Tuesday 30 October 2018

Book Review: Book Love by Debbie Tung

About the Book





Bookworms rejoice! These charming comics capture exactly what it feels like to be head-over-heels for hardcovers.


Book Love is a gift book of comics tailor-made for tea-sipping, spine-sniffing, book-hoarding bibliophiles. Debbie Tung’s comics are humorous and instantly recognizable—making readers laugh while precisely conveying the thoughts and habits of book nerds. Book Love is the ideal gift to let a book lover know they’re understood and appreciated. 

Publication Date: 01 January 2019


My Thoughts

Utterly delightful!

This charming volume of comics is ideal for book lovers, for people trying to understand readers and for people wondering why reading is magical . There was not one comic in this volume that did not resonate with me.

The illustrations are varied and the characters are portrayed in a congenial manner. I want these characters as friends.

An ideal gift or better yet, treat yourself.

Review copy courtesy of Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing


About the Author



Debbie Tung is an illustrator and comic creator from Birmingham, England. She has a Bachelor in Fashion Design and Master in Computer Science.  Having worked full time as a programmer, she decided to embark on more creative projects to fulfill her lifelong dream of having an artistic career. Her work is inspired by events from everyday life, personal experiences and the beauty of ordinary things in the world. She also has an obsession with sketchbooks, stationery and tea.


http://debbietung.com/ 

New Release: MUFFIN TOP by Avery Flynn

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“Smart, sassy, and utterly delightful! Get ready to fall head-over-heels in love with Lucy, one of the wittiest and most inspiring heroines I’ve ever met!” - Annika Martin New York Times bestselling author


Muffin Top, a hot romantic comedy from USA Today bestselling author Avery Flynn is available now!


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The only thing about me that’s a size zero is the filter on my mouth. I’ve got a big personality, a big rack, and a big number on the scale. And I’m perfectly fine with that.
But when some random guy suggests I might not be eating alone if I’d ordered a salad instead of a hamburger I’m shocked silent, which is a feat, trust me.
That brings us to one sexy fireman named Frankie Hartigan. He’s hot. He’s funny… And he’s just apologized for being late for our “date” then glared at the fat-shaming jerk. Next thing I know, he’s sitting down and ordering himself dinner.
I have no problem telling him I don’t need a pity date . . . unless of course it’s to my high school reunion next week. Oops where did that last bit come from? And what do I do now that he’s said yes?!
Because this is no make-over story, and I think Frankie is using me for something. I just have to figure out what…


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Download your copy today! 
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2CG0Oqm iBooks: https://apple.co/2Qm9apZ 
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/MuffinTopAF 
Nook: http://bit.ly/2Mk8OwN Kobo: http://bit.ly/2NxIpQQ 
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2QjKVsp
Add to GoodReads: http://bit.ly/2O8JAmS


About Avery

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USA Today bestselling romance author Avery Flynn has three slightly-wild children, loves a hockey-addicted husband and is desperately hoping someone invents the coffee IV drip. She fell in love with romance while reading Johanna Lindsey’s Mallory books. It wasn’t long before Avery had read through all the romance offerings at her local library. Needing a romance fix, she turned to Harlequin’s four books a month home delivery service to ease the withdrawal symptoms. That worked for a short time, but it wasn’t long before the local book stores’ staffs knew her by name. 

Avery was a reader before she was a writer and hopes to always be both. She loves to write about smartass alpha heroes who are as good with a quip as they are with their *ahem* other God-given talents. Her heroines are feisty, fierce and fantastic. Brainy and brave, these ladies know how to stand on their own two feet and knock the bad guys off theirs.


Connect with Avery
Instagram: @AveryFlynn https://www.instagram.com/averyflynn/ 
Website: http://averyflynn.com 
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/avery-flynn 
Mailing List: http://averyflynn.com/newsletter/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AveryFlynnAuthor/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/averyflynn 
GoodReads: https://bit.ly/2f1waY4 
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/averyflynnbooks/ 
Join the Flynnbots: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Flynnbots/

New Release Book Review (& Excerpt): FOR TODAY by B. Cranford


First comes love. Then comes marriage.
And after that? It doesn't matter.
As long as they're together.


Title: For Today
Series: The Avenue #3
Author: B. Cranford
Release Date: October 29, 2018


Seventeen Years Ago. The first time Aaron Andrews saw Simon Foster smile, he knew he was in trouble. He’d never seen anything—or anyone—like the man who’d stolen his favorite seat in his favorite coffee shop.

Six Weeks Ago. The late-night phone call that changed their lives forever was short. Four little words was all it took to set them on a different path—one that included new toys (not that kind), a dose of homophobia (been there), and an appreciation for spandex (though they always appreciated it . . .)

Today. That’s what Aaron and Simon are focused on as they try to plan the best birthday in the history of ever, all for the little boy who has quickly become their world. Even if that means dealing with too-tight costumes, a cape that won’t behave, a meddlesome family . . .

. . . and a past that won’t stay there.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40389591-for-today


FREE with Kindle Unlimited




I did so much sighing while reading this book because these two are just too adorable for words. I want to sit across from them and just gush and bask in their togetherness. 

FOR TODAY spans eighteen years in the life of Aaron Andrews and Simon Foster. There’s a strong connection from the start and I appreciated that they rarely lose confidence in each other. Their bond is strong and just gets stronger over time. 

The themes of acceptance and the meaning of family are explored in a meaningful manner in this book. Aaron may come from a nuclear family but his parents refuse to accept his sexuality. Conversely, Simon has few family members but the support he gets from them is never in question. 

I loved the scenes between Andrew and his siblings (Ashton and Aussie) because their love and support for each other remains true and strong. The siblings, along with their partners (the main characters from the other series books) offer comic relief throughout the book but the part that made me laugh out the loudest was Aaron stepping on a Lego piece. I truly felt his pain but it didn’t stop me from laughing.

We do get to see a lot of Aaron and Simon in previous books but I did not feel this book was repetitive. It shone a different light on this loving and seriously hot relationship. 




“Are you okay?” Simon asked, reaching over the table and resting a hand on Aaron’s. The contact was literally electric, a shock jolting the visual clear, and Aaron nodded fervently.

“Yeah, sorry, I, ahh . . .” Shit. He trailed off unsure what to say.

“Was it because I said I was glad you were nervous? I only said that because I am too, and didn’t want to be all nervy alone.”

“No, no, I got that. No problem.” He shrugged, feeling like his arms were no longer under his control. “I was thinking about your smile,” he offered his date, wanting to give the man the truth but maybe not the whole truth.

Which was surprising, considering that he was usually all about the overshare.

“In a good way, right? Not in a creepy way?” Simon asked with mock fear on his face, and joined Aaron when he began laughing.

“What, like the Joker?” Aaron asked, thinking of the gruesome, stretched smile of Batman’s foe. “Why so serious, Simon?”

“Well, this night took a turn.”

“Yeah, that’s probably something you should know about me,” Aaron admitted, grimacing a little.

“What do you mean?”

“You might have noticed that, ahh, I have a tendency to, umm, you know, sort of, redirect conversations.”

“To killer clown smiles?”

“Honestly, it’s usually to sex. Or sex-adjacent.”

“Sex-adjacent?” Simon tilted his head with the question, clearly trying to figure out what he was talking about.

“Yeah, like sex jokes. Sex positions. Sex stories.” He tapped the front of his forehead. “I have a dirty mind.”

“I hope you’re not afraid to use it,” Simon countered, making it clear that the idea of Aaron’s dirty mind was not a problem in the slightest.

“I’m usually not. With you, though . . .” He trailed off again, taking a deep breath and committing to what his mind was trying to get his mouth to admit. “With you, I find myself wanting to say different things, in the hopes I won’t scare you off.”

“It takes more than a dirty mind to scare me off someone I like.”

“Such as?”

“Any kind of lair is probably questionable. I mean, no one ever has a good lair; it’s always an evil one. People who hate puppies and like bell peppers are also on the no list.”

“Wait, that’s kind of specific. Hate puppies and like bell peppers? Like, if I hate both, or like both, I’m okay?”

“Huh?”

“What if I love puppies, but also like bell peppers? Does that make me a no? I could learn to hate bell peppers for you.” Aaron opened his eyes with what he hoped was earnestness. Feigned earnestness, though, because he really didn’t like bell peppers.

“Well, if you’re willing to train yourself away from the vegetable that shall not be named—”

“The Voldemort of the vegetable drawer?” Aaron interrupted.

“Yes, exactly. So, if you’re going to commit to hating them, we might be okay.”

Aaron wiped pretend sweat away from his forehead and laughed. “Crisis averted.”




Also Available in The Avenue series



"Such an amazing, beautiful story that captivated us from the very first page. B. Cranford delivered wit, pull-at-your-heart-strings emotions, hot and steamy moments and all the swoony feels. We absolutely adored Ashton and Duncan's story!"—New York Times Selling Author, Max Monroe



"I cannot recommend this book enough! Beth does friends-to-lovers in a story filled with so much humor, warmth, reality, and gorgeous true-to-life relationships. Two best friends, a passionate love, an electric, snarky chemistry, and a family that loves and supports each other. Just.....FEELINGS."—Kathryn Nolan, Author of Strictly Professional



B. Cranford is a proud Australian living in the USA, a lover of books, breadsticks and bed, and the mother of two children who are far too similar to their father for her liking. A lifelong reader, she dove into the romance genre on the recommendation of her best friend and hasn’t looked back since. Her debut novel, The Brightest Star, a second chance romance with (she hopes) heart and humor was released on July 13, 2017, which just so happened to be her birthday. Because if you release a book on your birthday, you get twice as much cake, and that can only be a good thing.



* Please note that B. Cranford is the owner/operator of Panda & Boodle *


New Release: I BET YOU by Ilsa Madden-Mills

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She’s the one bet I can’t resist...

Wall Street Journal bestselling author Ilsa Madden-Mills returns with an all-new swoon-fest of a novel about what happens when you look beyond labels and take a chance on love.

I Bet You, an all-new sexy college romance standalone is LIVE!

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Sexy Athlete: I bet you…
Penelope Graham: Burn in hell, quarterback.
The late night text is random but Penelope knows exactly who “Sexy Athlete” is. And why she shouldn't take his wager.
Ryker Voss.
Football star.
Walks on water and God's gift to women.
Just ask him.
His bet? He promises Penelope he’ll win her the heart of the nerdy guy she’s been crushing on. His plan—good old-fashioned jealousy. Once her crush sees her kissing Ryker, he'll realize what he's missing. Sounds legit, right? The only question is…why is Ryker being so nice to her?
Penelope Graham.
Virgin.
Lover of sparkly vampires and calculus.
His mortal enemy.
Penelope knows she shouldn’t trust a jock, but what’s a girl to do when she needs a date to Homecoming? And Ryker’s keeping a secret, another bet, one that could destroy Penelope’s heart forever.
Will the quarterback score the good girl or will his secret mean everyone loses at this game of love?


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Download your copy today or read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/IBetYouIMM
Add to GoodReads: http://bit.ly/2vLgSkX

Love football heroes and nerdy heroines?
Start the series of standalones today with I DARE YOU
Download your copy now or Read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/IDareYou
Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/IDareYouHookUp




About the Author Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and USA Today best-selling author Ilsa Madden-Mills writes about strong heroines and sexy alpha males that sometimes you just want to slap. She's best known for her angsty, heartfelt new adult college romances. A former high school English teacher, she adores all things Pride and Prejudice; Mr. Darcy is her ultimate hero. She's also addicted to frothy coffee beverages, Vampire Diaries, and any kind of book featuring unicorns and sword-wielding females.
Join her Unicorn Girls FB group for special excerpts, prizes, and snarky fun!


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Connect with Ilsa
Stay up to date with Ilsa by joining her mailing list: http://bit.ly/2MkYqK4 Website: http://www.ilsamaddenmills.com/

Monday 29 October 2018

Book Review: THE LEGACY by Dylan Allen

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“Hands down, one of my fav reads this year!”

- Ilsa Madden-Mills, Wall Street Journal bestselling author

The Legacy, an all-new steamy contemporary romance standalone from Dylan Allen is LIVE!


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He's the king of all he surveys.
Except her.
Exiled for 15 years, Hayes Rivers has finally assumed his place as head of Houston’s oldest and most powerful family.
Now, they call him King.
A legacy of wealth and prestige are his to claim.
As age-old rivalries, long-buried secrets, and generations of betrayal threaten his birthright, he finds himself in a battle for control of his family’s future.
When he meets Confidence, she’s a sweet distraction.
Everything he shouldn’t want.
But after a weekend of passion and surprising intimacy,
he realizes she's everything he needs
He holds the keys to a kingdom,
But he covets the key to her heart.
And he'll stop at nothing to claim his queen.


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MY THOUGHTS


THE LEGACY by Dylan Allen once again demonstrates her talent in creating a couple whose love and attraction for each other is incredibly strong, fathoms deep and blistering hot. When these two were together and in relative harmony, they were a sheer and utter delight. However, when the disagreements came – and there were plenty of them, including some utterly childish ones – it felt like a soap opera.

Overall, there was just too much melodrama for my liking. First, there’s this Utopia-in-Houston the author is trying to build as part of this series that just did not add up. Then there’s a cast of characters whose personalities were so amped up they often came across as caricatures. This rang true for all characters; from the heroic to the villainous and everything in between. If I used a TV/movie analogy, it would be as if a few episodes of Dallas (sans shoulder pads) were merged with The Truman Show. 

I also felt the book missed the mark in highlighting the prolonged issues any flooded community experiences. I don’t expect any author to provide a solution to such large and complex issues but you know what message I took away? Expect that help will come as long as you hook yourself to an uber-wealthy man who can throw money at issues the heroine deems fit. 

I loved Hayes and Confidence when they were in accord. They were fabulous. Dynamite! It’s the rest of the book that just left me feeling disappointed and dissatisfied.



*****
Download your copy today or read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/TheLegacyDA
Add to GoodReads: http://bit.ly/2NltngQ


About Dylan Allen
Dylan Allen is a Texas girl with a serious case of wanderlust. A self-proclaimed happily ever junkie, she loves creating stories where her characters chase their own happy endings. When she isn’t writing or reading, eating or cooking, she and her family are planning their next adventure. 

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Connect with Dylan
Stay up to date with Dylan by joining her mailing list: http://bit.ly/2OcDm8M

Book Review (+ Author Giveaway & Excerpt): GENEALOGY by Mae Wood


How long would you wait for love?


Title: Genealogy
Author: Mae Wood
Publisher: Atacama Books
Genre: Romance/Women’s Fiction
Release Date: October 25, 2018




Inspired by real, hundred-year-old love letters

My great-grandmother's name is bold across the cream envelope, now golden at the seams with age. I can't remember the last time I’ve seen graceful, purposeful handwriting with a fountain pen and not the hasty scrawl of ballpoint.

Alice Hirshhorn, Astoria Hotel, Seattle Washington.

“Letters to Great-grandma Alice,” I say with wonder, tracing my fingers over the faded postmark and foreign stamps.

December 1915. Philippine Islands.

I turn the thick envelope in my palm, slide out the tightly folded pages, and unfold the thin paper, taking care not to tear the letters that were important enough to keep for a century.

My dearest Alice

“Great-grandpa was in the Philippines?” I ask.

“Oh no. Not your great-grandfather,” answers Grammie, her eyes twinkling with her mother’s secrets. “Elliott.”

~~~

At thirty-three and with her future unclear, Ali Waller finds her way home again. A box of long-forgotten love letters written to her great-grandmother holds the unlikely key to Ali finding her new path.

As she tracks down the letter writer and his descendants, Ali learns the magic of love, hope, and resilience.

Told by three characters, and across century and an ocean, Genealogy is an enchanting story about love and loss, taking chances, and embracing the surprises that life brings.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41039278-genealogy-a-novel


* FREE with Kindle Unlimited *





What a riveting read GENEALOGY by Mae Wood is! I was thoroughly engrossed in Elliott and Alice’s romance; a chance meeting, a few days’ acquaintanceship and several years of communication only by letters during a tumultuous time in world history.

Letter writing is definitely a lost art form and I love reading books in epistolary form because it’s a chance to recapture that time. Not only does the language fascinate me, it’s also the news and topics people chose to write about and share. And in Genealogy we see Elliott writing to Alice all about their future life and the steps he is taking to ensure she never regrets choosing him. We know their shared life never eventuates, which makes reading his letters all the more poignant and bittersweet.

In present day Kansas City, it’s Ali, the great granddaughter of Alice who reads the letters and decides to research Elliott’s life and hopefully discover why he and Alice remained apart. This project comes at a vulnerable time in Ali’s romantic life and family life. It was good to be able to get into the mind of Ali because often, we can only guess at Elliott and Alice’s thoughts. I enjoyed the parallels between the past and present and how similar issues are managed so differently based on the values and opportunities available at the time.

The entire book is great but a special mention needs to go out to that epilogue. Ugh! It killed me! Especially when…. oh, sorry. No spoilers from me. You’ll just have to read the book.

GEANOLOGY is a beautiful story of love, loss, hope and adventure across time and across oceans. I cannot recommend it highly enough. 






Present day – August – Ali

She didn’t want to move, and I didn’t want her to move either. But we were doing it, together. Sifting and sorting. Shredding and donating. Culling a lifetime into piles to be packed and placed into boxes. The lucky things would end up in my grandmother’s new six-hundred-twenty-three square foot assisted-living apartment. The not-so-lucky would end up on a curb.

“These linens,” she said, pointing to the bottom drawer of the sideboard in her formal dining room. “You need them.”

“Grammie, I don’t even have a dining room table,” I said, trucking along in our project to conquer the contents of at least one room this weekend.

“You had one before and you’ll have one again. And these are Irish linen.”

I thought of my tiny kitchen table, covered in discarded mail and unread magazines, not draped in substantial creamy white. She knew I didn’t have the space. I made space for the vintage black satin peep-toe pumps of hers from the fifties and had placed those in the “Ali” pile with a smile, but linens were a different story. The tablecloths were huge. For a table big enough to seat a dozen guests.

“They were Alice’s,” she said.

The trump card played, I bent and pulled them from the low drawer. I was Alice’s namesake, but I’d always gone by Ali because Alice felt formal and traditional, two words that didn’t fit me. She was the great-grandmother who I’d never met, who died a decade before I was born, but whose existence was never far from my mind. “Ali. A-L-I,” I’d explained a million times over my life. “It’s short for Alice. I’m named for my great-grandmother.”

“Well, one good thing is that your monograms match.”

I fingered the tiny beverage napkins, trimmed in hand-tatted lace and embroidered with ALW.

ALW—I smiled. Alice Lenore Wertheimer. Alice Lenora Waller. I was flirting with becoming Alice Waller Sayer, but I was solidly myself at the moment.

“Did she embroider these?” I asked, the old fabric stiff and smooth to the touch.

“I don’t know. I don’t remember my mother doing any needlework, but I suppose all women did back then.”

“True,” I said, flattening out the material with my palm and tugging out a crease. I dragged yet another plastic bin over and began piling the linens in, amazed that they had survived the years.

“The story on one of those tablecloths is that it was a wedding present from some member of the Denny family.”

Ah, an old Seattle story. I knew it wasn’t going to be long before I got one. My ancestors were early settlers of the city and my grandmother carried the banner of native Seattleite proudly, looking down her pioneer nose at the Microsofties and the Californians who had invaded her precious land. And though she’d moved to Kansas City with my grandfather nearly fifty years ago, the city was in her DNA.

I half-listened to her prattle on about some trip to Japan to obtain plants and animals for the Woodland Park Zoo as I examined the linens and placed them in the plastic storage tub.

“Okay,” I said, looking around the room, the sideboard now empty. Something accomplished today, and it made me feel good to have one of the many small tasks that it would take to empty this big house done. I looked at my watch. “I have to leave at three to head back to the hospital, so what can we get done in an hour?”

“One drawer to go,” she said from the dining chair where she’d settled in while I’d knelt in front of the sideboard. “The bottom one.”

Her words made my chest ache but also soothed them. I hated that she was getting confused more often. It reminded me that one day Grammie would be gone, but it also convinced me that we were making the right decision to move her. No more worry about her alone in this big house.

“All done,” I said, pointing to my tub of linens.

“The bottom-bottom one, Ali. The apron is a drawer.”

“I didn’t know that,” I said, feeling sheepish that I’d thought she had been confused. “A secret drawer?”

“That’s the point,” she said. The sideboard had been in this house my entire life and I’d never known that. I tilted my head to look at the piece, not quite believing her. “It’s where your grandpa kept his favorite pistol.”

“Still there?” I said with a smile, reaching down under the lip of the cabinet.

“Well, maybe. It’s been a long time since I dug around in that thing.”

“I’m going to change your name to Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler,” I said, giving the concealed drawer a tug. It didn’t budge. Maybe she was confused after all. “Or Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle. But only if we find a Degas or pirate gold.”

“It was a statue of an angel. Leonardo da Vinci,” she corrected me. In and out. Touch and go. Here and there. I was never sure where a conversation would lead us, and based upon the swelling in her extremities, I wasn’t sure today was going to be a good day for coherent conversation. It wasn’t her head so much as her heart that was slowly killing her by refusing to pump. She needed access to round the clock medical care now, not just sitters and family at the house, and we were making that happen although no one was happy about it.

“Oh, that’s right,” I replied, the memories flooding back of the story of a headstrong girl and her younger brother running away to the Met. “What I really remember about that book was them taking a bath in the fountain.” My grandmother and I were very close. The afternoons of my childhood had been spent at her house with my brother and sister. And while my parents were at work, Grammie showered us with troves of books. She was a children’s librarian. Or she had been until she’d gotten married. Because, as she’d explained a million times to me over the years, in those days nice women didn’t work outside the home after they were married, and so she’d retreated to a life of children and tennis and dinner parties.

I gave the drawer another tug and it budged a few inches, but it didn’t slide open.

“Oh, and the sideboard is yours too. No argument. It was—”

“Alice’s?” I guessed as I wiggled the drawer open to find not pieces of eight or a sketch of a ballerina, but more table linens.

“No, her mother’s. You’ll be the fifth generation of women in our family to own it.”

I looked at the dark, heavy Victorian behemoth with new eyes, knowing it was going home with me. And knowing I had nowhere in my tiny, Ikea-furnished apartment to put it, but I spoke the truth: “Thank you. I’ll be a good caretaker.”

“I know you will, sweet pea.”

I looked down at the linens, focusing on the task rather than the meaning of the work I was doing, filling the plastic bin with more ancient fabric than I’d ever begin to use. Under the last tablecloth, I found a small, flat box. The pistol? I recognized the foil-stamped logo. Frederick & Nelson, the grand Seattle department store that now only existed on Grammie’s bad days when she’d ask me or someone else to take her there for lunch.

“Grandpa’s gun?” I asked, setting the box into my lap as I sat on the floor. I lifted the lid. “Papers,” I said, a little weary at the prospect of spending the last bit of time before I had to leave focused on her reading each paper carefully before deciding whether she could part with it.

My grandmother was a pack rat. I’d recently dropped off two decades of yellow-spined National Geographics at the recycling center and her garage was still stuffed to the gills with boxes of papers. I’d had visions of a huge bonfire while she was at a doctor’s appointment just to speed up the process.

The box resting in my cross-legged lap, I riffled through the contents. “Letters,” I said, pulling one out. At least it wasn’t receipts from the nineteen sixties, though the hospital bill from my mom’s appendicitis at age eight had been a gem. The total bill was a few hundred dollars and Mom had spent three days in a children’s ward. Most of my patients were sent home by the end of the day with a bill in the thousands.

The cream envelope was golden at the seams, the clean, cursive writing enchanting. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen graceful, purposeful handwriting with a fountain pen and not just a hasty scrawl of ballpoint on a scratch pad.

Alice Hirshhorn, the letter’s front proclaimed.



Win everything you need to snuggle up with a good read!



Professional sassypants and novelist, Mae Wood has been a bookworm her entire life.

She loves cheeses, complicated crafts that she'll start but never complete, and puns.

A while ago Mae decided that she needed to give up the fear that she couldn't write "great literature" and write what she wants to read.

And she wants romance. And laughter. And real life.

She wants heroines who are brave. Brave enough to be themselves and brave enough to fall in love. She wants men who are strong and kind.

Mae is married, and has two darling children and an old dog who naps at her feet while she writes.

Keep in touch with Mae and find bonus content at her website — www.maewood.com






Friday 26 October 2018

Book Review: THE FALL by Kristen Callihan

   
FALL

VIP – BOOK 3

by
Kristen Callihan

Release Day – Oct 23, 2018


The first time I met Jax Blackwood things went a little sideways.

In my defense, I didn’t know he was Jax Blackwood—who expects a legendary rock star to be shopping for groceries? More importantly, a blizzard was coming and he was about to grab the last carton of mint-chocolate chip.

Still, I might have walked away, but then he smugly dared me to try and take the coveted ice cream. So I kissed him. And distracted that mint-chip right out of his hands.

Okay, it was a dirty move, but desperate times and all that. Besides, I never expected he’d be my new neighbor.

An annoying neighbor who takes great pleasure in reminding me that I owe him ice cream but would happily accept more kisses as payment. An irresistible neighbor who keeps me up while playing guitar naked–spectacularly naked–in his living room.

Clearly, avoidance is key. Except nothing about Jax is easy to ignore—not the way he makes me laugh, or that his particular brand of darkness matches mine, or how one look from him melts me faster than butter under a hot sun.

Neither of us believes in love or forever. Yet we’re quickly becoming each other’s addiction. But we could be more. We could be everything.

All we have to do is trust enough to fall.   


AMAZON | APPLE BOOKS | B&N



  

MY THOUGHTS

I held myself back and read this one slowly because I wanted to savour every word and emotion, and I am so glad I did because THE FALL by Kristen Callihan is one of the best slow burn romances I have read.


The VIP series gets better and better, and in Stella Grey and John “Jax” Blackwood, Callihan has brought out a depth of character that makes for an absolutely compelling read. 



Fundamentally, this book is about two lonely people trying to find their place in the world. Their experiences may be different but the feelings are the identical. Callihan does an excellent job in describing the isolation and desolation of their lives even when surrounded by people. It’s a theme I think will resonate with many of us. 



I am so glad Stella and John found each other because they are made for one another. There is plenty of banter and humour in the book. The attraction between them is blistering from the outset but I appreciated that their physical relationship did not overshadow their story. I loved how over time they exposed their vulnerabilities and let each other in, and I loved how the faith they placed in one another gave them strength to re-evaluate their own lives and their relationships with others. Through Stella and John, Callihan tackles such weighty topics of suicide and depression, doing so with an openness and honesty that comes across with authenticity. 



Heavy topics aside, there is a lightness, a vitality and sense of fun running through the book that often had me smiling. Scottie, the band’s manager (and hero in VIP#2 ‘Managed’) makes numerous appearances. I did not think he could get any better but he surpasses anything I could have imagined. But don’t worry, all the band members and their partners make appearances throughout the book. 



Fans of the author and the series won’t be disappointed. I highly recommend this book. 


*****

    

   



Kristen Callihan is an author because there is nothing else she’d rather be. She is a three-time RITA nominee and winner of two RT Reviewer’s Choice awards. Her novels have garnered starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly and the Library Journal, as well as being awarded top picks by many reviewers. Her debut book FIRELIGHT received RT Magazine’s Seal of Excellence, was named a best book of the year by Library Journal, best book of Spring 2012 by Publisher’s Weekly, and was named the best romance book of 2012 by ALA RUSA. When she is not writing, she is reading.

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