Captive by Brenda Rothert

 

3 Star

Nikola Vereshkova has finally made it to the big leagues, and he can now help those he loves. The day of his friend’s wedding he meets a woman he’s interested, and he plays up his Russian accent to entice her. The problem comes in when he finds out it’s the brides’ best friend Sadie. Sadie is used to men doing anything to get sex and she’s used to taking care of herself. She is drawn to Nikola but doesn’t want to be interested in him as nothing good can come from it. Will she be able to stay away from him?

I liked aspects of this book. Sadie just came across as bitchy to me. Like she takes care of her friend’s kid all the time but god forbid the friend does anything to help her out. It got very old to see her be so bitchy to those close to her and refuse help all the time just because she didn’t want to rely on anyone but she is the first to volunteer to babysit Kate and Adella’s kids. I also didn’t feel the connection was there between Nikola and Sadie. It just was ok for me.

Book 4 Fire on Ice

Amazon

Promo: The Akseli by Dianne Duvall

She laughed as they left the lounge and headed toward the area sporting the crew’s sleeping quarters.

Janwar’s heartbeat increased when Simone took his hand in hers and squeezed it.

“This has been such an amazing day,” she said, “that I admit I’m sad to see it end.”

He was, too. “You must be tired, though, after the big battle.”

She tilted her head first one way, then the other, considering it. “Maybe a little.”

Their steps slowed as they turned onto the corridor their respective rooms were on.

“Do you know what my favorite part was?” she asked.

“Of the day or the battle?”

“The day.”

“The battle,” he answered with a grin.

“Nope. Guess again.”

Hmm. “The stroll in the park?”

“Nope, but that was a close second. Guess again.”

He’d thought for sure it would be one of those two. “Visiting a bar full of aliens on an alien planet?”

“Nope. But damn, I had a big day today, didn’t I?”

He laughed as they halted outside her door. “Very big. What was your favorite part?”

She stepped closer, tilting her head back to smile up at him. “The good-luck kiss you gave me.”

Surprise swept through him, followed closely by desire as he recalled the feel and taste of her. “What?”

“I’m not used to being the aggressor,” she confessed softly. “There aren’t many female Immortal Guardians on Earth. And breaking up with someone you know you’ll run into over and over again for hundreds or thousands of years afterward can be awkward, so we females tend to be very careful not to do anything that would invite amorous attention.” She inched closer. “I haven’t… dated in a very long time, Janwar. I’m out of practice, behind the times, and honestly don’t know what the hell I’m doing.”

She was setting him on fire. That’s what she was doing.

His heart began to batter his ribs. “What do you know?”

Amber light flared to life in her alluring brown eyes. “That I want another kiss.”

Srul, yes. Dipping his head, he pressed his lips to hers. Not with the desperation he’d felt the first time he’d kissed her, but with the same wonder he’d seen on her face in the park.

Simone—the remarkable woman he already cherished as a friend and whose company he constantly craved—wanted him.

Him.

Her lips were soft and warm beneath his, the kiss they shared gentle and full of affection.

He drew back just enough to break the tantalizing contact and stared down at her.

“Magnificent,” she whispered.

He chuckled, amused by the description he’d applied to himself earlier to make her laugh.

“I am so drawn to you,” she said with a smile.

What those words did to him.

𝗲𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸

Kindle | Nook | Kobo | iBooks 

AmazonAU | AmazonCA | AmazonDE | AmazonFR | AmazonUK | AmazonIT

audiobook

Audible (Narrated by Kirsten Potter)

paperback 

hardback

Aldebarian Alliance Series:

The Lasaran (Aldebarian Alliance #1)

The Segonian (Aldebarian Alliance #2)

The Purveli (Aldebarian Alliance #3)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dianne Duvall is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Immortal Guardians paranormal romance series, the Aldebarian Alliance sci‐fi romance series, and The Gifted Ones medieval and time‐travel romance series.  The Lasaran, the first book in the Aldebarian Alliance Series, was a #1 Audible Mover & Shaker. The Segonian, the second book in the Aldebarian Alliance Series, was a Barnes&Noble Top Indie Favorite. Audible chose Awaken the Darkness as one of the Top 5 Best Paranormal Romance Audiobooks of 2018. Reviewers have called Dianne's books "fast-paced and humorous" (Publishers Weekly), "utterly addictive" (RT Book Reviews), “extraordinary" (Long and Short Reviews), and "wonderfully imaginative" (The Romance Reviews). Dianne's books have twice been nominated for RT Reviewers' Choice Awards. And her audiobooks have been awarded the AudioFile Earphones Award for Excellence. 

Dianne's books have all appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, and/or Kobo Bestseller lists.  The first book in Dianne's The Gifted Ones series, A Sorceress of His Own, is a prequel of sorts to Darkness Dawns. A USA Today bestseller, A Sorceress of His Own is a medieval romance with paranormal elements that was awarded the AudioFile Earphones Award for Excellence and was an Audie Finalist. The second book in the series, Rendezvous With Yesterday, is a time travel romance that won the GraveTells Readers' Choice Award for Best Historical Romance. 

In addition to writing romance, Dianne has completed a one-act play (comedy) and teamed up with an award-winning screenwriter to write a spec script for a new situation comedy. Several of her poems have also been published in anthologies. 

When she isn't writing, Dianne is very active in the independent film industry and has even appeared on-screen, crawling out of a moonlit grave and wielding a machete like some of the psychotic vampires she creates in her books.

For the latest news on upcoming releases, contests, and more, please visit DianneDuvall.com or sign up for her Newsletter. You can also find Dianne online . . .

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Pinterest | Goodreads | Book Bub | Instagram | TikTok 

Tribe by Stacy Jones

 

2 Star

Now that the season has changed it’s time for Lily and her men to head to their tribal lands. They will have to navigate more people being around them and see if they will accept Lily into the clan.

The pace in this book was incredibly slow and it dragged the book down. The book also ended on a cliffhanger. Saving grace all books are out but still worst book model ever. I liked the introduction of the new guy, and he helps balance the other guys out. Several complaints. One Lily became very meek in this book. She refused to say anything to her mates about her shunning from the villagers and when she sees something big happen, she doesn’t say anything. It made me not like her all that much. Another issue is the author uses the made-up language for the tribe. That’s great but you have many conversations in this language in the book it makes the book unreadable. I am not going to go looking for a translation of conversations. Since it ended on a cliff I had to read the next one.

Book 2 Chosen

Amazon

Edge by Brenda Rothert

 

4 Star

Luke Hudson has been sent down to the minor league to work through his injury. There he meets team trainer Adella Price. Her job is to make sure all the players are in good shape for the ice. She is a single mom and has no time or energy for the bull from the players after her ex left her high and dry for his hockey career. Luke throws her for a loop as she swore, she would never be with another hockey player. He’s all in with her now he just has to talk her into it. Will he be successful?

I loved these two. They have a lot of chemistry and they very much work. He’s super sweet with her and her kid while also being respectful to not start any rumors. The biggest issue I had was with the other men in Adella’s life. Her dad was a massive asshole until she ends up being assaulted by her ex. The ex also was not someone who was a good guy. He literally was leaving her to struggle to raise their child by herself. Then he ends up assaulting her. This led to her dad finally pulling his head out of his butt by I feel it was too little too late. The best thing about the whole situation with her dad and ex was Luke was there to support her and he never took over. Overall, I enjoyed this one a lot and it had everything I loved about the first book I read by her.

Book 3 Fire on Ice

Amazon

Chosen by Stacy Jones

 

3 Star

Lily was running her grandmother’s farm when she’s accidentally kidnapped by aliens and dropped on a mystery planet. The planet is a deadly one that will take everything she has to survive. It becomes easier when she is found by Frrar, Tor, and Arruk. They want to keep her safe and take her as their mate. Will they be able to find a way to communicate and survive the deadly planet?

There were a couple issues with this book. One of the big ones for me was the fact that Lily was supposedly a farmer, but she had difficulty with understanding basic farming things like there being an underground water source. The author was also very inconsistent with the communication between all of them. Sometimes Lily or the guys would gesture, and the others would get it and then they would do the same thing again and they wouldn’t understand. The final issue was Lily had to be clean no matter what was going on and it led to problems when they were trying to get to safety. It was very frustrating. On the other hand, it was an interesting concept, and I did enjoy aspects of the book so a 3.

Book 1 Chosen

Amazon

Drive by Brenda Rothert

 

2 Star

Two years ago, Kate and Ryke were brought together by tragedy. When Kate suffers another miscarriage, she spirals. Will Kate and Ryke be able to work through their grief and trauma again or will they be able to survive this most recent trauma?

I really really really didn’t like Kate in this book. She keeps things from her husband that should be shared. She is so wrapped up in her own head she can’t see a way out and she still doesn’t get the help she so desperately needs. She is a grief counselor and just kind of buries everything and handles the loss of her second pregnancy in the worst way possible. It is one of those rare times I felt the main male character should actually leave his partner. They end up working everything out but even with that I got to a point of not caring that they did.

Book 2 Fire on Ice

Amazon

Blue Love by Leona Page

 

2 Star

Heather knows she’s not good enough for Reid. She was raised by the town whore, and he was wealthy golden boy of the town. It was barely tolerated for her to be friends with Reid’s younger brother. She spends her time taking care of her little brother Will. She tries to do whatever she can to give him a good life even if it means walking away from him. When she finds out he was being abused she takes him and runs. Reid has tried to stay away from her for years thinking she had something going on with his brother until he finds that to be a lie. Then she runs. He will chase after her until he can have her. Will they find a way to have a happy ending?

Holy crap this book was all over the place. It had so many issues with the timeline and not being clear on when it was. It made it hard to follow the story. Not to mention it jumps ahead several times and it led to a major disconnect in feeling the relationship made sense. On the relationship Reid literally spends most of the time “dating” someone else which leads to Heather staying away thinking he was happy. It was incredibly frustrating. Definitely not worth the time it took to read.

Amazon