The Bottom Line by Aven Ellis

Title: The Bottom Line
Series: (Chicago on Ice, #4)
Author: Aven Ellis
Date Published: Oct 17, 2018

After landing her dream job as an assistant buyer for a luxury fashion retailer in Minneapolis, Taylor Hartigan’s life becomes a nightmare. Performing mundane tasks and catering to the ridiculous whims of the boss from hell, she sees no opportunity for advancement. Though she’s never quit anything in her life, Taylor walks out and heads home to Chicago, the city that holds her heart. With her confidence shaken and no job on the horizon, she knows she has to find herself again.

Once she arrives, she’s shocked to learn hockey player Hunter Riley has been traded to the Chicago Buffaloes. Taylor met Hunter the previous season when his hard-hitting play broke the glass in front of her. Meeting him after the game, something passed between them—and has stayed with her ever since. Since she’s followed his career, she knows he’s coming off a disastrous season in Houston and must rediscover his game in Chicago—or face losing his hockey dream.

The timing couldn’t be worse for the pair to become involved since they’re both at a crossroads but the chemistry between them can’t be denied. Taylor worries that their budding relationship won’t survive the challenges of rebuilding two broken careers. Can the new versions of themselves fit together? Or tear them apart?

Or will love be the bottom line, after all?

My Thoughts:

Keturah by Lisa Tawn Bergren

Title: Keturah
Series: The Sugar Barons Daughters
Author: Lisa T. Bergren

In 1772 England, Lady Keturah Banning Tomlinson and her sisters find themselves the heiresses of their father's estates and know they have one option: Go to the West Indies to save what is left of their heritage.

Although it flies against all the conventions for women of the time, they're determined to make their own way in the world. But once they arrive in the Caribbean, proper gender roles are the least of their concerns. On the infamous island of Nevis, the sisters discover the legacy of the legendary sugar barons has vastly declined--and that's just the start of 
what their eyes are opened to in this unfamiliar world. 

Keturah never intends to put herself at the mercy of a man again, but every man on the island seems to be trying to win her hand and, with it, the ownership of her plantation. She could desperately use an ally, but even an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend leaves her questioning his motives. 

Set on keeping her family together and saving her father's once-great plantation, can Keturah ever surrender her stubbornness and guarded heart to God and find the healing and love awaiting her? 

Reality Blurred by Aven Ellis

Title: Reality Blurred
Series: Rinkside in the Rockies, #2)
Author: Aven Ellis
Date Published: February 14, 2018

He lied to her. Fed her the same lines as he did all the other girls. Instead of proposing, he dumped her on national TV. Would a romance with a hockey superstar prove just as disastrous—or could it be the greatest love story of her life?

Cast as America’s reality show sweetheart after being jilted on a dating show, Skye Reeve is ready to stop being a brokenhearted woman by proving she’s more than what the camera portrayed her to be. She’s landed her dream job as a TV lifestyle reporter and promises to work hard to be a success.

Skye also vows never to be swept up in a fairy tale romance ever again, as she obviously has no clue what real love is.

Being in the same city as Denver Mountain Lions hockey star Maxime Laurent, however, might make this last goal impossible.

Dealing with ghosts from his own past, the Belgian hockey star is known for keeping his life off the ice private. He’s not sure if outgoing Skye could be a match for him, but he can’t deny his attraction to her.

When the two embark on a romance, will they be able to move forward from the past to let love into their hearts? With no reality blurred, will Skye find real-life love to be what she had been looking for all along?

My Thoughts: 

The Alloy Heart by Bo and Quinn Loftis

Title: The Alloy Heart
Author: Bo and Quinn Loftis
Date Published: June 20, 2017


In Victorian London, a mysterious organization known as the Mechanic’s Guild has discovered the secret to create extraordinary engines of war, granting the British Empire unprecedented power. The Guild’s enigmatic founder, Archimedes Tesla, uses this power to become one of the greatest men in the city, creating a kingdom filled with leather, lace, copper, and steel. Meanwhile, two young women are found murdered, each with mechanical hearts implanted in their chests where their natural organs should be. Inspector Thomas Hill, a member of London’s aristocracy, is tasked with finding the killer. Thomas enlists the aid of his childhood friend and now the youngest surgeon in London, Dr. Jackson Elliot, to help him unravel the mystery. Jackson is tragically tormented by his love for Thomas’ sister, Sophia, whose own heart is failing, beyond all medical help. Jackson will do anything in his power to save his precious Sophia. Could finding the killer hold the key to saving the woman he loves?

My Thoughts:

Nate by J.B. Morgan

Title: Nate
Series: Texas Jacks Novel, #1
Author: J.B. Morgan
Publisher: J.B. Morgan Publication
Date Published: April 6, 2017

Nate
When Nathan Jackson's world shattered, and fell out from under him, his two best friends were there to help pick up the pieces. There’s nothing that Nate wouldn’t do for them.

It’s been a few years since then, and Nate’s life seems pretty content between his friends, work, and his love of dirt bike racing. When Nate’s out on the track, he can let it all go, be free, and finally feel at peace.

But when it comes to relationships, Nate's not looking for anything long-term. He swears that love isn't worth the risk—until she walks through the doors of Texas Jack's.


Charlie
Charlotte Davenport knows that something has to give, or life will pass her by. It's time to add a little excitement to her routine. Charlie isn't expecting much, but with her friends at her side, she feels ready to break out of her shell. But something’s missing.

When she, and her friends, head out to Texas Jack's for a night of fun, Charlie meets him — Nathan Jackson. He just might be the man to help Charlie overcome her shyness, and shake up her world.

But first, Nate must be willing to let his guard down and take a chance on Charlie. And if that happens, can Charlie open herself up enough to let him in?

My Thoughts: 

Blog Tour, Giveaway & Review: Operation Prom Date by Cindi Madsen

We're celebrating the release of OPERATION PROM DATE by Cindi Madsen!

Title: Operation Prom Date

Author: Cindi Madsen 

Age: YA

Genre: Contemporary Romance/RomCom

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Goodreads

Amazon | BN | iBooks |  Google Play | Kobo

Blurb:

Kissing practice has never been more fun.
Kate ships tons of fictional couples, but IRL her OTP is her and Mick, the hot quarterback she’s crushed on since, like, forever. With only one semester left of senior year, it’s now or never if she wants to land him in time for prom. Since she’s flirtationally challenged, she enlists Cooper Callihan, the guy who turned popular seemingly overnight but who used to be a good friend.

Cooper lives and breathes rowing, but his partner just broke his wrist. When he remembers Kate’s good with a set of oars, he strikes a deal: help him train, and he’ll make sure her crush notices her. Only he didn’t know how addicting spending time with her would be. Or how the more successful the Operation is, the more jealousy he experiences.

The mission has been set. The troops have their marching orders. But what if the target is the wrong guy all along?

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains stargazing, accidental swimming, and poker swindling. This kissing practice will melt your ereader…and give you a new couple to ship.

My Thoughts:

Stranger in My Arms by Lisa Kleypas

Title: Stranger in My Arms
Series: standalone
Author: Lisa Kleypas
Publisher: Harper Collins
Date Published:
Rating: 4 Stars

"Lady Hawksworth, your husband is not dead..."
With these words, Lara's life turned upside down. Hunter, Earl of Hawksworth, had been lost at sea. Or so she'd been told. Their unhappy marriage -- with its cold caresses and passionless kisses -- was over. But now a powerful, virile man stood before her, telling secrets only a husband could know, and vowing she would once again be his wife in every way. While Lara couldn't deny that this man with the smoldering dark eyes resembled Hunter, he was attentive and loving in ways he never was before.

Soon she desperately wanted to believe, with every beat of her heart, that this stranger was truly her husband. But had this rake reformed-- or was Lara being seduced by a cunning stranger? 

My Thoughts: 

The Perfect Stranger by Anne Gracie

Title: The Perfect Stranger
Series: The Merridew Sisters, #3
Author: Anne Gracie
Publisher: Penguin Group USA
Date Published: June 6, 2006
Rating: 4 Stars

They vow to love, honor, cherish...

With her signature spirit, Faith Merridew has left everything she's ever known for the man she thought was the love of her life. Instead he leaves her name—and dreams—in the dust. That is, until she crosses paths with Nicholas Blacklock, a Waterloo veteran, who offers to save her reputation with a marriage of convenience.

...And then get to know one another.

A hardened soldier, Nick hides a deadly secret—and tries to keep Faith at arm's length. But even though Nick can command legions of men with a word, his orders go sweetly ignored by his convenient bride. And as they come to know one another more deeply, she brings out in him things he thought dead: gentleness, laughter...and love. 

My Thoughts:

Splintered by A.G. Howard

Title: Splintered
Series: Splintered, #1
Author: A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet Books
Date Published: January 1, 2013
Narrator: Rebecca Gibel
4 Stars

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence.

Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.

When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

My Thoughts (more like rambles?) :

Phantom Kiss by Chloe Neill

Title: Phantom Kiss
Series: Chicagoland Vampires, #12.5
Author: Chloe Neill
Publisher: InterMix
Date Published: January 17, 2017
4 Stars

n this all-new novella from the New York Times bestselling author of Midnight Marked, Merit, Ethan, and the rest of Cadogan House crew discover that not all undead creatures are kindred spirits…
 
Vampires generally aren’t afraid of things that go bump in the night, but Merit and Ethan are extra jumpy after a recent attack by a dark sorcerer. So when they learn that someone is messing with graves in Chicago’s cemeteries, stealing skulls and snatching souls, they fear that their powerful foe might be back for even more magical vengeance.
 
But after a specter begins haunting Cadogan House—and targeting vampires—they realize that they're being taunted by an altogether different sort of monster. A ghoulish villain straight out of the Windy City’s urban legends is on the prowl—and he won’t stop until he’s killed again...
 
Includes a sneak peek of Blade Bound, the epic final novel in the New York Times bestselling Chicagoland Vampires series.

My Thoughts:

Midnight Marked by Chloe Neill

Title: Midnight Marked
Series: Chicagoland Vampires, #12
Author: Chloe Neill
Publisher: NAL
Date Published: March 1, 2016
4 Stars

As the Chicagoland Vampires series continues, Merit and Ethan find themselves in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse, where winning may require the ultimate sacrifice...

A vampire’s grudges don’t stay dead long...

Merit is one of Chicago's most skilled vampire warriors; these days, she doesn't scare easily. But she and Master vampire Ethan have made a new and powerful enemy, and he won't give up until he owns the Windy City.

With his last plan thwarted, he's more determined than ever to watch Cadogan burn. Ethan has put the House's vampires on high alert, but their enemy will stop at nothing, including pitting vampire against vampire...

In this deadly game of cat-and-mouse, the stakes are life or death—and winning might mean sacrificing everything...

My Thoughts:

Review: Retreat by Jay Crownover

Title: Retreat
Series: Getaway, #1
Author: Jay Crownover
Date Published: December 28, 2016
Rating: 4 Stars

Every once in a while, you need to get away from it all.

I was a woman on the edge, shaken and shattered after a breakup that felt like it tore my entire world apart. 

My best friend, sick of watching me drown in misery and melancholy, harassed me until I agreed to go with her on a week-long wilderness retreat.

She promised days spent bonding and getting in touch with our inner bad-asses. 
It was supposed to be all about the two of us roughing it and making do with the bare minimum. She assured me we were going to be pushed to our limits in ways that were unimaginable. Neither one of us could have ever guessed just how right she was.

Nowhere in the glossy brochure did it say anything about the fact I was going to have to battle the insufferable but deliciously rugged and sexy trail guide instead of the elements. The brochure also forgot to mention the part that warned when you left civilization behind, there was no place to pack your inhibitions and fears.

I was told that I would be facing a week where the only thing I should expect was the unexpected. However, no one mentioned that I was going to have to fight for my life…and my heart as soon as I ventured into the unknown. 

I was a pro at hiding from my feelings but when it came time to face a real threat, one that could change everything, I learned I was more of a no surrender, no retreat kind of girl.

Retreat is a standalone novel, the first in the Getaway series which centers on the hardheaded and brokenhearted Warner brothers and the women that dare to love them.

These boys are very good at putting the wild in wilderness.

My Thoughts: 

The Trouble with Angels by Debbie Macomber

Title: The Trouble with Angels
Series: Angels Everywhere, #2
Author: Debbie Macomber
Publisher: Harper Collins
Date (originally) Published:
November 1, 1995

A Wing and a Prayer

When irrepressible angels Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy set out for the City of Angels to grant three rush Christmas prayer requests, they are sure they can help without resorting to, er, divine intervention. But they soon find it will take more than one miracle to teach their precious lessons of love--as well as make three special holiday dreams come true! 

My Thoughts:

A Season of Angels by Debbie Macomber

Title: A Season of Angels
Series: Angels Everywhere, #1
Author: Debbie Macomber
Publisher: Harper Collins
Date (originally) Published:
Dec 28, 1993

Wishes for love bring hope from above.

Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy—three willing but sometimes wayward angels—are each given someone's prayer to answer . . .

Shirley: She's sent to help nine-year-old Timmy Potter, who longs for a new father. And although his mother, Jody, has vowed never to trust any man, Shirley is determined to help her love again.

Goodness: She knows Monica Fischer longs for a husband and home of her own, but the young woman has practically given up on finding the right man to stand by her side . . . until Goodness steps in to help.

Mercy: Can Mercy bring hope back into Leah Lundberg's life? This maternity nurse desperately wants a child to fill up the home she's made with her husband, Andrew.

But there's just one catch: Each angel must teach her charge a memorable lesson before the prayer can be granted . . .

My Thoughts: 

Review: The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: The Problem with Forever
Series: (standalone)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Date Published: May 17, 2016
Publisher: Harlequin Teen

For some people, silence is a weapon. For Mallory “Mouse” Dodge, it’s a shield. Growing up, she learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime.

Now, after years of homeschooling with loving adoptive parents, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at public high school. But of all the terrifying and exhilarating scenarios she’s imagined, there’s one she never dreamed of—that she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.

It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet the deeper their bond grows, the more it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with the lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory faces a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants, and the truths that need to be heard. 

Bound by Flames by Jeaniene Frost

Title: Bound by Flames
Series: Night Prince, #3
Author: Jeaniene Frost
Date Published: January 27, 2015
Publisher: Avon

Play with fire, pay the price.

Leila’s years on the carnie circuit were certainly an education. What she didn’t learn: how to be a vampire, or how to be married to the most famous vampire of them all. Adjusting to both has Leila teetering on a knife edge between passion and peril, and now the real danger is about to begin…

Vlad must battle with a centuries-old enemy whose reach stretches across continents and whose strength equals his own. It isn’t like Vlad to feel fear, but he does…for Leila, because his enemy knows she is Vlad’s greatest weakness. As friend and foe alike align against him—and his overprotectiveness drives Leila away—Vlad’s love for his new bride could be the very thing that dooms them both… 

Review: Moonlight on Nightingale Way by Samantha Young

Title: Moonlight on Nightingale Way
Series: On Dublin Street, # 6
Author: Samantha Young
Date Published: June 2, 2015
Publisher: NAL
Rating: 4 Stars

Logan from Echoes of Scotland Street is back with his own smoldering story, as the New York Times bestselling On Dublin Street series returns…

Logan spent two years paying for the mistakes he made. Now, he’s ready to start over. He has a great apartment, a good job, and plenty of women to distract him from his past. And one woman who is driving him to distraction…

Grace escaped her manipulative family by moving to a new city. Her new life, made to suit her own needs, is almost perfect. All she needs to do is find her Mr. Right—or at least figure out a way to ignore her irresistible yet annoying womanizer of a neighbor.

Grace is determined to have nothing to do with Logan until a life-changing surprise slowly begins turning the wild heartbreaker into exactly the kind of strong, stable man she’s been searching for. Only just when she begins to give into his charms, her own messy past threatens to derail everything they’ve worked to build…

Review: Power Play by Sophia Henry

Title: Power Play
Series: Pilots Hockey, #2
Author: Sophia Henry
Publisher: Flirt
Date Published: February 16, 2016

In Sophia Henry’s blistering follow-up to Delayed Penalty, hailed as “sexy, fun, and full of angst” by L. P. Dover, a good girl and a hockey hunk face off against expectations—and this match is guaranteed to see plenty of action.
 
Beneath her innocent facade, Gabriella Bertucci has her reasons to be standoffish with guys. Especially guys like Landon Taylor, a star defenseman on the minor-league Detroit Pilots and the object of a serious crush since he first walked into her family’s market. But when Landon comes through for her in a moment of crisis, Gaby starts to wonder if there might be more to Landon than hard muscles and fast skates.

Landon isn’t afraid of telling Gaby that he’s got it for her bad. The problem is, she seems unwilling to believe it. And though Landon enjoys his reputation as a cool-headed athlete, he hates losing—both on the rink and off. It’s his competitiveness that makes him so damn good at what he does . . . but it also makes him just a little bit complicated.

One minute Gaby’s tempted to give in; the next, she’s getting cold feet. How can she trust a guy who’s destined for bigger and better things to stick around? Then again, when Landon pulls her close with those powerful arms, the only thing that matters is right now.

Review: Jewel of Darkness by Quinn Loftis

Title: Jewel of Darkness
Series: Gypsy Healers, #3
Author: Quinn Loftis
Date Published: December 29, 2015

Dalton Black never thought he'd find his true mate. His dark past convinced him that he could never be worthy of one, but the Great Luna did not agree. She saw fit to give him a gypsy healer, the purest of heart among their kind. And now that he's finally found her, she slips through his grasp and into the hands of Volcan, a corrupt high fae driven mad by his own need for power. Now Dalton, with help from his own powerful friends, must find Jewel and rescue her before Volcan can use her blood to create witches and once again throw off the balance of good and evil.
As their journey begins, Perizada will once again lead a group of wolves on a hunt to bring down evil, but little do they know that Volcan is just a drop of blood in the sea of supernatural beings about to darken their path.

Review: F*ck Love by Tarryn Fisher

Title: F*ck Love
Author: Tarryn Fisher
Series: Standalone
Date Published: December 31, 2015

Helena Conway has fallen in love.
Unwillingly. Unwittingly.
But not unprovoked.
Kit Isley is everything she’s not—unstructured, untethered,
and not even a little bit careful.
It could all be so beautiful … if he wasn’t dating her best friend.
Helena must defy her heart, do the right thing, and think of others.
Until she doesn’t.