Saturday, August 22, 2015

GODDESS OF THE GROVE by Mandy M. Roth



Title:  GODDESS OF THE GROVE
Series:  Druid #2
Author:  Mandy M. Roth
Publish Date:   04.10.2007
Publisher:  Samhain Publishing
Category /Genre:  Paranormal Romance
Recommended for:  18+ due to sexual content
Received from:  Mandy M. Roth (in exchange for an honest review)
Goodreads link: Goddess of the Grove
Date completed: 08.19.15

Description from the publisher:
Sacred, worshiped...hunted.

Book two from the Sacred Places series.

All Korey O'Caha wants in his immortal life is to keep evil at bay, protect the witches he was destined to teach and to bed as many women as possible. He doesn't want love but he didn't plan on Gigi. Her very presence calls all he vowed sacred in life into question. She quickly becomes his reason for existing but can she ever fully accept him and who he is--a seven hundred year old immortal druid sorcerer? Will the secrets she's hiding be his undoing?

Gigi, the daughter of a great god, could not stand idly by and allow innocent druid children to be slaughtered. She intervened, placing them under her protection. In the end she was imprisoned in a place where time moved differently than here on earth. That was almost seven hundred years ago. Once freed, she ran as far from the old country as she could. Never did she expect to find ties to the land, let alone a man who stirs her blood the way Korey does.

As shadows from the past resurface, bringing news of an uprising, truth and passion ignite, leaving Gigi at the mercy of Korey.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the second book in the Druid series.  While it does stand on its own, I highly recommend reading the series in order of publication.

In fact, I highly recommend reading this series.  It has an even balance of action, lust, and humor.  My favorite combination to be found in a book. 

My favorite character was Gigi, without a doubt.  Between Gigi and Korey there were some interesting and well-kept secrets that I thought were incredibly imaginative.

I hope I get the next book in this series and soon!

Grammar/editing:  A – near perfect

  1. Sacred Places
  2. Goddess of the Grove
  3. Winter Solstice
  4. A Druid of Her Own* (coming soon)
  5. Dark Wisdom* (coming soon)
Other Books from Mandy M. Roth:



Thursday, August 20, 2015

LION FOR HER by Brandy Walker



Title:  LION FOR HER
Series:  N/A
Author:  Brandy Walker
Publish Date:   08.11.2015
Publisher:  Kindle Worlds
Category /Genre:  Paranormal Romance
Recommended for:  18+ due to sexual content
Received from:  Brandy Walker (in exchange for an honest review)
Goodreads link: Lion for Her
Date completed:08.20.15

Description from the publisher:
Madison Templeton, known to most as Maddie, is going through a break-up. The man she thought was her mate, actually wasn’t. While that should break her heart, and it did a little, she’s more upset about losing her best friend and confidant, her ex-boyfriend’s twin brother Van. When the opportunity to escape town and help her cousin out at her bakery comes around, she jumps at it. A little time away to get her head back on straight seems like the perfect way to get some distance.

Van Bowman thought all he could have since the day Maddie unwittingly picked his twin brother over him, was friendship. He’s had to love her quietly from a distance, and find comfort in being her confidant. Now that his brother has broken up with her, Van is ready to claim the woman that should have been his from the beginning. He made a mistake not telling her how he felt, and he aims to fix that. He’ll do anything to convince her she belongs to him, even chase after her and face off against her new protective friends.
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This is a stand-alone novella in the Southern Shifters Kindle World.  It is not part of any other series.

One of the best questions an author can ask is, “what if?”  So, what if the one you thought was your fated mate isn’t?  How did you read that wrong?  How can this be resolved?

I thought there were great characters and a different story.  Most PNR have the H/h meeting as adults and fated mates recognize each other immediately.  Instead, Maddie, Van, and Mack have known each other since they were children.  They wouldn’t know each other as mates on the playground and as they reached puberty they were a threesome of best friends.  Maddie makes a mistake and so do the boys.  As adults sometimes the hardest thing is recognizing a colossal mistake, admitting it, and then finding a fix.  I loved how Brandy Walker made it all happen.  She has great secondary characters that could also be brought into their own stories (hint, hint).

I have begged Brandy Walker to write about at least one of the other characters, to (pretty, please) return to the Southern Shifters World.  She agreed!!!!  Van’s brother, Mack, deserves his HEA, too.  Eliza Gayle has created a wonderful world that I am enjoying exploring.  In fact, I still have two more books in the series and hoping for more.

Grammar/editing:  A – near perfect

The Southern Shifters series:
  1. Dirty Sexy Furry (Eliza Gayle)
  2. Mate Night (Eliza Gayle)
  3. Alpha Knows Best (Eliza Gayle)
  4. Bad Kitty (Eliza Gayle)
  5. Be WERE (Eliza Gayle)
  6. Shiftin’ Dirty (Eliza Gayle)
Impawsible (Celia Kyle)
Scents & Scentability (Heather Long)
Bear Sentry (Ruby Shae)
Lion for Her (Brandy Walker)
Bearly Dreaming (Ellis Leigh)
Furever After (Michelle Fox)
Dangerous Prey (Erika Mastern)
Bear ‘N Dirty (Vella Day)
Werelock (Mina Carter)
Shiftin’ Sassy (T.J. Michael)
Other Books from Brandy Walker:
  • Birdsong:  A Fairy Tale Novella
Tiger Nip Series:
1.      Craving More
2.      Claiming More
3.      Tiger Bite
Freefall Series:
1.      Caught in the Moment
2.      Fly Guy Next Door
Shifter U Series:
1.      Shifted Plans
2.      Changing Her Tune
Mystic Zodiac Series:
1.      Thane:  January
2.      Parvati:  February
3.      Gideon:  March
4.      Lisa:  April
5.      Celeste:  May
6.      Willow:  June
7.      Amber:  July
8.      Adrian:  August












Wednesday, August 19, 2015

THE SILVER CHAIN by Primula Bond



Title:  THE SILVER CHAIN
Author:  Primula Bond
Publish Date:   07.04.13
Publisher:  Harper Collins UK, Avon
Category:  Erotica, Romance
Recommended for 21+ due to mature themes and sexual content
Received from:  Harper Collins UK, Avon via netgalley.com
Date completed: 09.20.13

Description from the publisher:

Bound by passion, she was powerless to resist.
One dark evening in London, photographer Serena Folkes is indulging her impulsive side with a night-time shoot.  But someone is watching her – mysterious entrepreneur Gustav Levi.  Serena doesn’t know it yet, but this handsome stranger will change her life forever…

Serena is fascinated by Gustav, the enigmatic owner of the Levi Gallery, and she soon feels an irresistible pull of attraction.  The interest is mutual, and Gustav promises to launch Serena’s photographic career at his gallery, but only if Serena agrees to become his exclusive companion.

To mark their agreement, Gustav gives Serena a bracelet to wear at all times.  Attached to it is a silver chain of which he is the keeper.  With the chain Gustav controls Serena physically and symbolically – a sign that she is under his power.

As their passionate relationship intensifies, Gustav’s hold on the silver chain grows stronger.  But will Gustav’s dark past tear them apart?

An erotic romance novel perfect for fans of 50 Shades of Grey and Sylvia Day’s Crossfire series.  The Silver Chain is the first in the sexy, passionate, and addictive Unbreakable Trilogy by Primula Bond.
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm in an unique position of never having read E.L. James Fifty Shades of Grey or Sylvia Day's Crossfire series, so all of the comparisons from other reviewers meant nothing to me.  That is not to say that I have not read erotica nor does it mean that I do not enjoy it, just that I haven’t yet read those two series.

Twenty year old Serena Folkes has escaped her abusive past and is in London to begin her new life as a photography artist.  Gustav Levi is nearly double her age, the owner of art studios, but equally lost to the hurts of his past.  Together, can they find trust again?

I need to split this review into two parts – the story and the mechanics of writing.

The mechanics:  While part of my problem with this book may be the difference between the ways British and Americans express themselves, I’m sure that’s not the whole nut.  The diary entry by 7-year old Serena just does not sound like a seven-year-old wrote it.  There are also several instances of inconsistency in the story line.  I know editing can cause you to lose scenes, but afterwards someone needs to reread it with fresh eyes to be sure that the loss of a scene does not interrupt or tear apart the story.

Emotionally, Serena is twisted in a knot.  Reading this in the first-person dialogue pulled me along with the tumultuous thoughts of an abused twenty year old trying to figure out the world.  Serena is naive, damaged, strong and yet vulnerable.  She is also trying to build a name for herself in the art world and trying to understand the relationship she is building with Gustov.  Gustov demands trust and submission from all of those around him, without returning trust to any.  As is so often the case, the pasts they don’t share interfere with the present and the future they are trying to build.  

I loved this story.  I’m thinking I need a British pen pal or Facebook friend that doesn’t mind playing 20 questions when I’m reading from a British author, but I managed to determine meaning from context most of the time, I think.  Crystal was probably my favorite (favourite) character in this story.  Earlier this week, I had a mini-rant on Facebook about people calling me Mary instead of Mary Lou.  Then I start reading this book and Serena keeps calling her Crys.   Crystal corrected her every time; I was feeling very in tune with Crystal!  That’s not the only reason I love her, but it’s a good one.   Though I thought the timeline was warped, the story had me absorbed from beginning to end.   This was another can’t put it down books.  I will be watching for THE GOLDEN LOCKET, and reading it when it is available.

Editing / Grammar: A – nearly perfect 

Other books in the Unbreakable series:
  1. The Silver Chain
  2. The Golden Locket
  3. (not yet named)
Other Books from this Author:
  • Random Acts of Lust
  • Country Pleasures
  • Sisters in Sin
  • Club Crème
  • Out of Focus
  • Behind the Curtain








originally posted 09.21.13 on my previous website
WordPress.com closed that site because I promoted authors and their books.