Review of Mission: Improper

Review of - 

Mission: Improper (London Steampunk: The Blue Blood Conspiracy Book 1) by Bec McMaster

three stars

⭐⭐⭐

https://www.amazon.com/Mission-Improper-London-Steampunk-Conspiracy-ebook/dp/B01K9LS2GI/

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25791377-mission

Gruesome is the word that comes to mind when thinking about this book. Yes, it is steampunk; but as far as the romance part goes, no, not so much. There's this gruesome, ominous air that goes through the whole book. Yes, it does have HEA ending, surprisingly enough. Still it's not really my cup of tea. Good storyline and interesting characters, but there's just too much gruesome and ominous to suit me.

Review - Gol, a legends of Ansu fantasy

Review of - Gol: A Legends of Ansu fantasy (The Legends of Ansu Book 1) by J.W. Webb

two stars

⭐⭐

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00UW2FGZ0/

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25317078-gol

I got this as a free book, and did give it a try. I was wholly prepared to like the book, but I didn't. The book started out with cruelty and a disregard of life from the characters, as they were killing prisoners for sport. I reread the blurb and it sounded like there would be more of that in the book, so I bailed. This is just not something that I care to read about. There's enough of that stuff in the world as it is, without reading it in a book. I want to enjoy my reading time, and nothing turns me off quicker than stuff like this. 

Review - The Promise

The Promise by Amanda McIntyre

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32861935-the-promise

2 stars
⭐⭐

My first problem with this book comes in the beginning, where the author states that they are in an open carriage, yet later on she states that the girl is looking out the window. As I understand carriages, open carriages don't have windows. Maybe the author didn't understand that.

While this book is a cute, short romance book, and a sweet clean romance; it's not a well put together story. It has problems.

The storyline would work better in in modern-day times than in the time period that it is set in. It seems that people of this generation don't get the class distinctions and differences of older time periods. A guy like him, an immigrant just off the boat from Ireland, without  a penny to his name, would not end up with a girl like her.

She would not go to his place of work to talk to him with only a male servant standing outside. That would've been considered highly improper in that day and age.

If she were also poor, or maybe her father had a smaller business and they didn't have a carriage, then maybe they might've got together.

Also, they've come back from a trip overseas, a pleasure trip. They wouldn't be coming through Ellis Island. She and her father would've got off somewhere else besides Ellis Island, because they were obviously residents and not immigrants.

Plus, Ellis Island is an island, so someone wouldn't take a carriage from there. They would have had to take a boat to the mainland and then picked up their carriage.

I read the story because the characters are likable and it was a short story, but the whole premise of it just was not believable. I'm sorry, it was just not believable, and it was not well executed . Even though it is a sweet, clean, happily ever after story, I only give it two stars because I feel like the author failed in executing the storyline itself.

If you're going to write historical romance then immerse yourself in that time and what it was like to live in that time. Too many people today fail to understand how different things were. They just don't get it . They try to put modern-day ways and situations on historical romance stories, and that just does not work. I like historical romance, but I like it to be well done by someone with the understanding of the time period. This author just did not have a good grasp on that time period.

Review - The Fearless Highlander

The Fearless Highlander (Highland Defender, #1)
by Amy Jarecki

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29351322-the-fearless-highlander

two stars
⭐⭐

This is a very violent book, and it is pretty much awash in blood during the whole middle part of the book. It is horrible, horrible violence too. This book has pretty much turned me against the highlander type historical romance books. I am tired of the inherent violence found in this genre of books. This was had exceptionally disturbing violent scenes in it. The book is well written and seems to be well edited. The characters are interesting. But the level of violence is truly appalling.

Yes, there are some sex scenes in the book.
The violence level in this book is extremely high due to the graphic nature of some of the scenes in the middle part of the book.
No, I wouldn't recommend this book.

Review - Small Town Beginnings

Small Town Beginnings: A 3-Book Sweet Romance Collection
by Melissa Storm 

3 stars
⭐⭐⭐

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40618450-small-town-beginnings

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DSMK68D/



Well, there are 3 books in this introductory set from this author. I didn't like the first book at all, and only skimmed through it. It was a very depressing story with characters I didn't really like. Suffice it to say, I didn't like it at all. But, happily, books 2 and 3 were much better. I loved both of those and enjoyed reading them very much. They were both romance stories set in Alaska, amid sled dogs. They were both fun to read. The second book got off on a slightly downer note in the first chapter, but the author quickly moves on from that, and it is a key element in the story. But in the first book, the down elements were in the characters, the total tone of the story, and it made for a depressing read. I read books to have fun and lift my spirits, and that first book did neither of those.

There aren't any sex scenes in the books.
No violence either.
I would recommend the set for the second and third books, but not for the first book.

Review: Flash Gold

Flash Gold by Lindsay Buroker
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I didn't get much past the beginning of the book. It just didn't click with me. I checked out the other books in the series, and it sounded kind of boring and was obviously continued. I don't like continued books, especially when I don't really intend to read the other books. This whole series seemed to constantly revolve around her getting away from where she was at. According to the blurbs, she spending the whole series trying to do that. Maybe it rings other people's bells, but it just didn't work for me.

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Review: A Diamond for a Duke

A Diamond for a Duke by Collette Cameron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It's a nice little historical romance - short, sweet, no violence, no sex scenes. It's a pleasant, enjoyable book, with good characters. It starts off slow, but picks up toward the middle of the book, and at the end, and has a very good ending. It seems to be a Cinderella book.


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Review of Nothing But a Hound Dog

Nothing But a Hound Dog (Klein's K9s #3)
by Marcia James

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30344840-nothing-but-a-hound-dog

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GIPMVFM/

5 enthusiastic stars
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Well, this writer has done it again! She's written another totally charming romance involving a hunky guy and a cute doggie. This book involves Ryan, and Cindi, and a tiny basset hound puppy named Buddy. 

Yes, I thoroughly enjoyed this book! When Ryan visits his hometown and his old friend, Tom, after the rodeo, he indulges too much with some other cowboys and ends up in front of a judge, who sentences him to community service at the local animal shelter. 

She's never forgotten him, and unbeknownst to her, he's never forgotten her either. The whole combination makes for a wonderful story that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. It's darling, reading about this hunky guy nursing this tiny puppy. 

This is a book you should put on your must read list. Actually, you should put the whole series on your must read list! I've read 3 books in this series so far, and loved each one. The writer has a unique gift for including animals in her books, and for writing wonderful romance stories.

Yes! This is a totally charming romance novel.
And yes! I would heartily recommend this book.

Review - Promised at the Moon

Promised at the Moon (Wolf River Book 1)
by Rebekah R. Ganiere 

https://www.amazon.com/Promised-Moon-Wolf-River-Book-ebook/dp/B01JUYJ5I4/

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36420852-promised-at-the-moon

3 stars ⭐⭐⭐

I usually like paranormal romance novels, but this one just never did click with me. I felt that the woman was rather weak and made bad decisions throughout the book. The guy is all right, but that's it. The storyline seemed pretty simplistic to me. Plus, there were several typos too.

The book is interesting, but it's not a page turner book. The main characters in this book, Liam and Natasha, both come off as very weak characters to me. Liam doesn't strike me as an alpha either, and a lone wolf alpha at that?

I don't like Natasha's character at all. Given all that she's set up as having been through, she seems to be making some very bad choices. It strikes me that her character would instead be more cautious and reserved. But she seems willing to trust people too readily that she doesn't even know at all.

I like Liam's character better than hers. He comes off as knowing himself better than she does. And then there is the character of Cara, who is sort of a footnote character, barely seen and not known very well. As for the mystical character of Daniel, we see him in a very violent scene at the beginning of the book and involved in more violence at the end.

The whole storyline just doesn't make very good sense, in that her uncle is the alpha of her pack and her father is it's beta, yet she has to run away from home to escape this Daniel. And it is three-fourths of the way through the book before anybody back home is beginning to question what is happened to her father and mother and her. The whole basic storyline of the book just doesn't work for me.

Yes, there is one or two sex scenes in the book.
Yes, there is definite violence in the book.
No, I'm sorry but I wouldn't recommend this book.

Review of Red Team Boxed Set, Volume 1

Red Team Boxed Set, Volume 1 (Red Team #1-3) by Elaine Levine

5 stars

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is a box set that contains books 1-3 of Elaine Levine's Red Team series. And while this set of books isn't your warm fuzzy, happily ever after, sweet romance novels; they are well worth reading. I LOVED IT! It was awesome! Could. Not. Put. It. Down! It was a great read. It's an awesome box set. 

Elaine is an excellent writer, and she's created a fantastic cast of characters here. A group of kick-ass he men that you don't want to mess with. The women are strong, independent, smart, loving women that you'll enjoy reading about. The author has created a great cast of characters. 

The books in set are definitely connected and continued. In the box set, there is an overarching storyline that is continued through all three books; and it is not resolved until the end of the last book in the set. 

I have nothing but praise for this box set as it is well written and I enjoyed reading it very much. For me it was one of those page turner books. The author gives you a chance to truly get to know each and every character in all three books of the box set. That's part of what makes the box set so much fun to read, is getting to know all these different characters. 

Yes, there is violence in the book, but it is not graphic or gory violence. It is well written, and adds to the action-adventure theme of the books. 

Yes there are some sex scenes in each of the three books. But the sex scenes do not dominate the book. 

It is the story that the author is telling that dominates the book, and that story is a gripping one. I would heartily recommend this book.

Review: A Harmless Little Game

A Harmless Little Game by Meli Raine
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This is a very dark book that deals with the gang rape of a young woman, four years after the fact. The girl, at the beginning of the book,, has just finished spending four years at a mental institution, put there by her father. It's a very sad tale of very twisted people. Also, it's a very dark book, and not one I would recommend to anyone . It is certainly not a book for the sensitive.

There are ongoing references to the rape throughout the book. There is one or two light sex scenes.
There is some violence in the book, references to violence, references to the rape all throughout the book, insensitivity to the rape by some characters.
This is not a book I would recommend.

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Review: Channel 20 Something

Channel 20 Something by Amy Patrick
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book is the tale of the romance between a girl and a guy who work at a very small town TV station. It deals with their goals and aspirations for the future, their growing attraction to each other, and how they handle all this. It also deals with a traumatizing incident from the girl's past and how it affects her present day relationships. It deals with the guy she's on a break from when she meets the new guy. All in all, it's not a half bad book.

The sex scenes are rather mild .
The violence is very, very mild. There is one scene reporting on a very bad traffic accident, and that's the extent of the violence.

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Review: The Marquess and the Maiden

The Marquess and the Maiden by Robyn DeHart
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A simply wonderful historical romance, which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. The give and take between the characters, Harriet and Oliver, is a delight to read. I could totally sympathize with her insecurities about her appearance, as I had some myself when I was younger. Reading about Oliver's path to discovering his love for Harriet was great. There were other characters and a minor storyline, that helped fill out the book and make it a great 5 star read. I loved, loved, loved it.

Yes, there were sex scenes in the book, but not till later in the book, were appropriately placed, and well written.
No, there was no violence in the book. Only one scene were Harriet falls down some stairs, but no violence involved.

Overall, a very touching book that was a great read that I enjoyed a lot and that I would highly recommend.

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Review: Destiny (Forever & Always) Book One

Destiny (Forever & Always) Book One by Cindy Springsteen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is the tale of a romance between a girl and a guy, and the blurb on Amazon indicates that this story is based on a true story. It begins while the 2 main characters, Cassidy and Danny, are in their teens. Actually, the story springs from a prologue where the mother is listening to her daughter outside arguing with her boyfriend, and she begins reminiscing.

The chapters each chronicle a year of her life, going up into her mid twenties. It's a wandering narrative that chronicles the relationship of this girl and this guy through their on again-off again relationship. The story is one of love, heartbreak, relationships with others; and chronicles the fights and mishaps of the pair.

The one part I didn't care for is when they were still meeting with each other even though Danny had a wife and child. The book ends in an inconclusive way, but there is a sequel out too - Fate

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Review: Racing Hearts

Racing Hearts by Marcia James
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This isn't my first book to review by this author. I've also reviewed 8 Hounds a-Howling and I loved it! And this book is every bit as good as the first book that I reviewed. This author has a special gift for writing about dogs and romance. I particularly fell in love with the doggie character, Bob, in this book. I just love, love, loved Bob.

I'm going to have put 8 Hounds a-Howling book into my Christmas reading for this year, as it is a Christmas book and totally deserving of a re-read.

This book isn't a Christmas book, but it's an awesome book. It's about stock car driver Tom "Torque" Tyler, who is recovering from an off track accident that has ended his racing career. Then along comes Meg Klein, who desperately wants to help him pull out of the dark hole of depression that he has fallen into. Along with Bob, she challenges him to move into the world again, and find a future without racing in it.

It's a wonderful book, filled with wonderful characters, and the story is simply AWESOME! And it has a great ending that you won't want to miss. If you need a feel good romance book to brighten your day, this one is it.

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Review: You & Me Forever: A Sweet Romance Collection

You & Me Forever: A Sweet Romance Collection by Megan Linski
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

As box sets go, this is a short one, but the books are obviously aimed at the late teens age group. All the characters in the stories seem to be about people who are either about to graduate high school or who have just graduated high school.

Having said that, there are some pretty good stories in the set, but, they are all very short stories. The best stories in the set are 3 stars. This is a box set obviously aimed at readers in their late teens. But, it is still enjoyable by older readers too. It's just that it's not a very strong box set, and the stories are all very short.


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