Review: Storm Surge by Celia Ashley

Named after a goddess who turns her lovers to stone, an insular New England coastal town holds more secrets than it can keep…

Torn from her hometown and her father as a child, Paige Waters' last memory of both is fraught with mystery and confusion. Now, sixteen years later, with both her parents gone, Paige returns to Alcina Cove, certain there is more to the painful story than she's been led to believe. The answers must lie within the community, buffered from the larger world by the sea; but when she finds the townspeople more reticent than ever, her only hope is the intriguing man who lives in her childhood home--if she can break down his reserve…

A fisherman turned writer, Liam Gray is haunted by secrets of his own, some of which are deeply entangled with the closure Paige seeks. But as he and Paige grow intimate, their attraction building, Liam finds himself torn between truth and betrayal. Whichever he chooses will risk his future with Paige and cause someone pain--until an even greater danger leaves him no choice…

ebook, 165 pages

Expected publication: May 10th 2016 by Lyrical Pres

Terri's Thoughts

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  The expected publication date is May 10th, 2016.

First random thought - it says this story is 165 pages on Goodreads.  I can not validate as I was reading it on my kindle however I am pretty sure it was longer than that.  If not, my reading pace has significantly decreased.  I'm pretty sure it is just not accurate.

I opened this book with knowing really what it was about and therefore went in without any expectations.  I was pleasantly surprised.  If this book was a song, it would definitely be a mash-up the way that multiple genres seem to co-exist in this story.  Was it a ghost story?  A mystery/thriller?  Contemporary romance?  A little bit of all which could make this story appealing to a large market.

Aside from Paige doing all the obvious wrong things (and stereotypical) in the face of danger, she was a strong character who could not be pushed around.  Liam had a sense of mystery which captured me from the start.

I had figured out most of the plot twists of this story however what I did not figure out was how it all tied together.  I was glad that I was kept guessing about some aspects.

Altogether this was a fast paced story that offered a little bit of everything which was a little refreshing.  The fact that it was not completely commited to one genre kept my attention.  I realized at the end that this is pary of a stand alone series so I may have to go pick up the other book!  Just be warned, I stand by my position that this story is longer than advertised.

Release Blast & Giveaway: Mafia Secret by Angie Derek

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MAFIA SECRET

Angie Derek

Re-Released April 12th, 2016

Thoroughweb Press

Lessa Noelle grew up never knowing she was the illegitimate daughter of a mafia king pin. After his murder, she finds herself a surprise heiress immersed in the dangerous world of organized crime with only the guidance of Marco Santos, her father’s second in command, to help her.

An uneasy attraction blossoms between the two as Marco searches for her father’s killer. He tries to keep the realities of his life from touching her and an already dangerous situation turns volatile when a killer turns his attention to Lessa.

Her mother should be working the swing shift at the hospital, so she auto-dialed her mom’s cell number. It rang twice.
   
 “Hi honey,” Erin Noelle said.
   
 “Hey Mom.” Lessa glanced away from Santos, who was now listening closely to her side of the conversation. “Are you busy?”
   
 “I can talk for a moment. What’s up?”
   
 The background noise of the hospital faded out as her mother probably ducked into a room to hear her better.
  
  “I need to ask you something.” She struggled for courage to ask the question which could change everything.
  
  “What now?” Erin laughed.
 
   Lessa took a deep breath. “Who is Jiovanni Tazio, and why is he sending me a letter saying he’s my father?”
 
   Erin made a startled sound and the line went quiet.
  
  “Mom?” Dread filled her. Her mom was supposed to say she didn’t know who the heck Jiovanni Tazio was.
   
 “How did you find out?” Erin demanded.
   
 “It’s true?” The line went silent again. Lessa spun to focus on the photo from the long-ago trip to Disney. 

Of the three of them smiling—her mother, Lessa, and the man she’d thought was her father. Who maybe wasn’t.
  
  “Of course it’s not true. Peter’s your father. You look just like him.”
   
 But she didn’t. She closed her eyes. She and Peter had similar coloring. Blonde hair, blue eyes, fair skin. But her features were like her mother’s.
 
“Just send the letter back to this man. He obviously got the wrong person.”
  
  Her mom’s voice was too cool, and Lessa didn’t believe a word. “You mean hand it back to the courier?”
   
 Erin gasped a second time. “Get away from him. Jiovanni’s men are dangerous.”
   
 “Who says it’s a man? And who says it isn’t Jiovanni himself?” The depth of her mother’s lies started to work through her. She pressed her hand against her burning stomach.
  
  “You have to get away from him right now.”
 
   She shook her head even though her mother couldn’t see her. “You lied to me. All these years, and you pretended Peter was my father.”
 
   “Sweetie, listen to me, they’re dangerous people. I had to lie to keep you safe. You need to stay as far away from Jiovanni as possible.”
 
    She almost choked on her outrage. “That shouldn’t be a problem since, apparently, he’s dead.” And with him dead, she’d never have the chance to find out who her father really was.
 
 “Jiovanni’s dead?”

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Angie Derek writes paranormal and romantic suspense. She lives in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with her husband, two daughters, two horses, two cats, and a dog.

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Review: Silent Hearts (Hamilton Stables #3) by Melissa West

Paperback, 174 pages

Expected publication: May 10th 2016 by Kensington Publishing Corporation

Terri's Thoughts

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  The expected publication date is May 10th, 2016.

This is the third story in the Hamilton stables series which centers around three brothers.  This one the middle brother Nick.  While I don't believe it is necessary to read the others to enjoy this story, I did read the second one which centred on Alex' story.

This story is about two best friends that are meant for each other but don't know it.  You know how it goes, they have feelings for each other however do not what to jeopardize years of friendship for a romance that may or may not work out.  This leads to drama and angst and trouble in the relationship.

I really enjoyed the character of Becca.  She was strong and opinionated yet insecure and vulnerable underneath if you really looked beyond the surface.  Although lacking the pedigree of the Hamilton's, she had just as much if not more character.  Nick on the other hand was a little bit of a bore, except when he was with Becca.  I think this was intentional as he struggled with his fathers business and what steps to take with it and his career.

At the end of the day who doesn't love a story about best friends and soulmates?  Even within the story it alludes to the Cinderalla story that is Becca and Nick.  This will capture the attention of the romantics and romantics at heart.

About the Author

Melissa West writes heartfelt Southern romance and YA sci-fi romance,all with lots of kissing. Because who doesn't like kissing?. She lives outside of Atlanta, GA with her husband and two daughters and spends most of her time writing, reading, or fueling her coffee addiction.

She holds a B.A. in Communication Studies and a M.S. in Graphic Communication, both from Clemson University.

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Review: Sister Dear by Laura McNeill

All Allie Marshall wants is a fresh start. But first she has to deal with the past.

Convicted of a crime she didn t commit, Allie watched a decade of her life vanish. Now, out on parole, Allie is determined to clear her name and reconnect with the daughter she barely knows.

But Allie s return to Brunswick, Georgia, sends earthquakes through the small, coastal community. Even her daughter Caroline, now a teenager, challenges Allie s claims of innocence. Refusing defeat, a stronger, smarter Allie launches a campaign for the truth, digging deep into the past. Her investigation threatens her parole status, her own safety, and the already-fragile bond with her family. What Allie uncovers is far worse than she imagined. Her own sister has been hiding a dark secret one that holds the key to Allie s freedom."

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: April 19th 2016 by Thomas Nelson 

Genre: Fiction/ Suspense/ Mystery

Kristine's Thoughts:

** I received an advanced readers copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!**

This was the story of Allie Marshall who spent a decade in prison for killing the towns beloved football coach. A crime in which she stated she was innocent of from the very beginning. Her daughter was five when she went to prison and an emotional teenager when she was released. In order to reconnect and develop a relationship with her daughter, Allie was determined to find out what really happened that tragic night and clear her name.

Told through multiple points of view and weaving back and forth through time, Sister Dear painted a haunting picture of lies, betrayals and deep dark secrets. As the reader I found myself flying through the pages to find out what really happened. It started off a little slow but built momentum that continued to build until the very last page.

There were many and turns throughout the story but I was able to figure most of them out in advance. There was only one twist that I did not see coming involving the Chief of Police but I can't tell you what that was. You'll have to read it to find out! Although I was able to guess a lot of plot twists it was still highly entertaining and I enjoyed every minute of it. This book was really easy to finish quickly.

This was the first book by Laura McNeill for me but it certainly won't be the last.

 

About the Author

Laura McNeill has been a voracious reader since the age of four and would rather be stranded at the library than on a desert island. In her former life, she worked as an anchor and producer for CBS affiliates in Upstate New York and Alabama. Lauren adores her family, yoga, her new Electra bike, and flavored coffee. Center of Gravity is her first novel with Harper Collins/Thomas Nelson.

Connect with Laura

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Review: Pieces of You and Me by Erin Fletcher

Five years.

That’s how long I’ve been gone. Since I left my best friend—the girl I loved—behind.

Five seconds.

That's how long it takes to realize I am completely, utterly, screwed. Because now that I’m back, my childhood crush has turned into so much more.

Rylee has changed. We both have. And now I’m drawn to her in a completely different way. To her smile. Her touch. To reliving old memories and making new ones. To the happiness she’s always given me that I haven’t felt since I left.

But her friends are hell-bent on keeping us apart. My dad is one drink away from destroying both of our lives, and maybe I am, too. It’s only a matter of time before I have to leave again, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. I never get a choice.

The one choice I can make? Stay away from Rylee. Because if I don’t, I’ll break her heart—and mine—all over again.

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains references to drinking, addiction, and just the right amount of angst. You’ll want to save this tortured hero, while at the same time, not want to change a single thing about him!

Kindle Edition, 1st, 178 pages

Published April 18th 2016 by Entangled: Crush 

Genre: Young Adult

Kristine's Thoughts:

** I received an advanced readers copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!**

Pieces of You and Me was a super quick and easy book to read. I easily had it done in one afternoon sitting. Although I am no longer a young adult and haven't been for some time, I was still able to enjoy and appreciate it.

Reading this book took me back to my teenage years. I remember the feeling of liking someone that was just out of reach and how problems seemed so much bigger and more complicated than they actually were. Now I am a mother of two teenage girls and I see them as they try to navigate the dating field. This book reminded me of it all.

First of all, I will mention that this book is pretty squeaky clean, making it appropriate for even the youngest of YA fans. It deals a little with addiction and there is some swearing and kissing involved but no sex or graphic details to make it messy.

I am a sucker for friends to lover (or boyfriend/girlfriend in this case) stories so I was behind Rylee and Chase the whole time. I loved how they were the best of friends in middle school and got each other through the most awkward of times. When Chase returned in high school I was giving a silent cheer and I was flying through the pages in the hopes that they would find their way back to each other. I won't lie...Chase did get on my nerves from time to time and I wanted to shake some sense into him but I did like him.

In the end, Pieces of You and Me was a super cute young adult romance that I thoroughly enjoyed. I'm sure that fans of the genre will eat this up.

Check out Terri's thoughts on Pieces of You and Me here.

 

 About the Author

Erin is a young adult author from North Carolina. She is a morning person who does most of her writing efore sunrise, while drinking excessive quantities of coffee. She believes flip-flops qualify as year round footwear, and would spend every day at the beach if she could. She has a bachelor's degree in mathematics, which is almost never useful when writing books.

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Review: The Year We Turned Forty by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke

If you could repeat one year of your life, what would you do differently? This heartwarming and hilarious novel from the authors of The Status of All Things and Your Perfect Life features three best friends who get the chance to return to the year they turned forty—the year that altered all of their lives, in ways big and small—and also get the opportunity to change their future.

Jessie loves her son Lucas more than anything, but it tears her up inside that he was conceived in an affair that ended her marriage to a man she still loves, a man who just told her he's getting remarried. This time around, she’s determined to bury the secret of Lucas’ paternity, and to repair the fissures that sent her wandering the first time.

Gabriela regrets that she wasted her most fertile years in hot pursuit of a publishing career. Yes, she’s one of the biggest authors in the world, but maybe what she really wanted to create was a family. With a chance to do it again, she’s focused on convincing her husband, Colin, to give her the baby she desires.

Claire is the only one who has made peace with her past: her twenty-two year old daughter, Emily, is finally on track after the turmoil of adolescence, and she's recently gotten engaged, with the two carat diamond on her finger to prove it. But if she’s being honest, Claire still fantasizes about her own missed opportunities: a chance to bond with her mother before it was too late, and the possibility of preventing her daughter from years of anguish. Plus, there’s the man who got away—the man who may have been her one true love.

But it doesn’t take long for all three women to learn that re-living a life and making different decisions only leads to new problems and consequences—and that the mistakes they made may, in fact, have been the best choices of all…

Paperback, 336 pages

Expected publication: April 26th 2016 by Washington Square Press

Terri's Thoughts

I received and advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  The expected publication date is April 26th, 2016.

I must admit that this story fascinated me simply due to the name of it.  As I am currently (shhh don't tell anyone) in the same year, I thought I simply had to read it.

The idea is simple.  The ladies have a chance to relive the year they turned forty.  At the end of the year, they return to their regular lives or stay in their new loves.  Who would not want a chance for a do-over?  I am sure we all have times in our lives where we think we would make different decisions if we were able to do it all over again.  I can think of many for me.

As suggested in the synopsis, sometimes making different decisions doesn't necessarily make things better.  It only changes the path but does not solve all of the problems.

I enjoyed watching how each of the characters learned a little bit about themselves during their due over year.  The things that were important to them and what they really needed in life was not necessarily what they thought it would be.

This is a story about friendship, families and people who are flawed.  The characters were believable in the fact that none of them were perfect and they all made mistakes.  Overall a good read!

About the Authors

      Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke have been best friends for 25 years and survived high school and college together. Liz lives in San Diego, CA with her husband and two children. Lisa, a former talk show producer, now lives in Chicago, IL with her husband, daughter and two bonus children.

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Pre-Release Blitz: Secret Baby Scandal By Joanne Rock

Two Fabulous Prizes...Enter Below!

SECRET BABY SCANDAL

Bayou Billionaires #4

Joanne Rock

Releasing May 1st (Digital)

Releasing May 10th (Print)

Harlequin Desire

His proposition: pretend they’re a couple to end a scandal. But she has secrets of her own…

Tatiana Doucet has dealt with sexy, arrogant athletes most of her life. But Jean-Pierre Reynaud is a whole different animal—in bed and on the field. Unbeknownst to him, their one amazing night produced a son. Now her family’s biggest football rival is back, offering a seductive wager she can’t refuse.

Jean-Pierre despises the media. When rumors fly, he knows a fake relationship is the perfect diversion for the tabloids—and Tatiana’s unbridled passion is the perfect diversion for Jean-Pierre. But when she drops a baby bombshell, the scandal will rock them both!

Son?
 
Jean-Pierre had taken hits from the toughest, strongest, meanest players in the NFL. Afterward, as he lay in the grass with his ears ringing and his vision blurred, he would struggle to snap out of the slow-motion fog that felt kind of like being underwater.
 
That was exactly how he felt walking into Tatiana’s apartment, her words slowly permeating his consciousness along with the cry of an infant. Dazed, confused and trying to stand up straight despite the floor shifting under his feet, Jean-Pierre stood in her foyer and waited for her to return from wherever she’d disappeared.
 
“Mr. Reynaud?” An older woman in a simple gray dress stepped into the living area to his right. “Miss Doucet asked if you wouldn’t mind joining her in the family room. It’s just past the staircase on the left.” She pointed the way and then went about her business, picking up a few things in the living room.
 
A bright blue blanket. A baby bottle.
 
Seeing that bottle was like the second hit when you were already down.
 
At the same time, it was enough to make the mental fog evaporate and get his feet moving.
 
Fast.
 
He needed answers now. Hell, he needed answers months ago. Tatiana had done a whole lot more than throw his career into a tailspin tonight with her unguarded remark to a member of the press. She’d been hiding the biggest possible secret that was going to bind their lives together forever.
 
“Tatiana?” Her name was a sharp bark on his lips as he entered the spacious suite overlooking Central Park.
Framed playbills lined the walls along with photos of Tatiana and her family. Tatiana with her father at her graduation from Columbia. The Doucets outside of a downtown skyscraper with the brass name plaque of her prestigious law firm. Every picture was a reminder of the life he might have had with her if her family hadn’t turned her against him.
 
A blaze crackled in a fireplace on the far side of the living area. And beside it, in that warm glow of flickering light, he spotted her on the dark leather love seat, cradling a tiny bundle of blankets to her breast. Tatiana’s dark brown curls shielded her body as much as the blanket, the firelight making the skin of one shoulder glow where she’d unfastened her dress to feed the baby.
 
Her baby.
 
His…son.
 
Something shifted inside Jean-Pierre, his whole world tipping on its axis as everything changed irreversibly.
 

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Four-time RITA nominee Joanne Rock has never met a romance sub-genre she didn't like. The author of over seventy novels enjoys writing contemporary romance and medieval historicals alike, recently exploring Young Adult romance under a pseudonym. An optimist by nature and perpetual seeker of silver linings, Joanne finds romance–in all its forms-- fits her life outlook perfectly. When she's not writing, Joanne enjoys travel, especially to see her favorite sports teams play with her former sports editor husband and three athletic-minded sons.

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