Review: Wild Wicked Scot

Wild Wicked Scot by Julia London
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

***Deal Alert*** This is only $.99 for Kindle (deal also on B&N and other sites). The hero is a doggy lover, don't miss out!
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4.5 stars

I read this for the Man in a Kilt square for Romance Bingo.

She was afraid of him, disgusted by him, attracted to him.

Without the sweeping epic saga war components, this reminded me of Pride of Lions by Marsha Canham. As with the heroine in that one, Margot grew up extremely spoiled, sheltered, and is incredibly naïve. I personally am not the biggest fan of reading about perfect people, I love growth and journey. When Margot first meets Arran she is only 16 and after only two more meetings they are married after she turns 18. She is then immediately taken out of her home in England and brought to Arran's home in Scotland. Margot is an extreme fish out of water and her elitist ways and attitude definitely don't jive with the clan structure. She tries to help in her known English ways, but it only works to distance her more from Arran's people. Now, Arran may be completely different from the fops she grew up around and liked but we still she her attracted to him but she doesn't quite know what to do with it because she doesn't know him. I liked the fact that Margot wasn't blinded by insta-lust and just because she found Arran attractive she didn’t instantly trust him and it didn’t solve all their problems. Margot's just too young, too scared, and too bitter about not being able to marry someone remotely of her choosing and she ends up leaving Arran after only a couple months of marriage.

"I remember that your list of complaints was quite long."
She could feel the skin of her chest heating beneath his study of her. She had to look away or be devoured by that penetrating gaze. "Were they complaints? I always rather thought them pleas to help me reconcile to my new surroundings."
"Ah, is that what they were, then?" he mused.

Arran is more instantly likeable but while he has about 9 years on Margot, he was almost as clueless to marriage. He's the one who is struck by first sight and he knows as soon as he sees Margot he wants to marry her. He doesn't think about anything else except having her as wife, and doesn't think about how truly different they are. He's extremely caring to her in the bedroom, the one place they do connect, but baffled by her in every other measure. When he brings her to his home he doesn't help or explain to her how she can connect with his people and disappears for most the day doing work or traveling; he lives his life exactly the same way he did before marrying. Later on in the story there is a great conversation between the two where we learn that his parent's both died when he was young and Margot's mother died young also. We see that these two weren't modeled or taught how marriages work in a basic sense. In the beginning, Arran does do more little things to try and make it work but Margot's youth, fear, loneliness, and other issues I talked about cloud and create misunderstandings with their communication. These two simply married too soon and too young.

I'm usually a linear person but the switching chapters from past to present so worked for me. I loved how it set the tone and gave a clear understanding of how and why Arran and Margot felt the way they did, while also adding some drama. This was mostly a character driven story and our couple had the major chops to carry it; I devoured the first half of this absorbed into their story. I think it was around the 56% mark that the Reason I Read Romance conversation between the two happened. A couple lines, I refuse to spoil by putting them here, are spoken by Arran and let's just say I made sounds that probably only happen at the Cheesecake Factory when they bring me my red velvet cheesecake. They're crosses between gasps, sobs, happiness, and heart palpitations.

The second half and ending involving family and Jacobite drama didn't fully work for me, it wasn't flushed out enough. Especially, the quick and off screen way it was wrapped up, ended up feeling unneeded to me because of its lack of substance. Some secondary characters could have been fleshed out more like Arran's friend Jock and Margot's brother Knox. I guess I'm saying I wanted this book to be 200 pages of more because I loved the story so much.

I also felt the ending bringing together between Arran and Margot felt a little off. Arran had a quick to anger moment over something Margot did and then was just as quick to forgiveness, making it feel angst for angst sake. Then at the end when they have time to really have it out and come together, there was this kind of awkward lingering distrustfulness from Arran and unsure from Margot that felt overdone. At this point in the story and after certain things had been done, they should have had a united front.

Still, I gobbled this story up. Margot's growth was evident and I enjoyed how she went from a spoiled, scared, and naïve girl to a woman finding and testing her own strength and mind. Arran matured into a man who learned to open his clueless eyes and pay attention to his wife, while not trying to mold her into what he thought she should be instead of who she truly was. I'd read about this couple all day.

Bonus:
Arran loves dogs and my crazy dog lady feelings couldn't handle it.

She was suddenly reminded of a young dog here at Balhaire who'd been badly injured by a trap that had been set illegally. When the gamekeeper determined the poor dog could not be saved and, furthermore, would suffer in his last hours, she had watched Arran scoop the dog up in his arms and carry him from this very hall with tears on his face. He'd taken the dog into the woods and mercifully put it out of its misery. She shivered at the painful recollection of how he'd grieved for the dog.

Not going to lie, reading this and then how three gray muzzled dogs sleep on the bed, the only thought running through my head was Shut it Down, Shut it all Down. Any Romanices Hero of 2017 talk is over.

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Review: Irish Hope (Irish Eyes, #8)

Irish Hope (Irish Eyes, #8) by Donna Fletcher
My rating: 2 of 5 stars



It is not until 60% into the story the hero realizes the 12yr old boy he is traveling with and has a great friendship with is a woman and only because he is told.

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Review: The Forbidden Duke

The Forbidden Duke by Darcy Burke
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

He kept his back to her. "I would imagine so after being in London. Young women such as yourself are scrutinized in a horrid fashion."
She joined him at the bookshelf. "So are forbidden dukes. It makes one conclude that London, or rather Society, is the problem."

This was a little shorter (150ish pgs) than the average romance book length and the hero's character suffered a bit because of it. His almost completely removing himself from society seemed more sad and odd than understandable. The reason he does this is because he was a notorious rake when he was younger and now he shrugs off society by just eating alone in his club room and only showing up at his stepmother's ball for one dance. A longer page count could have delved into his character more; I felt we were just left with a completely solitary shell.

Heroine was pleasing to read about, with her having lived through a scandal and now older and wiser. She was enjoyable and refreshing as signs of naivety were completely absent. Although, I will say her eagerness to do scandalous things with the duke felt off because of how society turned its back on her the first time. The sexy library scene felt forced in to meet a requirement for at least one sex scene in a story; I think the book would have been better without it.

My favorite part of this story was actually the relationship between the duke and his step-mother. Heroes are broody and dark more often than not (not complaining) and usually their horrible childhood or dark pasts are the cause for this. It was so refreshing to see this step-parent relationship be so sweet and loving. This intangible bumped my rating from just ok to liked. I'll definitely be continuing on in this series.

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Review: Holding Fire

Holding Fire by April Hunt
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Elle is sick and tired of being a yes woman. When she catches her fiancé cheating on her, she kicks him to the curb. Escaping both him and her overbearing Senator father, she travels with a friend to help build clinics in Thailand.
Trey is in Thailand waiting to get his assignment from his secret former military members Alpha group, when a hot blonde comes up to him at the bar. After one night he knows she's the one he's been waiting for. However, Elle doesn't want to be controlled by anyone ever again and pulls a ditch and run on him.
Trey can't believe it when protecting Elle turns out to be his assignment but now he has even more reasons to never let her out of his sight.
With Elle in danger and a villain lurking in the shadows, Trey has his work cut out for him protecting her and convincing her that sometimes one night stands can last for a lifetime.

"The ship Uncomplicated has already sailed, sweetheart. It is so damn far out to sea, Poseidon himself can't fucking track it. Get complicated with me, Elle. What do we have to lose?"

Second in the Alpha Security series, Holding Fire turns the focus on former Delta Force Trey. If you read my review for the first in the series Heated Pursuit, you'll know the hero was my favorite part of that story. Unfortunately, Trey didn't have the same impact on me as Rafe did. Trey had a bit of insta-lust/love for Elle right away and his character was centralized on getting her to accept they meant to be more than a one night stand. We know at age thirty-four he is done with meaningless sex and wants to start a family and he has a good relationship with his mom. We get scenes of him teasing and getting teased by his Alpha Security buddies and two or three scenes with his mother but I missed a fuller character. I think my disappointment with Trey was because the story itself didn't have a rounded out feel.

The story starts off great with push and pull between Elle and Trey then the added danger of who is trying to kidnap/kill her. However, in the pursuit to keep the reader guessing as to who and why Elle is being targeted, the villain remains deep in the shadows and they kind of become a non-entity in their own suspense story. There is a decided lack of action, until the very end, and after the third or so time Elle is almost captured, I'd be side-eyeing and asking to see Trey's credentials. Most of the story had a very rinse and repeat with how Elle was in danger and her resistance to Trey.

Elle started off as a character I really wanted to know, with her I've been screwed over by my father and fiancé but I'm grabbing life by the horns now attitude. Like with Trey though, the story didn't have enough substance to support her and she ended up kind of becoming annoying with every fifth line out of her mouth along the lines of "I'm in charge of my own life." Which is a great attitude to have, but in the beginning I just wanted her to maybe listen to the professionals trying to keep you alive and later it was more about her incessantly and blindly rejecting Trey, even though she inherently acknowledged she had feelings for him. It was a conflict that started 5% into the story and continued until 95%, way too dragged out.

With the story being a bit flimsy, little imperfections jumped out at me more. Trey's nickname of "sweetness" for Elle seemed just a bit overused and the British team member's continuous use of "bloody" and "love" seemed overdone as if the author really wanted to keep reminding us she was British and this was the only way she knew how. Even though it was only done twice, I'm super done with the whole women in "tight clothing" thrusting their boobs on the poor hero's chest and aggressively flirting with him, regardless if the heroine is right beside him, as was the case once. At least have these women be more suave and do it behind the heroine's back every once and a while. I kid, but I hope you all know what I mean.

The action storyline was lukewarm, it was tiring how long and often the conflict was only the heroine's, at first empowering but then exhausting, "I can't because I must be independent!", and this story wrapped up with just about the most perfect bow you could tie. Seriously, you will be tempted to roll your eyes and I think the author missed an opportunity to write a moving and emotional scene dealing with an issue not commonly found in romance, but fairy tale fans will probably like it as much as I didn't. The charm and heart I talked about in the first did peek out a couple times but the purpose of the story just wasn't there. There are plenty of Alpha guys and gal waiting in the wings and I'll still hang around to give this author another try because her style does lend to romantic suspense fun and hotness. This one in the series didn't match my tastes but the promise of another hero like Rafe will carry me over to the next.


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Reading Update: 60%

“When you downplay what you are? You have no fucking clue how much it pisses me off. It makes me want to hold you in front of a mirror until you see what I see— a strong, competent, and caring woman.” She was already shaking her head, but he reached out and captured her gently by her nape, holding her still… and looking at him. “It makes me want to hold you…” Trey murmured, slowly bringing her closer, “and touch you… and kiss you… until you feel it, too.”

Review: The Dutch Girl

The Dutch Girl by Donna Thorland
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars

"You mean you will let us have novels?" asked the taller one, who must be Jannetje.
"As long as you do your other reading and advance in all of your subjects, I see no reason that you should not read novels."
"Reverend Blauvelt says they give women ideas."
"Well, someone has to," said Anna.

What a story. This is more historical fiction with romance than vice versa but the intermingling of fact, real historical figures/events, and romance was amazing (I do think this was heavier on romance than the previous in series). I can see a few getting bogged down in the middle with our heroine's journey turning more toward the issues of the time, British and Americans fighting for land, but my history loving heart was all in.

The story reads a bit like a crescendo, with the last 30% providing us with answers and action that the first 70% hinted at and built towards (a bit of a rushed ending). This is part of a series but you could still start here and be fine. The connecting thread is an American woman spy nicknamed The Widow who helps Anna when she is younger and is the impetus for the journey she makes. There is also a character named Kate Grey who was featured before and makes a smallish but important appearance.

The romance between Anna and Gerrit is not the focus, like I said, but when they show up together on the pages, they spark. When we first see them together their conversation and back and forth had my toes curling, not so much because of sexual reasons but from two people attracted to each other whose intelligence, wit, and teasing caused heat. They knew each other as children, so we get them falling in love through some reminiscing and I did miss more of their romance aspect in their present. I thought the one night we got of them together could have been lengthened and emboldened more but I'm greedy like that.

This is more Anna's story than Anna and Gerrit's or the birth of America but it worked well in this capacity. The details are immaculate in this without feeling unnecessary or weighed down in minutiae; the author provides an amazing feel for the time period. The secondary characters have depth and breadth that kept them from being strictly villains or heroes.

I felt this was a little different from the others in the series in that working for the cause on the American patriots’ side wasn't the focus. You'll learn about Dutch culture and since Anna doesn't so much as have a horse in the race as she is just trying to survive, you'll get how average citizens were affected by the war. There was some great feminist thinking from Anna, which even two hundred years later still begs to be discussed, that had me wanting to quote a lot from this book.

I think this story ended in 1778 and I fervently hope the author keeps writing up to 1783 and then 1812 and then, well I hope she keeps writing historical romances until the end of time. If you like this time period and want a little romance in your historical fiction, this series is a must read.


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50%

“Even dressed in rags, you will always be the son of a patroon. If you are disgraced, you do not fall. You are cast out, not down. It is only those of us in the middle who must cling to each slippery rung of the ladder for dear life.”

“Unless you jump. Leap off the ladder into the unknown.”His voice was almost wistful.

"In a man that would be called boldness. In a woman, it is called something else.”

Kindle Freebies

I have not read these selections but they're free (at the time of my post).

So enjoy and partake at your own risk :)

*Click on the book cover to go to Amazon and Get Yourself Some!

        

    

Kind of bummed, a lot I downloaded aren't free anymore :(  A small selection this month but hopefully some winners!

Sunday, We Soup!

I feel like I'm finally back to 100% after my bout with the flu but I still wanted something that was quick and easy to make. With that desire in mind and my love of shrimp, I decided on this recipe:

Brazilian Shrimp Soup

Since I live in a landlocked state, I must unthaw my shrimp. So envious of you fresh seafooders.

There really isn't a lot to this soup and I don't add the onion but you'll see my extra lemon because, garnish!

Doesn't look the most appetizing but hang in there, folks.

Start licking your chops, pescetarians!

I don't usually add parsley when it calls for it, because meh, but I would suggest it for this soup, did add a little something to it. 

The recipe calls for a "pinch" of red pepper flakes, I added a teaspoon because I'm a wild child. With the extra squeezed lemon juice, this had a very pleasing flavor. I liked my other shrimp soup better but for how easy this was to make, you can't beat it :)

Show me your soups!

Reading Update: 10%

“Education,” replied Anna smoothly, “is an investment in a woman’s future. It is a dowry that cannot be squandered by a spendthrift husband. It is an evergreen inheritance that can be passed to her children no matter the condition of her husband’s estate.”