dante being 'out' and Cade being unwilling to disappoint his father any further (Texas guys play football not hockey) by outing himself. Oh, did I mention that Dante can cook too?

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Review: Accidental Lies

Accidental Lies by Dana Mason
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

DNF at 32%.

Emily's husband drowned four years ago and her brother has forced her to go on a week's holiday to Maui to rest and relax.

Drew is a widower with two small children, every summer he spends a few weeks on holiday in Maui while his in-laws have the children for the summer.

Drew and Emily agree to have a summer fling, the one condition that they don't share anything about their real lives: no jobs; no city of origin; no family; no pets, just fun and good times.

I was going along with this until Emily overhears Drew answer the phone to his daughter and when she asks who Hannah is, Drew outright lies and says that she is his roommate, he then compounds it by adding that he has two roommates. Emily then ups the ante by saying her last relationship ended badly - he freaking died!

I don't mind not telling each other things but outright lying? Unnecessary and just gave me the reason to ditch the book which wasn't engaging my attention anyway.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Fortuna Sworn

Fortuna Sworn by K.J. Sutton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fortuna Sworn is the last of her kind, what the Fae call a Nightmare. Her younger brother Damon disappeared two years ago and so when a strange Fae called Collith offers to take her to him, in exchange for her hand in marriage, she barely hesitates.

But when Fortuna descends into the Unseelie Court she finds her 'husband' is not who she thought he was and her brother is the willing slave to a vicious Fae. her only hope to release Damon is with the help of her servant Laurie, her dream friend Oliver and some of the human and shifter slaves in the court.

I enjoyed this, it sort of reminded me of Julie Kagawa's series the Iron Fey as Fortuna faces vicious, hostile Fae, but the three-way love/lust triangle (square?) between Fortuna, Collith, Oliver and Laurie doesn't bode well for future novels in the series.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Betraying the Billionaire

Betraying the Billionaire by Victoria Davies
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Three and a half stars.

Julian Worth is a foster-child turned self-made billionaire. Let down by people he loved in the past he has determined never to be hurt again. He feels that he is looked down on because of his humble origins so he decides to enter into a marriage of convenience, a strategic alliance with a rival family.

Holly Abbott is the quiet, bespectacled less glamorous of the Abbott twins, born shortly after the heir Lillian. But when Lillian disappears at a crucial moment Holly's father blackmails her into taking Lillian's place and pretending to be her sister to ensure the marriage, and the merger, takes place as planned.

Julian and Holly go on their first date with low expectations but neither finds the other to be as expected, can love survive deception?

Gah, I tried to change the edition in Goodreads and the computer ate my review! Anyway, although this felt quite old-fashioned to me, with the billionaire with a heart of gold and the overlooked younger twin, I have to say it is exactly what I was expecting based on the blurb and it delivered in abundance. Definitely one to read when you want to escape reality to a simpler time.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Want Me, Cowboy

Want Me, Cowboy by Sinclair Jayne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bull-rider Luke Wilder arrives in Marietta for the first time, the home of his maternal grandfather, as a temporary representative of the IBR to view bulls. He's not been in town five minutes before he's been fondled by a strange woman, knocked down by her beefy boyfriend, floored by his mother and discovered that the beefy stranger is none other than his hitherto unknown older brother, Cole.

Luke has always played second fiddle to his younger, more successful, some say prettier brother Kane but Luke has always preferred to compete on the smaller circuit, touring small town America, sleeping in his own bed four nights a week, if only everyone else would let him!

Tanner McTavish was a great barrel-rider until a devastating accident ended her career prematurely. Now she specialises in breeding championship bulls since her father's recent ATV accident which has required a long recovery. If she can only keep her cool around the new IBR guy, only her secret crush for years, all will be fine.

So, I'm putting this out there: cowboys; bull-riding; prettier twin; secret brother; interfering friends; dramatic mother; parade; dancing; irritating seniors; and romance - what more do you want from a cowboy romance?

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Review: Protect the Prince

Protect the Prince by Jennifer Estep
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Warning this will contain spoilers for the first book in the series.

At the end of the first book Everleigh Blair had fought and defeated her cousin Vasilia to become queen of Bellona, but just because she's queen doesn't make life any easier. The nobles are placing bets on how long she'll stay alive, Maeven and the Mortan's are trying to kill her, some of the nobles are plotting to marry her off (to their own sons of course), she is in love with Lucas Sullivan but he refuses to take their relationship further because he is only the illegitimate son of the king of Andvar. And of course everyone still believes that Evie is a mutt, with very little magical powers whereas we now know that she can neutralise other people's magic.

In order to protect Bellona from invasion by Andvar Evie needs to forge an alliance with Andvar, but the King hasn't forgiven Bellona for the murder of his younger son and his attendants when Vasilia ascended the throne of Bellona by massacring her own mother and the Bellonian court with the assistance of Mortan spies. So Evie and her friends travel to Andvar to try to persuade the King but Mortan assassins and spies are everywhere and Evie's presence may be doing more harm than good. Can Evie follow her heart, protect Bellona and weed out the Mortan assassins while negotiating a deal?

I love a traditional fantasy in which the poor downtrodden servant/belittled sibling turns out to have extraordinary powers, yet remains humble alongside lots of swords and sorcery type battles and this reminded very much of those, like the David Eddings series, heck even Harry Potter.

Loved this, devoured it in one day reading until 3:30 am and I can not wait for the third installment.

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Review: The Truth About Cowboys

The Truth About Cowboys by Lisa Renee Jones
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dallas hot-shot divorce lawyer finds her fiance in bed with his secretary (such a cliche) and torpedoes her career by insulting the firm's biggest client then runs away to write a book about divorce in small-town Texas. Unfortunately, the cottage she has rented from a sweet little old lady turns out to be owned by the little old lady's very sexy grandson and former baseball pitcher.

Granny is match-making but her grandson is having nothing to do with another city woman, not after his fiance stomped all over his heart when he gave up baseball to rescue the family farm after his parent's sudden deaths.

This is my first book by Lisa Renee Jones, although I recognise her name, but it won't be the last. It had everything you could possibly want from a cowboy romance: a grumpy but super sexy cowboy; a sassy heroine; small town charm; cookies; cowboy boots; romance and sass.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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Review: Good Guy

Good Guy by Kate Meader
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Levi Hunt is the Chicago Rebels hockey team's oldest rookie, having chosen to join the Green Berets rather than start his pro-hockey career out of college. He may be the strong silent type but he also volunteers at a homeless shelter and acts as a mentor to the younger rookies.

Jordan Cooke gets her big break from local sports when the opportunity comes to cover a fellow journalist's spot while he recovers from a heart attack, reporting on hockey, especially the Chicago Rebels for Chicago SportsNet. At the interview Jordan discovers that what gave her the edge was her previous association with Levi Hunt, her late husband's best friend and Green Berets team-mate, pity Chicago SportsNet don't know that Levi hates her guts. He never liked her, never thought she was good enough for Cookie, always had a sneer on his face, especially after she climbed him like a monkey the evening after Cookie's funeral. It may have been inappropriate and fuelled by grief but that steamy kiss five years ago still gets her a bit hot and bothered all these years later. But if an in-depth article on the Rebels' newest rookie is what they want Jordan will pull up her big girl panties and deliver it.

Levi doesn't hate Jordan, not even a little bit, not even at all (sorry, channelling Ten Things I Hate About You), he fell for her the first moment he heard her gorgeous laugh, but he was too slow and she only had eyes for his mate Cookie. Ever since then he has felt guilty for the feelings he has for his best friend's wife, but he never did anything about it, well not until after Cookie's funeral when there may have been a kiss which haunts Levi to this day. Now Jordan is back, digging into his private life that he wants to stay hidden, and just as beautiful as ever.

I always laugh when I see the titles of some of the category romances, you know the "Cowboy Sheikh Billionaire's Secret Baby" variety, but honestly I kind of see their point. Kate Meader had me at former special forces, best-friend's girl, sports-romance - when she threw in a dog I just about squealed with joy!

Reading about Jordan and Levi's romance as she tries to dig into his personality and he does all he can to resist her was pure joy, there's a backdrop of casual sexism and harassment which Jordan and the other women working in the sports world face on a daily basis, as well as some thoughts about letting women fight their own battles.

I loved this start to a new series and I can't believe I have missed three books from the last series - off to Amazon I trot!

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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