Reading Update: Pag1

 

Have the night to myself, so some eats and contemporary romance! 

Alfie is retired from football and has been badgered into selling his memoirs. He's a grump who hates to talk about himself but sunshine-y ghost writer Mabel is going to get every detail out of him. 

Their banter and bickering is looking like a building romance to the public and the fake relationship they suddenly find themselves in is starting to feel too real. 

Grumpy plus sunshine is a trope I can never turn down! 

When Grumpy Met Sunshine by Charlotte Stein preorder (Feb. 6th) link

Baked Gnocchi with Sausage recipe

Review: Her Adventures in Temptation

Her Adventures in Temptation by Megan Frampton
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

1.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

Simeon Jones— debonair, polished, and suave— was softhearted. 

I jumped into the School for Scoundrels series with this third installment, Her Adventures in Temptation. The beginning felt a little jarring thrust into the story with Simeon at a Viscount's house to paint a portrait for the lord's wife and that said wife, tipsily trying to visit Simeon's rooms one night. The Viscount catches his wife and angrily tells Simeon to bugger off but before Simeon can, the viscount's sister, Lady Myrtle asks to travel with Simeon to London. Simeon knows it will be a recipe for disaster and reputations but with Myrtle offering to pay triple the just lost commission on the viscount's wife's portrait, he can't turn it down. What followed was an occasional story with sweet moments but mostly felt like bullet points with no surrounding story. 

She would go to London and use her mathematical skills to assist ladies with their monies, hopefully helping them become more financially secure. 

Myrtle wants to go to London because she wants to prove to her brother that she doesn't need to get married and can successfully make a go at running a business to help women invest and take care of their money. Myrtle is a mathematical genius, readers know this because she says it a lot and spouts some mathematical lingo and apparently that translates to also being a money management guru. There really wasn't anything flushed out and integrated with Myrtle's character regarding her mathematical skills, it felt like a bullet point for the heroine and that was the extent of it. Myrtle also lacks serious tact and is oblivious when she says comments that conventionally come off rude. I don't know if her character was introduced in the previous series books and more understanding about her would come from having read those but, starting here, she doesn't really get developed. I know she only has two friends, her niece and past governess, so I don't know if it's just lack of social integration or if she is supposed to represent on the spectrum. For me, it came off “I'm not like all those other girls”, because of thinking and saying lines like this “I have misjudged you, Mr. Jones,” Myrtle replied in a bright voice. “You are quite clever, something that is rare to find in very attractive people. Usually they are able to sail through life just being attractive.” 

“Pretend to be . . . married?” she squeaked, then frowned, annoyed at her own reaction. 

The previous book might have also delivered some foundation on Simeon that I ended up missing starting here. He grew up destitute in a home for boys and developed friendships with five other boys, strong enough that they got the moniker, The Bastard Five. I was disappointed that those friendships were hardly ever shown, I think it wasn't until the very later second half that the other four guys showed up to have scenes with him. Simeon is poor, why he accepts Myrtle's deal to travel with him and an artist but again, like Myrtle's mathematical mind, his painting came off more of a bullet point. There was also a random thread of him having to take in his adoptive mother's daughter but there was absolutely nothing done with it and had me head scratching what the point was. 

“I’ve never found it easy to be around others, even around members of my own family. I do find it easy to be around you. And not just because you’re so easy on the eyes. If only I could marry someone like you,” she said with a sigh. And then she clapped her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide. 

The romance starts to develop between these two on their journey to London and when Simeon insists they must pretend to be married to save her reputation. There's a bullet point one bed scene and some “I think I'm starting to like this person.” The first half has a first kiss between these two and then they're in London and thinking they'll never see each other again. However, Myrtle's brother is in London, angry with her but now wanting her to chaperon his daughter for her coming out because tipsy wife broke her leg. Myrtle recognizes she doesn't have the social graces to navigate the ton, so naturally, she turns to the poor, bastard artist Simeon to help her. Their fake betrothal is back on, so society doesn't question why they're spending so much time together and Simeon claims he must paint Myrtle. 

Dear God. Did she know what she was getting into? Did he know what he was getting into? 

For some reason, Myrtle gets it in her head that Simeon could be a successful painter if only he didn't get distracted by sex (readers don't really see evidence of him being such a ladies man) and since she really enjoyed their kiss, gets a little something for herself as she's helping out with a new plan, for one week they'll indulge in bedroom play and then one week absolutely no touching, then see which week was more productive for Simeon. I can't say this all made sense and not just randomly thrown in. Anyway, Myrtle suddenly gets porn mouth (one ex. “I want you to— to fuck me,” she said at last, the words dropping like individual bits of flame into his soul. I'm saying this did not fit the character and/with time and specific situation, not that women don't ever talk like this) and after a handie and some head from Simeon, Myrtle thinks to herself that she is in love. The bedroom scenes had definite word spice but it all felt so forced to deliver “hot” but since the characterization and relationship development wasn't there for me, I didn't feel any chemistry. 

“What do you want from me, Myrtle?” he asked again, this time in a softer tone. 

She lifted her face to his, swallowing hard against the emotion. “I want you.” 

It took a little longer for Simeon to think he was in love with Myrtle but when he does, he had a sweet moment where he tries to show Myrtle but her obliviousness ruins the moment and they have a quick breakup in the last 10% before they both realize their mistakes and deliver the HEA. Their characterization, along with the feeling of setting because their wasn't much effort to deliver it, was missing from this for me and as a consequence, I couldn't feel their romance. This was full of bullet points but not much crafting and filling out of those points.

View all my reviews

Reading Update: Page 1

Easy Sunday with some pasta and historical romance. 

🍽📖 

Considered scandalous, Simeon has a secret soft-heart and when he comes across damsel in distress Lady Myrtle, he can't help but get wrapped up in her adventure. 

Fake relationship ensues, telling everyone they're engaged to be married when Myrtle is discovered traveling alone with Simeon. 

They say they'll part after the season but there seems to be a little inconvenience developing, they're falling love. 

Her Adventures in Temptation by Megan Frampton preorder (Jan. 23rd) link

Broccoli Cheddar Chicken & Noodle Casserole recipe

I added some breadcrumbs and Cajun seasoning

Review: Lord of the Fading Lands

Lord of the Fading Lands by C.L. Wilson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

The tairen were dying. 

Lord of the Fading Lands was a high fantasy romance story that introduces readers to a world full of humans, Fey, and Mages. Centered around Ellie, the daughter of common folk, her world suddenly gets turned upside down when the King of the Fey declares that she is his truemate. Rain is the last of the tairen fey, a fey who has the power inside of them to shift into a tairen, a cat, dragon like creature. Rain hasn't been in the mortal world for over a thousand years, leaving after the bloody war with the mages where his heartmate was killed and he scorched the earth. When he suddenly feels someone calling out to him, he discovers the connection with Ellie and what she is to him. With the fey dying out, there have been no fey births for the last couple centuries, he thinks Ellie has not only the power to save him but the fey. Ellie has suffered from seizures and nightmares her whole life but even though she knew she was adopted by her parents, she has always thought she was human, but Rain senses magic and power in her. 

She had dreamed of Rain Tairen Soul all her life, and here he was. She felt herself moving towards him, her hand reaching out. He had asked, and she had to touch him. If only to be sure he was real. 

This first book in the series is an introduction to the world and characters, this ends on a cliffhanger. At 400 pages, you're going to have to want to sink into this world and accept this is the start of threads with just the beginning of weaving happening. There were a couple times I thought the pace dragged but for the most part, I was captured by this world. The fey warriors that guard Ellie, were given enough life to make them distinctive in my mind, Ellie's bestfriend stayed mostly to the shadows but was given an aspect that will have her playing a bigger role in the series, the King and Queen of the mortal land played excellent secondary characters adding a lot to the story and making me interested in them without taking time away from the main characters, Ellie's family of mother, father, and younger sisters helped fill out some aspects of Ellie's character, the two mage villains that pop in and out to bring on the looming danger, and other smaller roles provided great meaty secondary characters. 

She felt his lips press against her hair, felt his need for her down to her soul, and for this moment in time she did not feel alone. 

Most of this was dedicated to placing the reader in the world, introducing the fantasy setting, familiarizing the reader with the political atmosphere, and starting the romance between Ellie and Rain. Since they are truemates, there is some of that instalove between them but you still get Ellie having to learn to trust Rain and Rain trying to let Ellie get to know him, while trying to keep his tairen tamed so as not to frighten her. They have some quiet talking moments and some physical moments but the quick open door scene doesn't come from these two, they're in the slightly push and pull beginning part of a relationship. I felt like I didn't get to fully know Rain, as this was more about Ellie discovering things about herself, but I think future books will probably bring him into focus more as he'll have a stronger roll to play, he's more waiting around for Ellie to accept things in this one. 

The Mages had regained their power, and the world was in danger once more. 

While Rain is courting Ellie, he senses the Eld, who he battled a thousand years ago, growing stronger again, even though the King and Queen don't realize it. Readers get povs from the High Mage, leader of the Eld and one of his minions, so the looming feeling is definitely felt. When Rain feels the magic in Ellie, he sends two fey to investigate the origins of her birth and while readers get to see what they find out, Rain, Ellie, or no one else on their side learn what is discovered and will be going into the second book not knowing that looming thread. This had fey, magic, evil looming, and romance, an introduction to a high fantasy world that you'll want to sink into as the characters you're starting to care about look to be on the brink of a war.

View all my reviews

#TBRChallenge Review: Gold Ring of Betrayal

Gold Ring of Betrayal by Michelle Reid
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.7 stars 

*This is a #TBRChallenge review, there will be spoilers, I don't spoil everything but enough, because I treat these reviews as a bookclub discussion.  

He the unforgiving one. She the sinner. It was a shame she viewed the whole situation the other way around. It meant that neither was prepared to give an inch. Or hate the other less. 

You all know I had to go with a Harlequin Presents for my first TBRChallenge of the year! (hush to those smirking, knowing the smaller page count and my inability to give myself more than 24hrs to complete this challenge). Kicking of the challenge was the January theme of Once More with Feeling, my mind immediately went to second chance romance. Gold Ring of Betrayal is about an estranged wife and husband who's daughter gets kidnapped but the husband thought his wife cheated on him and the daughter isn't really his. 

There are a couple things before we dive in, this book was published in 1996, let me save you some hair pulling, paternity tests do in fact exist in 1996! but there are two, almost, throw away lines where our heroine Sara says: 'I am prepared to let you have a blood test taken,' she said huskily,(are you even saying something if you don't say it huskily???) and the hero Nicolas says: 'As I was afraid of having blood tests taken of Lia,' he murmured. 'Because I was afraid of the answer.' . So while I was tearing my hair out yelling “Just get a paternity test!!” I guess they didn't because Sara was stubbornly refusing not feeling she had to prove Lia was his daughter and Nicolas was scared Lia really would turn out not to be his daughter, rather would think she wasn't than be given proof she wasn't. The existence of paternity test is more ignored but these two lines did kind of give a reasoning. Also, Nic has some '70s hero to him with almost (I don't think he slapped Sara as she was remembering the moment but the threat definitely there) slapping Sara and there was a moment when Sara was thinking back to what could probably be considered marital rape. And lastly, curb is in fact spelled 'kerb' in this as Sara is English and living in London at the time, I'm American and I'll never be able to get over that's how y'all choose to spell it. Caution and all that if you chose to read this after all those issues. 

But he was Sicilian. And a Sicilian man was by nature territorial and possessive. 

This story opened up and got going right out the gate, readers enter a super intense situation where Sara is sort of dissociate calm sitting on her living room couch as people buzz around her. This story is told 98% from her point-of-view, we get two very short povs from Nicolas, and through her stressed thoughts we learn her two year old daughter has been kidnapped. Sara's estranged from her husband because he thought she cheated on him and that Lia isn't his daughter. Fairly quickly, readers know that Lia is in fact his daughter and that Sara never cheated on him. 

There really was only one person she knew who was capable of doing something like this. Alfredo Santino. Father to the son. 

Nicolas' father, Alfredo, lives up to his name and is a saucy fellow who never wanted his son to marry a little nobody like Sara. It's never really addressed how the Santinos amassed their empire, Nicolas is constantly away on business and doing business things but when the media gets a hold of the kidnapping story, the word mafia is thrown around but that's the only mention of it, oh, and I guess that Nic is Sicilian, because we all know every single Sicilian is in the mob and this book likes to say one billion times that they love their vendettas, revenge, and possessiveness. Implications! Anyway, while Sara was married to Nic, Alfredo constantly insulted her and made her life difficult, but never in front of Nic, who thinks the world of his father. Alfredo setup the scene to make Nic think Sara was cheating on him but didn't know she would turn out pregnant and now wants his granddaughter in his life. 

His wedding ring. The ring he had placed there. Once a gold ring of love, now a gold ring of betrayal. 

Title in the story alert! Love it :) 

Sara thinks Nic had Lia kidnapped to torture her some more but when she realizes he has no part in it, she switches to thinking Alfredo is behind it all. The first half has all that delicious hate and Passion! HPs are known for and by the 50% mark, the kidnapping is over and Lia is no worse for wear and with her grandpa, which further solidifies that Alfredo had something to do with in Sara's mind. The whos and whys are not really explained about the kidnapping thread, the Santinos are rich and may or may not be mobsters, I guess it's readers pick as to why Lia was kidnapped. 

'Have you quite finished?' he inserted coldly. 

She nodded. 'Yes.' She felt flushed and breathless, incredibly elated. In all her twenty-five years she had never spoken to anyone like that. It had been almost as good as the sex! 

Listen, I get it, I've craved a cigarette after some good backtalk too. 

The second half has Sara and Lia living on Nic's estate, “for safety” and these two can't escape their chemistry. We get a flashback to how these two first met, a chance bumping into each other and Nic gets struck with love at first sight. Alfredo loves his granddaughter and after he had a health scare, he seems to be softening a little towards Sara. But really, it's that Sara met Nic when she was twenty and came from a very sheltered existence and he kind of threw her to the wolves when he was gone for business so much and she didn't have the polish really needed to live in his world. Older with more experience, Sara can hold her own now and doesn't need to cling to Nic as much. There was a really great scene where Nic acknowledges that he made mistakes their first go around too: 

'I need to know that you are going to be here for me, giving me your support, whether or not you believe I am right.' She glanced back at him. 'With your father.' She spelled it out carefully. 'With your servants. With any decisions I decide to make about Lia. I want your promise that you'll be on my side.' 

Something flickered in those golden depths at last. 'You did not have this support the last time?' 

'No.' The flicker became a glimmer of wry comprehension. 'How bad a husband was I?' he then inquired, very dryly. 

'Not a bad husband exactly,' she said. 'Just a-busy one.' 

How bad a husband was I? Where's that cigarette? an HP hero, or man for that matter lol, acknowledging he was part of the problem! Good stuff. 

'Then go and do whatever it is you want to do, Nicolas,' she sighed, turning away from him in disgust. 'For I rescind the right to give a damn!' 

If you think I'm about to shout I rescind the right to give a damn! about everything and anything for the next two weeks, you'd be right. 

With more character insight in the second half, we get them sleeping together but not wanting to catch feelings, but oops, feelings caught! Around 70% Nic comes to Sara about wanting to try their marriage again. They start to get the ball rolling but the last 20% has Sara thinking Nic is the one cheating this time (he's not) and Lia is the most dramatic two year old because after surviving a kidnapping, she now has meningitis. This causes Alfredo to confess to Nic about how he setup the cheating story and that Sara was true all along and Lia is his biological child. Nic cries (more hero crying scenes please, there's something about the breaking down of emotion) and now thinks he's not worthy of Sara because he didn't trust her. Lia checks off surviving meningitis and Alfredo lies for the greater good this time, leading to a really good sweeping romantic movie ending where Sara and Nic's first time meeting gets recreated. I'm not sure I'd say read this for the romance but the drama delivered and at just under 200pgs, the pace kept up and you won't be bored.

View all my reviews

Reading Update: Page 1

 

Feel fantasy this Monday morning! 

This is a reissue but I missed it the first time around. A lot of my friends have read and really liked this, so I can't wait to dive in and join the party. 

Mad with grief, Fey King Rain Tairen Soul laid waste to the land when his beloved was killed and then disappeared into the Fading Lands. 

Ellysetta is a woodcarver's daughter but there's something magical in her soul. When an ancient evil is threatening the world, Rain is called back and finds his heart reawakening.

Y'all, how good does this sound?!?

Ancient fey king, destiny, true mates, evils threatening, and battles! 

Lord of the Fading Lands by C.L. Wilson purchase (reissue Jan. 16th) link

Cheesy Chicken and Rice recipe

I always have to season the chicken with Cajun before I cook in oven and shred up to put in this, otherwise I think it's too blah. 

Review: Undecided

Undecided by Julianna Keyes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

Thanks so much to SAM(AMNREADER) for picking this out for us to buddy read! 

A story that on paper I shouldn't like, all first person pov, some stream of conscious, New Adult, and a little bit of love triangle. But I ended up really liking it! 

It's new adult with the characters being sophomores in college, the female main character partied hard her freshman year, her nickname in highschool was Nora Bora so she wanted to have fun but ends up befriending a party girl and long story short, she has way too many one night stands and ends up arrested for indecent exposure. She loses half of her scholarship and has to have meetings with the Dean of the school, where he brings up her sex life????? So, it's good girl time for her second year in college, break out those cardigans! 

She tells the party girl that she also works with that they can't be friends and answers an ad asking for a quiet, studious roommate. She talks with the guy who took the ad for a while and they seem like a good match, but when she shows up at the apartment to look around, popular track guy Crosbie answers the door with his bestfriend Kellan the king of campus right behind him. It turns out that Kellan wants to buckle down too. The big problem was that Kellan was one of Nora's one night stands but he doesn't remember her, which she knows will make things awkward if they room together but he offers the first month of rent free. Broke college kid and all, she takes it. 

It all sounds like cliché stuff and it definitely has some of that but it gives you those beginning love feelings as Nora and Crosbie start to connect, they really are a sweet make you feel all those butterflies couple. The obvious danger looming on the horizon is that Crosbie has always felt second place to Kellan and you know it's going to come out that Luna and Kellan slept together. Without Crosbie's pov, I had some questions about what he was thinking at times but his caring about Luna still came across enough to make you gooey over him. 

Some stuff, "Crosbiebabes" and bathroom sex lists, that make your eyes want to roll at times, along with Crosbie and Kellan being track stars but not really getting much on that, and Crosbie doing magic (Illusions!) that didn't feel like it fit in well to me, but this was really one of the best for the butterfly in the tummy, new love, make you grin sweet moments. I also liked how the party friend was more than that and there was a good friendship with her and Luna, along with a little secondary romance. 

Recommended if you're wanting new adult sweetness with some steamy open door scenes.

View all my reviews

Review: The Bright Spot: A Novel

The Bright Spot: A Novel by Jill Shalvis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

Silas Wittman had left her 50 percent ownership of the farm. 

Fifth in the Sunrise Cove series, stand-alone stories set in the same town, The Bright Spot had the sweet, sexy, and ease of readability and tone of a typical Shalvis. The owner of the Apple Ridge Farm has just passed away and the farm's manager, Luna, is worried what the future holds for the farm. The owner, Silas was nicknamed “The Grinch” by the workers but while the farm is near Lake Tahoe, Silas has the good manners to live in California. It's not until Luna has a meeting with the lawyer to read the will that she learns she's now fifty percent owner of the farm, a balloon payment is due in sixy days, and, oh, yeah, Silas was her biological grandfather. Adopted when she was baby, Luna has always fought feeling like an outsider but has managed to create a family with the farm workers, her ex-boyfriend works at the cafe, her grandma runs the knickknack shop, and her bestfriend since childhood runs the botanical gardens. She doesn't want to lose the farm and her family and so she keeps what the lawyer said to herself for a while. Until the other fifty percent owner shows up, the man she tried to go home with after a few drinks at the bar the night before. 

Probably it was the margaritas, but he was everything she'd just said she wanted to be: smart, witty, charismatic, and...something she could seem to manage nearly as easily---sexy. 

After his father left when he was five and his mother died when he was fourteen, Jameson spent a year on the streets before Silas took him under his wing. Now an investment manager, Jameson has security but no real personal connections, especially now that Silas has died. Before his death, Silas made Jameson promise to help Luna either sell the farm or pay off the loan payment, helping her for at least two months but not tell her he promised Silas. When Jameson gets to Sunrise Cove, things get even more complicated when he finds himself attracted to Luna and the farm needs a whole lot of help. 

He wasn't sure what it said about him that he liked her grumpy side. As I mentioned, this was sweet with the found family aspects and the attraction between Luna and Jameson and had some sexy with open door scenes. There was also a little secondary second chance romance between Luna's bestfriend Willow and her estranged husband. There wasn't a lot to it, so Willow came off a little moody temperamental dramatic, but there was also just enough emotion to get you to care about the couple. The other secondary characters get enough time to shine and add to the fulfillment of created family emotions, Luna's grandmother was the kooky outrageous older woman that I'm personally kind of done reading about in these types of stories but, all-in-all still fun and added to the story characters. 

At that, her eyes glittered with both affection and, if he wasn't mistaken, a fierce sort of protectiveness. 

The romance between Luna and Jameson gave them enough time together to get the reader to develop some connection to them and feel some of the sweetness between them. It's obvious what their issues are from the beginning, Luna guards her heart because of her feelings of abandonment and won't fully trust Jameson to open herself up to him and Jameson has some of the abandonment feelings too and feeling like an outside, having a harder time connecting with people. There's also the looming issue that Jameson is holding back information from Luna about Silas asking him to help her. As the reader, I didn't actually think it felt like a big deal and when it's used in the third act breakup, it ended up feeling forced in at the ending 15%. We do get some grovel from both with pretty good speeches about their feelings but Luna having to forgive Jameson for what she saw as lying to her ended up feeling rushed because of how little page count was left and there was also the dealing with a festival to save the farm by making enough money to pay off the loan. 

His eyes closed for a quick beat, then opened again, revealing surprise, affection, and...a much deeper emotion. 

The romance was the focal point but there still a giving more time to the found family feelings, ensemble piece aspects that I wish had went more to the development between Luna and Jameson. I also felt like Jameson maybe got less character boosting in favor of those ensemble aspects and the secondary romance; I kind of wish the secondary romance had got it's own book and longer page count as the second chance aspect and characters did draw me in. However, that typical enjoyable Shalvis flare is there and if you're looking for a sedate contemporary romance that has an adorable goat, this would tick that box.

Reading Update: 20%

Buddy reading this with Sam(AMNReader) over on StoryGraph! 

(I don't know, y'all, I think I may still be GRs for life lol. I'm too elder millennial to be typing this much on the phone and it lists prompts for reviewing, you can still write reviews but not a lot on there seem to do it, that seem to discourage original thought, you click if character driven or plot, click on prelisted "moods" you think the story is, dark, lighthearted, etc., click if pace is medium, fast, or slow, yes or no if characters are lovable. I mean, this stark of plain responses, who agrees or thinks those things are the same, if the characters lovable??? I want to read thought on a story not go down a checklist, but again, I seem to be in the minority.)

This is why I like to give, almost all, books a chance. On paper, first person pov a little bit of stream of conscious, New Adult, seemingly love triangle, story would not be for me at all. 

But somehow, this has charm and is sucking me in, a little bit like The Wall of Winnipeg did

Reading Update: Page 1

 

Brrr, in the negatives here today! So I'm turning to a comfort author that always seems to deliver on the good feels. 

Adopted at birth and not knowing much about her adoptive family, Luna doesn't trust easily but she created her own motley crew of friends. 

Apple Ridge Farm, a farm-to-table cafe and home for rescued animals, it's her happy home to work at, but when the owner dies, it gets passed to the investment manager Jameson and Luna. 

The owner had many secrets and now Luna's world is threatened, she'll need help from her friends and an enigmatic investment manager. 

The Bright Spot by Jill Shalvis preorder (Jan. 16th) link

Chicken and Mango Salsa bowl recipe

Really easy and was a great tasty lighter meal