Audiobook Review: Bedded by Her Highland Enemy by B.J. Scott, Narrated by Angela Dawe

This was my first story ever by B.J. Scott and it was a great introduction to this authors work. I really enjoyed this story and the characters. Although I like historical romance, sometimes highlander stories take me a while to get into but “Bedded by Her Highland Enemy” grabbed my attention from the first few sentences.

Our heroine, Brianne Dunbar, is happy and in love. She shares a wonderful life with her husband and child until that is all tragically taken away. With one attack on her husband clan she loses her husband and three-month baby. Brianne’s only incentive is to seek revenge on those that took her husband and child’s life. Brianne’s pain is only mocked when her father promises her to their worst enemy.

Gavin MacClurry is Brianne’s future brother-in-law. He has been sent to take Brianne from her home and deliver her to her brother as part of an order made by King James. Brianne is not aware that Gavin is her intended husbands brother and when she finds out she is angry at Gavin and feels betrayed. Gavin understands Brianne’s conflicting emotions. He sympathizes with her tremendous loss but only wants to protect her even if it means seeing her marry his brother. Brianne feels a terrible burden because she is mourning for her great loss but at the same time her feelings for Gavin are her only salvation and hope. He has been the only male that she has encountered that has shown her protection and respect. Even though Brianne tries to hate Gavin she sees him for the wonderful man that he is and she soon falls in love with him.

B.J. Scott really knows how to create a great story. She had many twists and turns and there were many unexpected surprises. This story did not drag for me at all. I loved the pacing, I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next and how Gavin and Brianne could find their way to one another when they seem to have many insurmountable obstacles. This story made me a fan of Scott and I cannot wait to read more by her. Gavin was truly a hero and I really liked him. My only complaint was that at times I wanted him to become angry or crazy but he always took the higher ground. My other little issue was the amount of time that Brianne lost her family and fell in love with Gavin. For other reasons that I will not name, this plot worked but I felt that more time would have been better. I really enjoyed this story and highly recommend it.

Angela Dawe did an amazing job of narrating this story. At first it seemed she was rushing through the story but the voices she gave the characters made the story come alive and she really seemed to understand them.

AN AMERICAN IN SCOTLAND MacIain #3 Karen Ranney

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Releasing February 23rd, 2016

Avon Books

New York Times bestselling author
Karen Ranney returns with the third heart-stirring novel in her latest series,
a tale of deceit, desperate measures, and delirious desire

Rose MacIain is a beautiful woman
with a secret. Desperate and at her wits' end, she crafts a fake identity for
herself, one that Duncan MacIain will be unable to resist. But she doesn't
realize that posing as the widow of the handsome Scotsman's cousin is more
dangerous than she knew. And when a simmering attraction rises up between them,
she begins to regret the whole charade.

Duncan is determined to resist the
tempting Rose, no matter how much he admires her arresting beauty and
headstrong spirit. When he agrees to accompany her on her quest, their desire
for each other only burns hotter. The journey tests his resolve as their close
quarters fuel the fire that crackles between them.

When the truth comes to light, these
two stubborn people must put away their pride and along the way discover that
their dreams of love are all they need.

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USA Today and New York Times bestselling author, Karen Ranney began
writing when she was five. Her first published work was The Maple Leaf, read
over the school intercom when she was in the first grade. In addition to
wanting to be a violinist (her parents had a special violin crafted for her
when she was seven), she wanted to be a lawyer, a teacher, and, most of all, a
writer. Though the violin was discarded early, she still admits to a
fascination with the law, and she volunteers as a teacher whenever needed.
Writing, however, has remained the overwhelming love of her life.

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Don't Miss any of the MacIain Series Romances

ARC Review: The Rogue Not Taken by Sarah MacLean

Anything Sarah MacLean writes I want to read. When I saw that she had a new book in her new series “The Rogue Not Taken” I jumped up in excitement. McLean is such a great writer! I loved her previous series “The Rules of Scoundrels and “Never Judge a Lady by Her Cover” was one of my favorite reads in this past year.

In true MacLean fashion she writes about a peculiar heroine who wants to play by her own rules and not those of society. Lady Sophie Talbot is not of blue-blood. Her father won a title in a game of cards and with his hard work in the coal mines, he amassed wealth. The aristocracy looks down on her and her family because of these two traits but also because her and her sisters have even received a quirky name. Sophie is the youngest of the sisters and she feels the most constraint by society’s rules. She is also very emotional and sensitive about the gossip that surrounds her family. When she catches her older sister’s husband in romantic rendezvous with another woman, Sophie doesn’t hesitate to take matters into her own hands. Unfortunately, this has very big ramifications and Sophie thinks that her family will fare better in London without her. She runs into The Marquess of Eversley’s, or King as he is referred, carriage. King is not the least big happy to see that Sophie is dressed up as a boy and has used his carriage to escape from London.

Needless to say their adventure is never boring and Sophie being the courageous and dangerous heroine that she is, ends up shot. King realizes that Sophie is unlike anyone that he has ever met even though they both swear to part ways, they invariably end up needing each other’s help. King is known for his habit of ruining woman for marriage and based on this reputation Sophie forms an opinion of him.

MacLean always has adventured filled story and this one is no exception. There were also some very funny moments and some tender moments as well. Although Sophie considers herself the “unfun” sister, she is definitely fun. King has some soul searching to do as well since his own history often affects his present. There were two factors that stopped this from giving it a five. One is the sisters. Although Sophie identifies herself in relation to her sisters we don’t really see too much interaction with her and her sisters and I wish that there would have been more sisterly interactions at the beginning to better understand the Talbot sisters. Second, I thought her and King didn’t mesh well until more than half the book when they really started to understand each other and chip away at their misconceptions about each other. MacLean has some tricks and secrets up her sleeve and she shares some fun surprises with the readers. I personally cannot wait to see what she has in store for the other sisters and who she has in mind with the very sexy scot. I think this was another great MacLean romantic adventure.

Will's True Wish

Right off I have to confess that Grace Burrowes is not an author I love but she is an author I always want to read. I know that might sound like a contradiction, but I’m always curious to see what story she has come up with and what new situation her characters will face. When I first read her I thought that she was boring. Now I’ve come to realize that she takes her time with her hero and heroine and that she never rushes a plot.

In true Burrowes fashion, her hero is very unique. Although a peer of the ton, Will Dorning, is a dog trainer. He has a big appreciation and understanding of canines and his peers pay him to help them deal with their pets. Susannah Haddonfield is not really a dog person but in order to help her sisters’ marriage prospects, she has decided to go to Will for help. Susannah believes that if she can seem like she likes dogs her sister will have better opportunities to marry. Will and Susannah have known each other since they were both young and coming out into society. When Susannah was making her debate she was terribly bullied and Will often came to her rescue. Now that Susannah is on the shelf she acts more like a chaperone. This is a role that she takes to gladly. She is must happier seating around and reading Shakespeare than she was trying to find a husband.

Will and Susannah develop a mature friendship as they renew their friendship. I really liked the way Burrowes took her time with the story and with the plot. In the mist of their budding friendship a problem is occurring in society. Dogs are disappearing and pet owners are losing their loving companions. Will’s brothers are also involved and a great addition to the story. The secondary characters, many from the previous books, were fun and entertaining. I do have some hang ups about the story. I wish Will had had a better reason for not wanting to marry Susannah. At the beginning it was because he didn’t think he could support her financially but as his dog training business became more and more successful this was no longer an issue. Also, I like Susannah but sometimes it was hard to figure out her character.

I did enjoy the funny banter and the witty scenes. I thought this was a classic Burrowes book and I am confident that her fans will enjoy it. I plan to read more stories by her and am intrigued by the other books in the series.

Dukes Prefer Blondes

One of my all-time favorite historical romances was written by Loretta Chase, Lord of Scoundrels. I’ve read it countless times and never tire of it. Jessica and the Marquess of Dain are incomparable in my eyes. I absolutely loved them both and still after many years and readings, still love and am highly entertained by them. I’ve read other books by Chase and some have been a hit and others a miss.

When I saw “Dukes Prefer Blondes” I was intrigued because of the plot and the characters. Also, because it was written by Chase. This is the fourth in the “Dressmakers” series although I have not read the previous books. There were some elements of the story that I liked and some that either felt awkward or very drawn out for me. But overall this was an interesting read, even if not a fantastic one. Lady Clara Fairfax was a great heroine. I really enjoyed her. Even though she is beautiful and very highly sought after she wants more from her life than just to be someone’s wife. Clara wants to have a purpose and she is very highly committed to orphan and street children. Once she sets her mind to do something very little can dissuade her. But Clara has always been a free spirit and very independent, even as a young child. When is merely a girl she meets Oliver Radford. Radford is everything Clara is not. He is serious and a very determined and successful barrister. He was instantly impressed with Clara as a child and not much changes when he is reunited with her as an adult.

Clara seeks Oliver out to help her with a street child. She has given her word that she will help out a young boy and she searches for Oliver to help her. Oliver can’t be bothered because he doesn’t want to get involved and really doesn’t take Clara too seriously. Clara is determined to get the help she needs to fulfill her promise. Against his better judgement Oliver decides to help Clara but this leads to her becoming very sick with Typhus. He literally saves her life by nursing her back to health. Clara is very in love with Oliver but he considers himself beneath her and tries to not give into his feelings for her.

First, I loved Oliver and Clara together. I loved Clara as a heroine but I had a hard time with Oliver. I didn’t get him. He was awkward and hard to understand. I also felt that some of the scenes were awkward and the transition between scenes felt choppy and out of sync. Also, after Clara and Oliver are married I felt that the story dragged. I did however, love how their relationship continued to grow after they married. The adventure does not end when they marry and they go on many more investigations that Clara insists on being a part of. Characters from the previous books are mentioned and they give some insight into the series. Even though I did not love this book I still found it enjoyable and plan to read more books not only by this author but also in this series.

ARC Review: The Knave of Hearts by Elizabeth Boyle

“The Knave of Hearts” by Elizabeth Boyle was a sweet and enjoyable story. I’ve long wanted to read Boyle and was happy that I finally got the chance to. Although this is the fifth book in the series I did not find that I missed out on the story and this is easily a stand-a-lone.

Lavinia Temptest was a sweet heroine. I really liked her and thought she was fun. She is in London making her debut with her sister. Lavinia is not having an easy time. She has her mother’s scandalous behavior looming over her and she is a very awkward dancer. Her already disastrous debut is only cumulated when Alaster “Tuck” Rowland asks to dance with her and she ends up falling. Lavinia is already having a difficult time finding her way into society and Tuck’s mishap only makes things worse for her. Lavinia for her part is looking for true love and is determined to succeed.

Tuck feels bad about his hand in Lavinia’s humiliation and wants to make it up to her. Her tries to convince her that he can teach her to dance and that all of London will be eating out of her hand. To her credit, she refuses his offer but quickly has to relent because she realizes she needs help. He makes a bet that he make turn her into the most sought after lady in London.

Tuck and Lavinia begin to spend more and more time together and they fall in love. Tuck’s mother was a great addition to this story and she was a great character. Overall, I enjoyed this book but I found the storyline a little slow. I also like when characters take their time to fall in love and Lavinia and Tuck instantly feel something for each other. Even though I liked Lavinia she often started crying when confronted with a difficult situation. I did appreciate how her own personal self-awareness helped her to finally find her happiness. I know that Boyle fans will enjoy this book and I plan to read more by her.

Oliver & Jack by Christina E. Pilz

                                                                                        Oliver & Jack: In Axminster Workhouse (Fagin's Boy, Book Three)

By Christina E. Pilz

Publication Date: September 27, 2015
Blue Rain Press
eBook & Paperback; 406 Pages

Genre: Historical/Gay Romance







In Victorian England, 1846, an ex-apprentice and his street-thief companion are confined inside a workhouse to await trial for a crime they did not commit.

After the seaside interlude in Lyme Regis, Oliver and Jack are arrested and sent to Axminster Workhouse to await trial for the theft of books that they only meant to borrow.

They are put in the less-than-tender care of Workmaster Chalenheim, who controls the quotas they must fill, the amount of food they are allowed to eat, and the punishments they must endure upon breaking the rules, however arbitrary.

Oliver struggles with the shame of being in a place he thought he'd left behind him long ago, and also with the contrast between the life he once enjoyed and the hunger and degradation inside the workhouse walls. Meanwhile, Jack is confronted by a predator who tests the limits of Jack's endurance and the strength of his love for Oliver.

Together they must find a way to escape the workhouse before they succumb to the harsh conditions or are separated by the hangman's noose, whichever comes first.

AMAZON (KINDLE) | AMAZON (PAPERBACK) | BARNES & NOBLE

About the Author

Christina was born in Waco, Texas in 1962. After living on a variety of air force bases, in 1972 her Dad retired and the family moved to Boulder, Colorado. There amidst the clear, dry air of the high plains, as the moss started to grow beneath her feet, her love for historical fiction began with a classroom reading of Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

She attended a variety of community colleges (Tacoma Community College) and state universities (UNC-Greeley, CU-Boulder, CU-Denver), and finally found her career in technical writing, which, between layoffs, she has been doing for 18 years. During that time, her love for historical fiction and old-fashioned objects, ideas, and eras has never waned.

In addition to writing, her interests include road trips around the U.S. and frequent flights to England, where she eats fish and chips, drinks hard cider, and listens to the voices in the pub around her. She also loves coffee shops, mountain sunsets, prairie storms, and the smell of lavender. She is a staunch supporter of the Oxford comma.

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