GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS by Inglath Cooper

Title:  GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS

Series:  Second Chances #2

Author:  Inglath Cooper

Publish Date:   02.03.2014

Publisher:  Fence Free Entertainment

Category /Genre:  Contemporary Romance

Recommended for:  18+ due to sexual content

Received from:  Amazon purchase

Goodreads link: Good Guys Love Dogs

Date completed: 04.07.2016

Description from the publisher:

Desperate father Ian McKinley moves his delinquent teenage son to the small Virginia town of Keeling Creek, a place very unlike the New York City life he has been leading. Love takes him by surprise when he falls for Colby Williams, a woman unlike anyone he has ever been drawn to, a small town vet with a heart for animals and a fierce love for a teenage daughter she is also struggling to raise.

But Colby has a secret in her past, a secret she's not sure her daughter will ever forgive her for. And as for Ian McKinley, he seems too good to be true. If she had learned anything from the one time she had thrown her heart fully into love, it was that it didn't last.

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This is the second book in the Second Chances Novels series.  Each stands alone.

This was the first in a long time that I read through the night.  I just couldn’t put it down.

Parenting is tough.  Being a single parent is tougher.  Being a single parent to a teenager is like trying to nail jelly to a tree!  Ian and Colby may have arrived at this point in their lives via different routes, but when their rivers merge, the current cannot be denied.  Even the most punishing rapids eventually lead to a calmer pool, at least for a little while.

I love Colby, her daughter Lena, Ian, and his son Luke.  The characters are well thought out, complex, and fully developed.  The story is amazing and the pace set is neither too fast nor too slow.  Of course, there are bits of humor, miscommunication, and some meddling well-intentioned friends who make the story richer.

One of the things I loved about this story was that our main characters are old enough to have teenagers.  These are not barely-adults; though, like all of us, that can be debated based on their actions at times – haha.

I’m truly glad I chose this as my next read and highly recommend it to anyone who loves romance.

Grammar/editing:  B – a few small errors

The Second Chance Novels series:

1. Truth and Roses
2. Good Guys Love Dogs
3. Jane Austen Girl

Other Books from Inglath Cooper:

• Crossing Tinker’s Knob
• A Year and a Day
• Rock Her
• A Gift of Grace
• Unfinished Business
• Colors of Venice
• The Lost Daughter of Pigeon Hollow
• Mayor of Macon’s Point
• A Woman with Secrets
• John Riley’s Girl
• A Woman Like Annie

Smith Mountain Lake Series:

      1.      Blue Wide Sky

      2.      Dragonfly Summer

Nashville Series:

      1.      Ready to Reach

      2.      Hammer and a Song

      3.      What We Feel

      4.      Pleasure in the Rain

      5.      Amazed

      6.      Sweet Tea and Me

      7.      Commit

      8.      R U Serious

      9.      You, Me, and a Palm Tree

     10.   Not Without You

What If Series:

      1.      My Italian Lover

 

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(dis)COMFORT FOOD by Brad Carter

Title:  (dis)COMFORT FOOD

Author:  Brad Carter

Publish Date:   01.18.13

Publisher:  Post Mortem Press

Category:  Literature/Fiction (Adult), Mystery & Thrillers

Recommended for 16+ (foul language, torture/horror, sexual references)

 Received from:  Post Mortem Press via netgalley.com

Date completed: 08.04.13

 Description from the publisher:

"Revenge is a meal best served in a casserole dish."

Meet Rosie Kirkland, a quiet homemaker with a magical talent for murder.

Rosie is just going through the motions, leading an average quiet life.  However, that normal life is thrown into a tailspin when Rosie’s husband succumbs to a terminal illness.  A mysterious friend named Vera Caldwell shows up on the doorstep, offering food, comfort, and an introduction to a world Rosie once thought impossible.

Suddenly, nothing is what it seems to be.  The marriage she thought to be a happy union is revealed to be one full of dark secrets.  The little old ladies down the street are unmasked as a clandestine cabal with origins as old as civilization itself.  The simple act of cooking becomes an act of vengeance.  And Rosie’s own identity begins to unravel as she finds herself at the center of the ongoing history of witchcraft in Middle America.

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Rosie has always been average, nothing special.  She was a good student, but unexceptional.  She dropped out of college when she earned her MRS degree.  She did twenty years as a secretary and then retired.  Life and love were boring. 

When her mother died, her friends, her mother’s friends, church ladies, and strangers brought food.  “Comfort food,” they would say.  One of those people was Vera Caldwell.  Not long after Rosie’s mother had died, her husband was diagnosed with a terminal illness.  Right before he passed, Vera was there again, to comfort and to support Rosie.  

She gave Rosie a cookbook/diary to encourage her in the loss of her husband.   

Soon, Rosie finds herself enmeshed in an ancient coven, the Sisters of Mercy,… and finds that she is strong and she can be special.

So, is it wrong that I went into the kitchen and started making a TON of food when I finished this book?   After he had eaten, I started telling my (now ex-)husband about the storyline.  Here was our conversation:

Him: “I don’t think I have anything to worry about; we don’t have any poisons in the house.” 

Me:  “She didn’t use poison.”  

Him:  “crushed glass?” 

Me:  “No.  Magic! She made magic casseroles.” 

Him: “Well, then, I still don’t have anything to worry about” 

Me:  “Why not?  I’ve been called a witch before.” 

Him: “You misheard,” he muttered under his breath.

  

Yes, I’m still laughing over that exchange!

This was a very well-developed story with characters that you will believe could be real.  

Editing / Grammar: A, very few errors.

Other Books from Brad Carter:

• The Big Man of Barlow
• Torn Realities
• Fear the Abyss
• (dis)Comfort Food
• From Their Cradle to Your Grave
• The Big Bad

originally posted 08.04.2013 on my previous website

WordPress.com closed that site because I promoted authors and their books.  

LIES by Jade C. Jamison

Title:  LIES

Series:  Nicki Sosebee #10

Author:  Jade C. Jamison

Publish Date:   02.29.2016

Publisher:  Jade C. Jamison

Category /Genre:  Contemporary Romance, Erotic Romance, Romantic Suspense

Recommended for:  18+ due to sexual content

Received from:  Jade C. Jamison (beta reading)

Goodreads link:  Lies

Date completed:  02.25.16

  

Description from the publisher:

 From here on out, the Nicki Sosebee series is getting darker.

BUCKLE UP.

Like a dog with a bone, Nicki cannot help but continue to pursue realtor-turned-politician Gina McCafferty as the woman persists in making her play for the open City Council seat. But Nicki is learning over and over again that there is more than meets the eye when it comes to her fair city. Meanwhile, her personal life is topsy-turvy, and a tattoo artist named Hunter makes Nicki’s life a living hell.

Alliances are tested. Lines are drawn. And events are set in motion that will play out in deadly ways…

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This is the tenth in the Nicki Sosebee series and they do need to be read in order.

It feels like we have waited forever for the next book in this series.  Jade Jamison has made sure that what she presented to us was worth the wait! 

Nicki’s life continues to be filled with hot men and amazing friendships, but the real fire lies in her investigative reporting.  In this book, she finds herself questioning all of her relationships – personal and professional.  We can only hope that the future finds that she is not the one to be burned any more than she already has been.

I love Nicki and I’m still team Sean. To say any more about her sex life would be giving spoilers.  Suffice it to say that Nicki is still Nicki with no apologies given or needed.

The bad news is that I reached the end and wanted to scream in frustration that it was the end of this episode.  The good news is that Jade has (semi) promised that we will not have to wait too long for book 11.  DEAD BODIES EVERYWHERE is not just the title – I expect it will be a telling forecast.

Grammar/editing:  book received as an unedited ARC  / errors excused

Nicki Sosebee Series:

1.       Got the Life

2.       Dead

3.       No Place to Hide

4.       Right Now

5.       One More Time

6.       Lost

7.       Innocent Bystander

8.       Blind

9.       Fake

10.    Lies (coming soon)

11.    Dead Bodies Everywhere (coming soon)

Other Books from Jade C. Jamison:

• MADversary
• Then Kiss Me
• Stating His Case
• Fabric of Night
• Worst Mother
• Old House
• Finger Bang
• Substitute Boyfriend
• Punctured, Bruised, and Barely Tattooed
• Savage

Bullet series:

1. Bullet
2. Rock Bottom
3. Feverish
4. Fully Automatic

          4.5  Christmas Stalkings (novella)

5. Slash & Burn
6. Locked & Loaded

The Vagabonds series:

1. On the Run
2. On the Road
3. On the Rocks

Tangled Web Series:

1.       Tangled Web: A Steamy Heavy Metal Novella

2.       Everything But

3.       Seal All Exits

4.       (not yet titled)

Wishes series:

           1.      Be Careful What You Wish For

           2.      Secret Wishes (not yet released)

           3.      Carnal Wishes (not yet released)

           4.      Dangerous Wishes (not yet released)

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