Review: The Night is Mine by M.L. Buchman

Title: The Night is Mine
Author: M.L. Buchman
Genre: Military, Suspense
Heat Index: 3 out of 5
Release Date: Feb. 1, 2012
Word/Page Count: 384 pgs
Format: Netgalley

First in a thrilling military romantic suspense series based on the real-life elite helicopter pilots who transport Navy SEALs and Delta Force teams in and out of combat and covert missions. (SOAR are the heroes of Black Hawk Down.)

Buchman’s heroine flys the most dangerous military ops and tries to find the one man who can be a hero in her own life. Ace-pilot Captain Emily Beale goes undercover as bodyguard to the First Lady, with her rugged commander, Major Mark Henderson, who is determined to cover her back. Can she learn to keep her desire at bay before her covert mission implodes?

February Book Releases

Title: Kiss of the Vampire Series: Warriors of the Rift #1 Author: Garner, Cynthia Release Date: February 1st Once a generation, the rift between the paranormal world and the human world opens, allowing supernatural entities to cross. Vampire, demon, or shapeshifter, they can save the world-or send it spiraling into chaos.< Half-demon, half-human, Nix de la Fuente is accepted by neither and mistrusted by both. Determined to prove she's more human than not, she devotes herself to solving crimes between the world's mortals and its most unsavory undead. But her latest case brings her face to face with the one vampire she could never resist . . . Called in to investigate a string of violent murders, special agent Tobias Caine isn't interested in rekindling his relationship with Nix. Yet one look and the vampire knows his need for her is as strong as ever. Once, their all-consuming passion nearly cost Nix her fragile hold on her humanity. Now, as their hunger for one another intensifies, exposing them to an unimaginable danger, it could cost them both their lives.

Title: Miss Hillary Schools a Scoundrel Series: Author: Grace, Samantha Release Date: February 1st An exciting debut in a series that introduces the first of four debonair Regency bachelors who have it all: wealth, influence, and women swooning at their feet. Love 'em and leave 'em Lord Andrew Forest receives a dose of his own medicine when jaded heiress Lana Hillary beds him then disappears without so much as a by-your-leave. Tossed aside like an old hat by the only woman to capture his heart, Drew is determined to intercept Lana before she reaches London and convince her to marry him. He'll teach the little vixen a thing or two about how to love a man.

Title: The Lord of Illusion Series: The Elven Lords #3 Author: Kennedy, Kathryne Release Date: February 1st Acclaimed for her world-building, Kathryne Kennedy's third book in her haunting new historical paranormal romance series features transcendent writing. Rebel Drystan Hawkes dreams of freeing England and discovers the key to opening the door to Elfhame lies with Camille, a young slave woman. Drystan sets off to rescue her and find the key that will send the dreaded elf lords away forever. But who is rescuing whom?

Review: How to Dance with a Duke by Manda Collins

Title: How to Dance with a Duke
Author: Manda Collins
Genre: Historical Romance
Heat Index: 3 out of 5
Release Date: January 31st
Word/Page Count: 400 pages
Format: NetGalley

What’s a wallflower to do when she’s suddenly in need of a husband? Use all the pluck and moxie she can muster to get what she wants…

Miss Cecily Hurston would much rather explore the antiquities of Egypt than the uncharted territory of marriage. But the rules of her father’s exclusive academic society forbid her entrance unless she weds one of its members. To clear her ailing father’s name of a scandalous rumor, Cecily needs to gain admission into the Egyptian Club—and is willing to marry any old dullard to do it.

Lucas Dalton, Duke of Winterson, is anything but dull. He’s a dashing and decorated war hero determined to help Cecily—even if that means looking the other way when she claims the dance card of Amelia Snow, this season’s most sought-after beauty. But Lucas has a reason for wanting Cecily to join the Egyptian Club: His brother went missing during one of Lord Hurston’s expeditions to Egypt. An alliance with the explorer’s bluestocking daughter could bring Lucas closer to the truth about what happened…or it could lead him to a more dangerous love than either he or Cecily could have imagined….

Book Trailers: New Releases January 22nd-28th

Since it's a rather gloomy Monday where I'm located, I thought we could all use a pick-me-up. In that line of thought, we've decided to start doing a weekly post featuring the trailers of books being released that week. If you ever get a chance to look around, it's amazing to see how much book trailers have progressed, offering such gems like A Monster Calls or Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Actually, the trailer for the latter was what inspired me to go out and buy the book the day it was released.

Behind the cut are the trailers for the books coming out the week of January 22nd - 28th. Hopefully they'll add some inspiration to your reading list. For more January book releases, see our January Coming Soon post.

Flavor of the Week - January 23rd

For this FOTW, I'm going to do something a little different. Instead of posting a picture of a lust-worthy man, I'm going to offer up one of my favorite characters from a book.

Ethan Sullivan (known as Darth Sullivan behind his back) from the Chicagoland Series by Chloe Neill.

Now, since we all have different ideas of what a character looks like in our head, I can't exactly post a picture of him. What I can do, though, is leave you with some lovely quotes that, if you've read the series, will hopefully bring back fond memories. And, if you haven't read the series, maybe the quotes will inspire you to bump it up on your to-be-read list.

“You undo me, Merit. Wholly and completely. You don’t take me at my word. You challenge me at every opportunity. And that means when I’m with you, I am less than the head of this House… and I am more than the head of this House. I am a man.” He stroked my cheeks with his thumbs. “In my very, very long life, I need you more than I have ever needed anything.”
— Ethan Sullivan, Twice Bitten by Chloe Neill

“You can run. You can keep running to the ends of the earth. But I won’t be far behind you. No. I will never be far behind you. Do the things you need to do. Learn to be a vampire, to be a warrior, to be the soldier you are capable of being. But consider the possibility that I made a mistake I regret—and that I’ll continue to regret that mistake and try to convince you to give me another chance until the earth stops turning.”
- Ethan Sullivan, Hard Bitten by Chloe Neill

“I’ll have you in my bed again, Sentinel. And at my side. That is a promise.”
-Ethan Sullivan, Hard Bitten by Chloe Neill

Review: Banshee Charmer by Tiffany Allee

Title: Banshee Charmer (From the Files of the Otherworlder Enforcement Agency #1)
Author: Tiffany Allee
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Heat Index: 3 out of 5
Release Date: January 24th, 2012
Word/Page Count: 159 pages
Format: NetGalley

When she’s sent to a crime scene and finds her second dead woman in as many weeks, half-banshee detective Kiera “Mac” McLoughlin is convinced a serial killer is on the loose. Incubi are extinct, her boss insists. But what else can kill a woman in the throes of pleasure? When her partner is murdered after using witchcraft to locate the killer and Mac is thrown off the case, her frustration turns to desperation.

Certain the killer is an incubus, Mac works behind her department’s back to chase down slim, sometimes perilous leads. While the killer eludes her, she does discover handsome Aidan Byrne, an investigative counterpart from the enigmatic Otherworlder Enforcement Agency. Mac typically runs her investigations fast and hard, but with Aidan at her side, she’s running this one “hot” as well. But Aidan knows more than he’s letting on—something that could shatter their blazing romance and add Mac to the killer’s growing body count…

Review: Stray by Rachel Vincent

Title: Stray (Shifters #1)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Heat Index: 3 out of 5
Release Date: June 1st, 2007
Word/Page Count: 618
Format: Purchased

There are only eight breeding female werecats left . . .
And I'm one of them.

I look like an all-American grad student. But I am a werecat, a shape-shifter, and I live in two worlds.

Despite reservations from my family and my Pride, I escaped the pressure to continue my species and carved out a normal life for myself. Until the night a Stray attacked.

I'd been warned about Strays -- werecats without a Pride, constantly on the lookout for someone like me: attractive, female, and fertile. I fought him off, but then learned two of my fellow tabbies had disappeared.

This brush with danger was all my Pride needed to summon me back . . . for my own protection. Yeah, right. But I'm no meek kitty. I'll take on whatever -- and whoever -- I have to in order to find my friends. Watch out, Strays -- 'cause I got claws, and I'm not afraid to use them . . .

Review: The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie by Jennifer Ashley

Title: The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie (Highland Pleasures #1)
Author: Jennifer Ashely
Genre: Historical Romance
Heat Index: 4 out of 5
Release Date: April 28th, 2009
Word/Page Count: 320 pages
Format: Purchased

The year is 1881. Meet the Mackenzie family--rich, powerful, dangerous, eccentric. A lady couldn't be seen with them without ruin. Rumors surround them--of tragic violence, of their mistresses, of their dark appetites, of scandals that set England and Scotland abuzz.

The youngest brother, Ian, known as the Mad Mackenzie, spent most of his young life in an asylum, and everyone agrees he is decidedly odd. He's also hard and handsome and has a penchant for Ming pottery and beautiful women.

Beth Ackerley, widow, has recently come into a fortune. She has decided that she wants no more drama in her life. She was raised in drama--an alcoholic father who drove them into the workhouse, a frail mother she had to nurse until her death, a fussy old lady she became constant companion to. No, she wants to take her money and find peace, to travel, to learn art, to sit back and fondly remember her brief but happy marriage to her late husband.

And then Ian Mackenzie decides he wants her.

The first of a new historical series.

Review: Under the Moon by Natalie J. Damschroder

Title: Under the Moon (Goddess Rising, Book 1)
Author: Natalie J. Damschroder
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Heat Index: 2 out of 5
Release Date: December 6th, 2011
Word/Page Count: 300 pages
Format: NetGalley

Their power gives them strength...and makes them targets.

Quinn Caldwell is the epitome of a modern goddess. Her power source is the moon, her abilities restricted only by physical resources and lunar phase. She runs a consulting business and her father's bar, serves on the board of the ancient Society for Goddess Education and Defense, and yearns for Nick Jarrett, professional goddess protector and the soul mate she can never have.

But someone has developed the rare and difficult ability to drain a goddess of her powers, and Quinn is a target. With the world thinking Nick has gone rogue (whatever that means) and that Quinn is influenced by "family ties" she didn't know she had, keeping themselves safe while working to find the enemy proves harder each day.

But not as hard as denying their hearts...

Review: Chain Reaction by Zoe Archer

Title: Chain Reaction (8th Wing #2)
Author: Zoe Archer
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy Romance
Heat Index: 2 out of 5
Release Date: January 9th, 2012
Word/Page Count: 43,000 words
Format: NetGalley

Elite 8th Wing pilot Celene Jur was taken captive after a mysterious device temporarily disabled her ship's controls. Three solar months later, when Celene receives intel on the man who built the device, she's ready to get the bastard. Only problem is, the higher-ups think her mission partner should be Nils Calder, a tech-head who can understand the disabling device. The attraction between them is electric, but Celene needs a soldier who can watch her back as she exacts her revenge.

Nils knows his department is nicknamed NerdWorks. Pilots like Celene think the closest tech geeks come to combat is all-night Nifalian chess tournaments. But behind the NerdWorks insignia on his sleeve Nils is an able fighter, ready to prove himself and gain Celene's trust.

The desire between them is unexpected, but with the fate of thousands hanging in the balance, the hotshot pilot and the tech genius must succeed in their mission—no matter the cost.

Review: The Battle Sylph

Title: The Battle Sylph (Sylph #1)
Author: L. J. McDonald
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Heat Index: 4 out of 5
Release Date: March 28th, 2010
Word/Page Count: 323 pages
Format: NetGalley

He is one of many: a creature of magic, unrelentingly male. He is lured through the portal by pure female beauty, a virgin sacrifice. She is killed, and he is silenced and enslaved.

Such a dark ritual is necessary. Unlike their elemental cousins—those gentler sylphs of wind and fire—battlers find no joy in everyday labor. Their magic can destroy an army or demolish a castle, and each has but one goal: find his queen, then protect and pleasure her at any cost. What would a maiden do if she were given such a servant? What would befall that kingdom foolish enough to allow a battler to escape? Young Solie and the people of Eferem are about to find out.

Review: Breathless by Anne Stuart

Title: Breathless (The House of Rohan #3)
Author: Anne Stuart
Genre: Historical Romance
Heat Index: 4 out of 5
Release Date: October 1st, 2010
Word/Page Count: 379 pages
Format: Purchased

Ruined beyond repair and shunned by London society, lovely Miranda Rohan rebelliously embraces the freedom that comes from having nothing left to lose. However, this dangerous course throws her under the power of the darkly enigmatic Lucien de Malheur—known to many as the Scorpion.

Seeking to destroy the Rohans, Lucien traps Miranda in a marriage she thinks is based on friendship but instead is rooted in vengeance. Yet even when she realizes the truth, their enmity fuels a shocking passion—and perhaps even more.

Such a man might drive anyone to murder....

Review: Mesmerized by Lauren Dane

Title: Mesmerized (Phantom Corps #2)
Author: Lauren Dane
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Heat Index: 4 out of 5
Release Date: May 26th, 2011
Word/Page Count: 294 pages
Format: Purchased

The national bestselling author of Insatiable turns up the heat with her latest sizzling adventure.

Andrei Solace delivers death on silent feet as an assassin for the Phantom Corps. Mercenary Piper Roundtree thought she was over him. But against the backdrop of an impending war, their passion is rekindled. Now the lovers must join forces- in more ways than one-to save the Known Universe before the Imperialist enemy hurls it into irreversible chaos.

Song Lust

I had this song pop up on Pandora the other day and, after some quick YouTubing, have been listening to it almost constantly since.



Soldier's Eyes by Jack Savoretti

Review: Reckless by Anne Stuart

Title: Reckless (The House of Rohan #2)
Author: Anne Stuart
Genre: Historical Romance
Heat Index: 3 out of 5
Release Date: September 1st, 2010
Word/Page Count: 408 pages
Format: Purchased

Adrian Alistair Rohan lost his faith, and now, a dedicated member of the depraved Heavenly Host, he loses himself in his only pleasure: the seduction and debauchery of beautiful women. Rich, charming and devastatingly skilled in the arts of love, he never fails in his conquests... until Charlotte Spenser.

Charlotte is facing a desolate, passionless future, none of which matters to Adrian, who imagines her a toy until better prey arrives. But beneath her drab exterior, Charlotte is a woman as enchanting as she is brilliant and, lured into Adrian's world, soon she becomes the seducer, and he the seduced...

Authors vs. Readers vs. Reviewers...

Apparently, 2012 was rung in with a whole slew of angry-author / negative-review drama. We read about a lot of it. I thought about posting my thoughts on it here. But the more I thought about it, the more I just wanted a nap. So we have a bit of snarky-linky-witty-goodness instead.

Kudos, Ms. Brook.

Review: Lonely Werewolf Girl by Martin Miller

Title: Lonely Werewolf Girl (Kalix MacRinnalch #1)
Author: Martin Miller
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Heat Index: N/A
Release Date: June 7th, 2007
Word/Page Count: 520 pages
Format: Purchased

While teenage werewolf Kalix MacRinnalch is being pursued through the streets of London by murderous hunters, her sister, the Werewolf Enchantress, is busy designing clothes for the Fire Queen. Meanwhile, in the Scottish Highlands, the MacRinnalch Clan is plotting and feuding after the head of the clan suddenly dies intestate. As the court intrigue threatens to blow up into all-out civil war, the competing factions determine that Kalix is the swing vote necessary to assume leadership of the clan. Unfortunately, Kalix isn’t really into clan politics — laudanum’s more her thing. Even more unfortunately, Kalix is the reason the head of the clan ended up dead, which is why she’s now on the lam in London. . . This expansive tale of werewolves in the modern world — friendly werewolves, fashionista werewolves, troubled teenage werewolves, cross-dressing werewolves, werewolves of every sort — is hard-edged, hilarious, and utterly believable.

Review: The Demon Lover by Juliet Dark

Title: The Demon Lover (Fairwick Chronicles #1)
Author: Juliet Dark
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Heat Index: 3 out of 5
Release Date: December 27th, 2011
Word/Page Count: 416 pages
Format: Purchased

I gasped . . . or tried to. My mouth opened, but I couldn’t draw breath. . . . His lips, pearly wet, parted and he blew into my mouth. My lungs expanded beneath his weight. When I exhaled he sucked in my breath and his weight turned from cold marble into warm living flesh.

Since accepting a teaching position at remote Fairwick College in upstate New York, Callie McFay has experienced the same disturbingly erotic dream every night: A mist enters her bedroom, then takes the shape of a virile, seductive stranger who proceeds to ravish her in the most toe-curling, wholly satisfying ways possible. Perhaps these dreams are the result of writing her bestselling book, The Sex Lives of Demon Lovers. After all, Callie’s lifelong passion is the intersection of lurid fairy tales and Gothic literature—which is why she finds herself at Fairwick’s renowned folklore department, living in a once-stately Victorian house that, at first sight, seemed to call her name.

But Callie soon realizes that her dreams are alarmingly real. She has a demon lover—an incubus—and he will seduce her, pleasure her, and eventually suck the very life from her. Then Callie makes another startling discovery: He’s not the only mythical creature in Fairwick. As the tenured witches of the college and the resident fairies in the surrounding woods prepare to cast out the incubus, Callie must accomplish something infinitely more difficult—banishing this demon lover from her heart.

Flavor of the Week - January 9th

Since my fellow Fury felt it necessary to steal a bit of my soul by posting a Green Bay Packer (a PACKER?!), I'm combating back with Tim Tebow from the Denver Broncos, even though he is a bit of a pretty boy. And this is mostly because my team, the Vikings, consists of people who actually look like they're about to invade Greenland. See examples here and here. But hey, I'm all for fearsome on the field. As for off the field... Hello, I'm ready to be Tebow'd.

Review: Wayfinder by C. E. Murphy

Title: Wayfinder (Worldwalker Duology #2)
Author: C. E. Murphy
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Heat Index: 2 out of 5
Release Date: September 6th, 2011
Word/Page Count: 352 pages
Format: Purchased

THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE—IF IT DOESN’T KILL YOU FIRST

Lara Jansen is a truthseeker, gifted—or cursed—with the magical ability to tell honesty from lies. Once she was a tailor in Boston, but now she has crossed from Earth to the Barrow-lands, a Faerie world embroiled in a bloody civil war between Seelie and Unseelie. Armed with an enchanted and malevolent staff which seeks to bend her to its dark will, and thrust into a deadly realm where it’s hard to distinguish friend from foe, Lara is sure of one thing: her love for Dafydd ap Caerwyn, the Faerie prince who sought her help in solving a royal murder and dousing the flames of war before they consumed the Barrow-lands.

But now Dafydd is missing, perhaps dead, and the Barrow-lands are closer than ever to a final conflagration. Lara has no other choice: she must harness the potent but perilous magic of the staff and her own truthseeking talents, blazing a path to a long-forgotten truth—a truth with the power to save the Barrow-lands or destroy them.

Review: Spider's Bite by Jennifer Estep

Title: Spider's Bite (Elemental Assassin #1)
Author: Jennifer Estep
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Heat Index: 2 out of 5
Release Date: January 26th, 2010
Word/Page Count: 395 pages
Format: Purchased

My name is Gin, and I kill people.

They call me the Spider. I'm the most feared assassin in the South — when I'm not busy at the Pork Pit cooking up the best barbecue in Ashland. As a Stone elemental, I can hear everything from the whispers of the gravel beneath my feet to the vibrations of the soaring Appalachian Mountains above me. My Ice magic also comes in handy for making the occasional knife. But I don't use my powers on the job unless I absolutely have to. Call it professional pride.

Now that a ruthless Air elemental has double-crossed me and killed my handler, I'm out for revenge. And I'll exterminate anyone who gets in my way — good or bad. I may look hot, but I'm still one of the bad guys. Which is why I'm in trouble, since irresistibly rugged Detective Donovan Caine has agreed to help me. The last thing this coldhearted killer needs when I'm battling a magic more powerful than my own is a sexy distraction...especially when Donovan wants me dead just as much as the enemy.

Review: Sins of the Demon by Diana Rowland

Title: Sins of the Demon (Kara Gillian #4)
Author: Diana Rowland
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Heat Index: 1 out of 5
Release Date: January 3rd, 2012
Word/Page Count: 320 pages
Format: Purchased

The homicide beat in Louisiana isn't just terrifying, it's demonic. Detective Kara Gilligan of the supernatural task force has the ability to summon demons to her aid, but she herself is pledged to serve a demonic lord. And now, people who've hurt Kara in the past are dropping dead for no apparent reason. To clear her name and save both the demon and human worlds, she's in a race against the clock and in a battle for her life that just may take her to hell and back.

Flavor of the Week - Jan. 2

Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers.

Now I have to admit, as much as I like football, I'm don't normally see the players as hotties and normally when I think of Matthews, I think Goldilocks. A bad-ass Goldilocks, grant you, who needs a haircut, but then, if he cut his hair, he might become Samson and lose his mojo. LOL. Yet, when I saw this pic, it was "WOW". Hats off to you, Mr. Matthews. I'll be undressing you each time I see you play from now on. :)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!