Unmasking Miss Appleby by Emily Larkin

Book 1 in the Baleful Godmother series

http://www.emilylarkin.com/

Charlotte Appleby is a good woman in a bad situation; both her parents have passed and she now approaches the ripe old age of 25 under the roof of her insufferable aunt and uncle, still without having received the Season she was due. As a 'charity' case, her aunt and uncle don't seem inclined to help Charlotte find her way in the world, so Charlotte needs to forge her own path; something that becomes a trifle easier when her (albeit scary) Fairy Godmother shows up on her 25th birthday to grant her a special power...metamorphosis. Armed with the ability to transform into whatever, or whomever, she pleases, 'Mr. Albin' decides to make 'his' way in the world by answering an ad in the paper for a secretary... an ad placed by a very handsome earl.

Marcus, Lord Cosgrove, is in need of a new secretary after his last one was ambushed and hurt in a fight; Mr. Albin, while a bit unusual (and clearly untutored in all things manly), seems to be the only one in England who's willing to stomach the risk. Together, Albin and Cosgrove set off on an adventure to find whoever is smashing the Earl's windows, leaving 'nightsoil' on his doorstep, and, apparently, even trying to kill him. Albin and the Earl become good friends as they begin to unravel the mysteries surrounding Cosgrove's life - but will that all change when Cosgrove learns Albin, er, Charlotte's secret?

Charlotte is an amazing heroine - truly, her story and her personality captivated me. She was generous and thoughtful, and willing to take responsibility for her actions at all times - even when it was hard. She was honest (as much as can be expected when one is hiding a major, magical secret) and hard-working, her caring for Marcus stemming from a deeply personal place of friendship and concern. She is a self-made woman, someone who is reasonably afraid but takes action anyway; I found her to be one of the more admirable heroines I've read about. For his part, Marcus was also a gem; funny and loyal, incredibly caring, sexy in his competence and confidence, and very thoughtful. He actually took a backseat in my estimation, with Charlotte really being the mover and shaker in this book, which might be why he shines a little less brightly than she does despite still being a wonderful, consistent character.

The plot was fast-paced; the mystery of who was behind the events happening to Marcus (and when/how he would discover Charlotte's secret) kept the pages flying by and provided a lot of opportunities for Charlotte to prove her worth as Albin. I liked Charlotte's freedom to move through the plot and make change happen, so unusual for women in Regency that often are being pushed around by the ton and relatives, and I loved her growing self-confidence and bravery as she took charge. The setup for the magic is well-done so it doesn't feel ridiculous or overbearing, and the ending - the way Marcus and Charlotte resolve their differences - is classic and sweet. 

Honestly, there was only one thing that brought this book from an A/A+ region to a solid A-, and *SPOILER ALERT HERE - READ AT YOUR OWN RISK* the issue was really only a page, making it even sadder that it brought the book down in my estimation so much. Marcus has been sleeping with a woman called 'Miss Brown' (Charlotte); he realizes that Miss Brown and his secretary, Albin, are one and the same. He flies into a violent rage using his punching bag, repeating over and over in his head 'I fucked a man' while he tears his hands to pieces. The episode smacked of some very real and violent homophobia/transphobia, echoing real world events where trans women who come out to their partners are summarily beaten or murdered; overall, the inclusion of this scene made me wildly uncomfortable and I think there were better ways for the author to express Marcus's discomfort - perhaps by focusing on the lies that Charlotte had told rather than the gender. *END SPOILER ALERT HERE* 

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book - a fast-paced, fun and unique plot with a take-charge heroine and a man that matches her fire and spirit. What's not to love? Fun fact: by heading over to Emily's website and joining her reader group, I hear you can get this book for free! What's better than that?

Favorite Quotes: Unfortunately, I was not reading this book with the intention to review it (but once I discovered how good it was I knew I needed to share it with the world!) so I did not mark favorite quotes. Be rest assured, this book is really fun. 

"Sexy"ness rating: One thing I loved about this book was that it got hotter over time - you could see the way the friendship benefited the intimacy. Definitely does not leave you at the bedroom door. 

Overall Rating: A-

Bottom Line: Charlotte is a heroine of her own making; her bravery and self-direction, honesty and selflessness, make her an admirable woman - it felt like an honor to witness her journey to love. Marcus is also honorable, kind, and humorous; he is an alpha hero for sure - self-assured, a bit domineering, but still soft enough inside to be more than lovable.

Pages: 391

Published: November 2016

Genre: Historical/Regency

Touch of the Angel by Rosalie Lario

Touch of the Angel by Rosalie Lario

Book 3 in the Blood of the Demon series

www.rosalielario.com

All Amara is trying to do is stay alive and save her mother from harm.Unfortunately, since she's succubi, that's much easier said than done. When her accidental and unsuspecting prey one night is a sweet, if a little rough-around-the-edges, angel named Ronin, Amara has trouble forgiving herself for killing him through their one-night-stand (let me interject here for all of you non-paranormal people: succubi kill any non-sex-demon they have sex with). She can't seem to get his face out of her mind. Ronin wakes up drowsy and weakened from his one-night-stand with a beautiful girl - and it doesn't take long before he realizes she's succubi. Can he find her and take her off the streets before she kills anyone else? And what will he think when he discovers her real motivation for her dirty deeds?

This book started out disappointing – especially since the first two books in the series were so incredible. This book began slow, a bit confusing, and not terribly attention-grabbing. I wasn’t sure quite what I was reading and I wasn’t all that interested in reading about it. Luckily, that didn’t last too long! About 1/5 of the way through, it finally started to pick up the pace and turn into the magnificent book I was looking for. Still, that first 1/5 of the book was agonizing to get through and I’m still not certain I understand exactly why it was written the way it was – where the reader is plopped in the middle of a scene as if they should understand it. One other thing I noted that I didn’t like about the story was that the dialogue was a little unnatural and wooden at times. However that also disappeared as the book went on. Really, only the beginning didn’t live up to my very high expectations (well, the ending was a little cliché, but I was still able to enjoy it and put that aside).

I liked the book but there were a few things I absolutely adored: Ronin, Amara, and the unique nature of their romance. How many romances start with the heroine almost killing the hero… with sex? That was amusing, to me. I also really enjoyed how both the romance and the plot became increasingly unusual - and not in a bad way. There were some twists I wasn't expecting, and the focus of the story was far different than what I expected, which was still enjoyable. I also loved the romantic focus on the vulnerability of Amara due to her incredible sexuality. I really liked how Ronin protects her – recognizes that she needs protecting – and looks beyond his own anger at her, to the larger problem (the main villain). Many heroes can be short-sighted, but Ronin was looking far ahead.

Amara, for her part, is a savvy heroine. She's funny, sarcastic, smart and kind-hearted. She's going through a rough time, trying to keep her mom healthy and herself healthy in a deadly game where she's a near-useless pawn. She's struggling but she's keeping her head up. She was generally optimistic and I loved how she was able to keep her self-preservation instincts throughout the entire story instead of turning into a wimp that needed rescuing. Her determination to survive is unmatched. She has to make hard choices throughout the book but she doesn't let her bottom lip quiver - she does the best she can to make the best decision she can. She's definitely a strong woman, in need of an equally caring and equally strong man.

Ronin was really an incredible angst-y hero. Suffering through a nauseatingly awful childhood, he is strong, caring, protective, and smart. He looks past his own suffering to the suffering of others and does his best to ignore his own pain and rescue them from their demons (past and present). He’s a very giving hero, and inspiring. He’s also funny and your ‘typical man’ sometimes, which brings him down from being an obnoxious paragon to simply a caring human being (or rather angel-demon hybrid) capable of mistakes but not prone to them. The way he cares for Amara is beautiful and touching and makes for a great romance. The book's terrible start coupled with its beautiful prose and tender romance throughout the middle and end had this book averaging out to a B- in my mind – still good, but not as good as I’ve come to expect from Lario. Especially since this book became so unusual and interesting throughout the middle, I was extra disappointed by the still adequate but cliche ending.

Still, I would definitely recommend the entire series. Books one and two are phenomenal, and I can't wait for book four. Thank you so much, Ms. Lario, for sending me your book for review!

Favorite Quotes:

Getting captured sounded like the best thing ever.

Ronin’s chest expanded. “I like it. How’s Brynn?”

“Fine. Pissed at me. She says next time I have to be the one to give birth.” (Keegan)

“Sexy”ness rating: Hot! What else could you expect from a sex demon?

Overall Rating: B-

Bottom Line: This book started off slow but quickly picked up its pace to become the enthralling read I expect from Lario. Ronin is a loveable hero and Amara an admirable heroine. The book focuses on their struggles and provokes major amounts of empathy from the reader for both the hero and heroine. I also adored the struggle they faced as lovers – my only wish is that it wasn’t resolved so neatly. Overall, another touching addition to the series!

Pages: 286

Published: December 6, 2011

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal

Courting Darkness by Yasmine Galenorn

Book 10 in the Sisters of the Moon series

http://www.galenorn.com

Many thanks to The Season ForRomance for providing me with this arc copy to review! 

The D’Artigo sisters are operatives working for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency. Each of the sisters has her own special talents and gifts. Camille (our protagonist) has three husbands – Trillian, Smoky, and Morio. One of them, dragon Smoky, has a father who’s none-too-pleased with Camille and kidnaps her to his Dragon Reaches. The question is – can Camille survive long enough to escape before the father breaks her, body and spirit? Well, I never got the chance to find out because this book was way too hard for me to struggle through, and I set it down less than half way through.

This book is the tenth in the Sisters of the Moon series, and it was very clear from the first page that if you hadn’t read the first nine books you wouldn’t have a clue what was going on. And so it went – terminology I didn’t know, people and places that were unfamiliar to me, customs, cultures, and events referenced that I knew nothing about. Every other word was something different and crazy and alien. This book is definitely not a stand-alone. It was very confusing and difficult to read – although with the sheer amount of characters, worlds, and species, I think it could have been difficult to read even if you did follow the series. The world was far too complex while being poorly crafted to make a good story.

Now, even if I had been following this series from the beginning there would are several things that would have lowered this book in my esteem. The story read like a series of disjointed vignettes, stapled together. There was no flow, no underlying connection between the scenes – instead each scene was like opening a new box of confusing ideas and relationships that had nothing to do with the last. Furthermore, the way the author writes was distracting. The syntax was strange and awkward, and I found the sentences jarring. The book was unnatural, and instead of flowing smoothly it limped along like a zombie from a low-budget horror flick.

Finally, the characters were unlikeable. I found it hard to understand their motives, thoughts, and ideals. I didn’t understand them, found them lacking in any real depth, and therefore was unable to connect with them – adding to my frustration. They were so cliché. And the sex scenes… lets just say they hit my ‘squick’ button, multiple times. One of the husbands has HAIR that lifts itself up and strokes her. What is that? Not my cup of tea, that's what.

“Sexy”ness rating: Explicit and squicky

Overall Rating: DNF

Bottom Line: All in all, I didn’t enjoy the characters, the plot, or the prose enough to keep reading. While long-time fans of the series may enjoy this book, I would recommend others to skip this one and read something else.

Pages: 336

Published: Nov 1, 2011

Genre: Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

Blood of the Demon by Rosalie Lario

This review was done on an ebook ARC copy provided by the lovely ladies at Sirens Song Reviews. Check out my post on their website at: Blood of the Demon by Rosalie Lario

Book 1 in the Demons of the Infernum Series

www.rosalielario.com

Wow, has it been a while since I’ve read a paranormal – and let me tell you, it was great! This was such a fun book to read. The hero and heroine were well done. The plot, besides being a tad silly at times, was refreshingly original. I loved the unique presentation of demons, angels, and their roles in the universe. This book has convinced me to look out for more Rosalie Lario works and perhaps read a few more paranormals, to keep it ‘unreal’. J That was a pun. Laugh. Please.

Thank you.

Anyways, on to the plot. Our hero, Keegan (I honestly could not find a last name. Coming from the land of historicals, where every character has not only a last name but thirteen titles, this was a disconcerting event for me), is a demon. He and his half-brothers, Taeg, Ronin, and Dagan, have been sent to Earth by ‘The Council’ to stop their father, Mammon (an insane, greed demon) from taking over the planet with an army of super-strong-flesh-eating zombies that he’s hoping to awaken with a spell from an ancient book. Only problem seems to be no one knows where the book is – or the heir, the only person on the planet who can make the spell work.

Keegan and his crew discover their heir’s identity before their father and whisk her away to… ah… safety. Brynn Meyers, however, is none too pleased at being whisked out of her art gallery and stolen by crazy kidnappers who believe she’s the key to the apocalypse. And thus, in a race against time to beat the maniacal father, the half-brothers and Brynn have to decide to work together. Although ridiculous at some points, I thought the book had a great pace. The plot was intriguing and definitely suspenseful. I was thoroughly entertained.

There were a few not-so-good plot problems. There were a few moments I wish were elaborated, for clarification and better understanding – and things were a tad rushed at the end. There were also a few minor plot details that didn’t exactly sit right, (for example if demons are never as strong as their parents, wouldn’t the entire species eventually die out from weakness as each successive generation would be weaker than the first?) but overall the plot was great and I was happily caught in the flow and the funny, sarcastic writing.

The characters. Keegan is a dark hero – the Alpha male, beaten by his father as a young boy, obsessed with responsibility in an effort to not turn out like dear ol' dad. He is the eldest, a leader, and very serious in terms of duty until Brynn comes along and rocks his world. Oh. Also, he’s really sexy. I don’t know if you like Tall, Dark, and Handsome but I definitely do. His brothers are all a riot, and I loved how they interacted! Taeg, especially was a hoot. He was uproarious, and a great comic relief but still loyal to his brother and intelligent and not simply a hopeless jokester. I liked that all of the guys had several dimensions. That can be hard to pull off, but Lario creates true characters matsterfully.

As far as our heroine, Brynn, I knew I liked her from page fifteen when she wakes up, remembers being kidnapped and says “That asshole.” Her spunk was charming, her strength an undeniable draw. She was open-minded, giving, compassionate, intelligent, curious, strong, and sarcastic. She stood up for herself and her man when it counted. She took all the strange things Keegan was telling her in stride, but she was intelligent enough to think about them, consider what they meant. She was definitely not an airhead. I loved her - she just got more and more admirable as the book went on.

The romantic plot, unfortunately, was probably my least favorite part – though it was still good! It lacked a proper build-up, and so some of the events seemed a little sudden. I couldn’t always feel the heat and sexual tension between Keegan and Brynn, especially in the beginning. I did love, however, how Keegan protected her and loved her fiercely at the end. His sacrifices for her and his family were so touching and emotional – and her bravery to save him was just as poignant. Overall, it was good – and it picked up steam as we went to a rip-roaring finish. This book was creative and dramatic - sensually and otherwise.

Favorite quotes (there were many more):

“Why don’t we take her to Disney World next? The Taj Mahal?” (Taeg)

“You were sent to Earth? So how are you supposed to have gotten here? Through a tornado?” (Brynn)

“What?” (Keegan)
“You know, like Dorothy? Wizard of Oz?”
Straight-faced, he said, “I’ve never met this wizard.”

“Wait a second. If there’s a portal in every major city, how come we couldn’t just use that to get here instead of flying?” (Brynn)

“Traffic control.” (Keegan)
“Are… are you shitting me?”

“Sexy”ness rating: Smokin!

Overall Rating: B+

Bottom Line: A sexy hero, a smart and spunky heroine, an insane father with apocalypse on the brain... this book had great characters, and a fun plot! I loved some of the unique ideas presented in this book. Reading this book made me remember why I love paranormal romance. A definite to read!

Pages: 241
Published: August 2011
Genre: Paranormal (Humans, Demons, Dragons, Zombies, Fae, Angels, Vampires, and Sirens all mentioned. Helluva zoo, I’ll say.)