The No Meat Athlete Cookbook by Matt Frazier and Stepfanie Romine

My running has recently taken a turn for the serious (gulp!) and part of that includes being aware of my diet and not just eating everything that sounds good. This popped up on NetGalley and I thought I'd at least take a look. I have no interest in being vegetarian, but wouldn't mind cutting out about half the meat I currently eat.

Here's the description, from Amazon:

A Sports Illustrated Best Health and Wellness Book of 2017

From the founder of No Meat Athlete: plant-based recipes packed with nutrition to help athletes perform better and recover faster

A fast-growing global movement, No Meat Athlete (NMA) is inspiring everyone from weekend joggers to world-class competitors to be healthier and fitter and perform better on whole plant foods. Written by NMA founder Matt Frazier and longtime health coach, yoga teacher, and nutrition writer Stepfanie Romine, The No Meat Athlete Cookbook features 150 whole food, vegan recipes that are affordable and quick to get on the table, even on busy nights. Here are:
Breakfasts to power you up (Almond Butter–Banana Pancakes), mains that aid recovery (Beet Bourguignon), and natural sports drinks, portables, energy bites, and bars (V9, Umeboshi Electrolyte Drink, Calorie Bomb Cookies) to take you further and help you get the most from every workout
Minimal gluten, soy, and sweeteners, plus oil-free options throughout (ideal for followers of the Forks Over Knives diet)
Meal-planning guidelines, nutritional info, adaptable “blueprint” recipes—and more!

I had to download this one as a .pdf, which was in itself a pain in the rear, but once I had it found it to be great cookbook. I made a few notes in my bullet journal, as well as jotting down a couple recipes to try later. (That darn time limit on NetGalley .pdfs practically guarantees the book will be gone by the time I am ready to try the recipe!) My notes are in bullet form, as they are below.

• The pictures are really pretty, and actually make me want to try the food. It's not just one plate of greens after another!
• All the recipes contain a vegan option, but the book is very clear that the way to get there is slowly. Cut out one product at a time, going cold turkey on all animal products is hard. This is totally a non-preachy style intro to vegetarian meals. I hate the cookbooks that lecture me first.
• Most recipes do have a lot of ingredients, which is a turn off for me. That said, almost all of look like something I'd be willing to eat, and not nearly as "weird" as most vegetarian books are.
• I loved the "Blueprint Meals" which are more of a general guideline than an actual recipe. For example "A grain, a green and a bean" following by examples of potential combinations.
• There is an entire chapter devoted to fuel and recovery from workouts. I loved that.

I wrote down three recipes to try: Caribbean Coconut Collards & Sweet Potatoes (I can't resist coconut or sweet potatoes),  Smoky Potato Salad (no mayo!) and Cucumber- Lime Electrolyte Drink.  I'm hoping that I'll try them out sooner rather than later, and I'll let you know what I think.

The No Meat Athlete comes out on May 16, and while I haven't seen a print copy, I have no problems recommending it.

Seduce Me, Cowboy by Maisey Yates

My reading ruts are nearly paved they are so predictable. Maisey Yates? Yes, please.

From Amazon:

When a rebellious rancher meets the pastor's daughter, it's a match made in…Copper Ridge! From New York Times bestselling author Maisey Yates!

Sheltered from her own desires for so long, Hayley Thompson wants to experience life. A new job at Gray Bear Construction is a start. The work she can handle. It's her boss—reclusive, sexy Jonathan Bear—who's scrambling her mind and her hormones…

No matter how successful he becomes, Jonathan's reputation will always precede him. And his type of woman is usually nothing like prim, innocent Hayley. Yet he can't resist unleashing the fire beneath her pent-up facade—even if seduction means losing his heart…


Ok, tbh, this one wasn't a winner. I loved Jonathan. He's proud and strong and not at all ashamed of who he is- a man who is self-made, rich, and loves his stuff. He knows he's an ass and he still can't help wanting Haley, who is all allll ALLLLLLL wrong for him. Haley is innocent, sweet, pure- all those words that just don't happen in 2017. She's played it safe and sheltered as the pastor's daughter. She's pretty unbelievable. I didn't dislike Haley, but her character would be much better pre-internet days. (That said, I do know a 22 year old woman who has many of these qualities. She wraps herself in her innocence like a martyr and holds it in front of her like an excuse. "I'd rather never have a date than date boys like that!" Riiiiight.)

What I didn't buy, and what ultimately weakened the book for me tho, was the speed at which Jonathan went from "Jerk of the top most level who will never love" to "madly in love with the virginal heroine". We're talking hours. Minutes.  I got whiplash. I feel like the proportion of people in Copper Ridge who were abused/abandoned/orphaned as kids is WAY above the national average, but I'm too lazy to go back and count. That said, I go back to Maisey Yates and Copper Ridge over and over, even with a few serious duds, because even when the plots are flawed, the writing is strong and the characters are interesting, but this one isn't her best.

Seduce Me, Cowboy came out on March 7th.

Someone to Love by Donna Alward

Am I the only one who gets confused by series titles that are incredibly similar? The book before Someone to Love is Somebody Like You. I can't keep them straight. It really doesn't matter though, as the minute I finished the first, I requested the second, and read it the next day.

Here's the summary, from Amazon:

SOME WISHES DO COME TRUE

Ethan Gallagher is a firefighter in Darling, Vermont, who followed tradition and pledged his love on the Kissing Bridge to ensure lifelong happiness. A few years later, he’s a widower with two rambunctious boys who no longer believes in magic. But even he has to admit that free-spirited Willow Dunaway fills him with wonder…and an attraction he cannot deny.

Willow’s come back to Darling a different girl than the one who left after high school. Overcoming her past and owning her own business has made her into a strong, independent woman. Single dad Ethan appeals to her in a way she didn’t expect, even though settling down is the last thing on her mind. But after fire destroys the local food bank, the town rallies, and a fling between Ethan and Willow leads to unintended consequences. Can they find a way out of their heartbreak to make a home in each other’s hearts?


"Unintended consequences" sounds like so much drama! Phrases like this pop up in summaries all the time and then when you read the book you think "well that's putting it too strongly, no?" but in this case, it's accurate. This is one of those books (and authors) who you know what to expect. You have an idea of the level of drama/scandal/real issues. I wasn't expecting this one to take the turn it did. That said, I'm all for variety, and even tho it directly touches on a touchy (and political) subject, I felt it was well done and handled with respect and empathy. I expect there are people who will hate it. (Sorry to be vague, but it's a pretty big spoiler.)

Willow has come back to Darling after time away. She's been through a lot and she's found inner peace. She's pretty stereotypical on the surface, with her yoga and meditation and organic food, but she has to work to maintain the zen. She's the best explanation of yoga practice that I've heard. She's prone to working too hard and taking on too much, but she's rarely annoying or in your face with it. Ethan is a grumpy jerk. His wife died a couple years ago and he's struggling as much now as ever. His grief has dissipated but he's not sure who he is without his wife or the constant grief. He's ready to move on and feels out of place. He takes this out on Willow, at first, because she's so settled and calm. I love seeing him overcome that inclination to lash out.  That said, he's not perfect and not even perfect in his imperfectness, if you follow.

Their romance is fairly slow, even if the attraction is sudden. It felt natural, but never easy. Willow and Ethan both have reasons to resist and they do. I'm not certain that  the resolution is one that people will love, but I felt it was handled very realistically, as opposed to in a fairy tale (Ethan is not the brother to rescue Willow when the crisis finally happens and he's not suddenly by her side as a white knight.) I was happy with the resolution and the resulting happily ever after, even if I was surprised by the route it took.  I'm very happy that I have the next book waiting on my Kindle.

Someone to Love is out today, March 7th.

Somebody Like You: A Darling, VT Novel by Donna Alward

I've been a Donna Alward fan for a while now, but when I saw the plot summary of the first book in her new series, Somebody Like You, I hesitated. Plots like this never work, but I took a chance and I wasn't disappointed.

Here's the summary, from Amazon:

A kiss to last a lifetime

Aiden Gallagher was only five years old when he appeared in a photograph on the Kissing Bridge. The town of Darling, Vermont, has used Aiden’s image on the famed bridge―local legend has it that a kiss there results in everlasting love―as part of its tourism campaign. Now, twenty years later, Aiden is asked to recreate the moment with the woman he once kissed: Laurel Stone.

Recently divorced, there’s nothing Laurel wants less than to pretend happily-ever-after with Aiden. As teenagers, their romance was no fairy tale―and Laurel has never quite forgiven Aiden for breaking her heart. But now that she is back in her hometown, and keeps bumping into police officer Aiden, Laurel can’t deny that there’s still a strong flicker between her and her old flame. Could it be that the Kissing Bridge is working its magic on Laurel and Aiden―and that all true love ever needed was a second chance?

See? Cheesy, right? I mean come on, how is that even logical unless they grew up to be a couple? Of course Laurel refuses and who could blame her?

Laurel has recently come off a shocking divorce. Her faith in love and men and in her future are completely smashed. She's gone back home to heal and start over and is the subject of a good bit of gossip. She's prickly and hurt and yet still can't put herself first. She's so conscious of appearances and of never hurting another person that she puts herself in situations that destroy her. She has a history with Aiden, and not just the kiss on the bridge as children. She knows people are talking, plus she's mad about how that ended. And honestly, she's justified in all of it.

Aiden tho, he's the best. He screwed up in high school, but he admits it, and boy did he grow up nice. He's a small town cop with the desire to really help people. He's smart and caring and a bit of a prankster with his brother, and he really really loves Laurel. He clearly always has.

There's a little bit of outside drama here, enough to make the plot interesting, but the main conflict is within Laurel herself. Aiden never questions what he feels, even though he's outright terrified. The scene at the end is so adorable (and unrealistic) and if I weren't already half in love with him, this would have done it for me. This isn't perfect, but it's sweet and romantic and before I even turned off my Kindle I was back at NetGalley requesting the next in the series. The book as a whole won't go down in my top ten of all time, but Aiden's emotion in the final scenes will, and I suspect I'll go back to reread that part more than once.

Ready Set Rogue by Manda Collins

I started 2017 with the best of intentions. I was going to read more and blog more and run more and do more. I signed up for a couple of blog tours as motivation to get back into it more regularly, and then I missed my post date for Ready Set Rogue by Manda Collins!  But better late than never...

WHO WILL WRITE THE BOOK OF LOVE?

When scholarly Miss Ivy Wareham receives word that she’s one of four young ladies who have inherited Lady Celeste Beauchamp’s estate with a magnificent private library, she packs her trunks straightaway. Unfortunately, Lady Celeste’s nephew, the rakish Quill Beauchamp, Marquess of Kerr, is determined to interrupt her studies one way or another...

Bequeathing Beauchamp House to four bluestockings—no matter how lovely they are to look at—is a travesty, and Quill simply won’t have it. But Lady Celeste’s death is not quite as straightforward as it first seemed…and if Quill hopes to solve the mystery behind her demise, he’ll need Ivy’s help. Along the way, he is surprised to learn that bookish Ivy stirs a passion and longing that he has never known. This rogue believes he’s finally met his match—but can Quill convince clever, skeptical Ivy that his love is no fiction?

Don't miss Ready Set Rogue, the first in Manda Collins' new series set in Regency England!

The plot of this is right up my alley. It's also almost commonplace these days, as every historical has a bluestocking or two. It almost makes me miss the headstrong beauties! That said, when the request came in, I was pretty excited to give it a go. As the story opens, Quill is decidedly against the ladies inheriting his aunt's house. He is rude, arrogant, and unlikable. I really questioned if he would ever be able to turn it around, and to be honest, it takes a while. Ivy is less intimidating from the beginning, but she's also less interesting to me. She's a language scholar, and while that should be interesting it almost feels like a tacked on quirk than something ingrained as part of her. This is one of my pet peeve- the quirky quality- and Collins narrowly skirts it here.   The mystery progresses nicely, if a bit openly for a secret, and the I was happy with the plotting of the book.  My biggest complaint with the book is the dialogue. It can't seem to settle on proper conversation for the time period, and awkward flirting. Collins does a poor job of integrating the tension with the characters natural personalities, and I found that it drew my attention to the fact that I was reading, instead of letting me sink into the book. It didn't make the tension seem real and I was always aware that I was reading a book. I wouldn't mind finding out what happens in the rest of the series though, and will likely continue reading.

Molly's Mr. Wrong by Jeannie Watt

I request an awful lot of NetGalley books that sound just terrific when I see them, and then they sit on my kindle unread. Part of the problem is that I can't quickly scan the book description from my Kindle and so I just overlook ones that the titles don't remind me. It seems I hate to read a book without having an idea of where it's going (sorry, Trish!)  But after October's dismal showing of books read, I decided to just pick one and dive in. So here we are.

They're both learning from scratch

Molly Adamson has moved back to the place that made her happiest: Eagle Valley, Montana. Teaching college English classes is also a fresh start…even if he's one of her students. Finn Culver. Athlete, heartthrob, homecoming date. After that disastrous night all those years ago, Molly never wanted to see Finn, now a handsome military veteran, again. But as she gets to know him through his writing, helping him conquer an undiagnosed learning disability, Molly sees much more than the swaggering charmer. Both teacher and student will learn a lot about love, and each other, if they can let the past go…

So first off, the cover is really accurate! I love that. This is exactly how I pictured Molly. She's a reformed nerd who went off to college, met the wrong guy, built up her self-confidence ("this guy loves me??") and then suffered through a horrible crash and burn. She's back to her hometown now, and has somewhat rebuilt her confidence and is determined not to let it go again. She has a new job teaching at the community college, and now Finn is back in her life. She doesn't believe he could ever be right for her and is certain she'd rather have no relationship than one she can't trust.

Finn is much more likable than Molly, frankly. He's a war veteran who has come back home to his old job (at a feed store) and his old life, and finds that neither gives him satisfaction. He's developed a new plan to return to school and find a career he does love, and ends up in Molly's class. He's shocked to discover that English doesn't come easily to him-- he passed high school after all!- and since he has a disastrous past with Molly, tension is high. She informally diagnoses him with a learning disability and convinces him to stay in school.

Finn is one of the most interesting characters that I've read in a romance in a long time. He has a desire to move on and do more with his life, and is absolutely shocked to discover that college isn't easy. He sailed through high school with Cs without even trying! He's a military veteran, and it's not a major point (this is not a man in uniform romance) except to explain how he left his life and came back to discover he didn't enjoy it any longer. He finds himself falling for Molly and very gently pursues her. He's not an alpha take charge guy, which is not to say he can't lose his temper, but that he doesn't need to fix everything for everyone, and he has weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Plus, he finds a kitten in the rain! I loved him.

The romance is not easy. Molly fights and fights it. There wasn't enough of the falling in love for me, and way too many subplots with his grandfather and her sister, but it was a pretty good overall read. It tackles some issues that you rarely see in a romance (learning disabilities, high school football players, helicopter parents, education) and I thought those parts were well done. Molly is never going to be a favorite of mine, but she's easily balanced out by the rest. Overall, a solid book.

Molly's Mr. Wrong will be out on January 1st.

Hold Me, Cowboy by Maisey Yates

Hold Me, Cowboy is the continuation of the Copper Ridge series. The series seem to circle around a couple groups of people, so I'm not clear on if this is the end or not. Sadly, I missed the one before this, and it's the one I'd most like to know the story on!  I started Hold Me, Cowboy several weeks ago, and through no fault of the book, set it aside and forgot about it. Occasionally, I like to go through and finish up anything I've started, and swept this one up again.

Here's the summary:
Oil and water have nothing on Sam McCormack and Madison West. The wealthy rancher has never met a haughtier—or more appealing—woman in his life. And when they're snowed in, he's forced to admit this ice queen can scorch him with one touch…

Madison had plans for the weekend! Instead she's stranded with a man who drives her wild. A night of no-strings fun leaves both of them wanting more when they return to Copper Ridge. His proposal: twelve days of hot sex before Christmas! But will it ever be enough?

So I didn't really like Madison in the previous books, and the other book with Sam (his brother's book) is the one book in the series that I DNF, so going into this my expectations were not high. Madison is just a total bitch, and she knows it. Amazingly, Yates is able to take her from a bitch to someone you can understand, who is a bitch for good reason. Madison learns early that men can't be trusted and that even if they were equally complicit in scandal that the blame will be unevenly places (very Scarlet Letter.) She's ready to start enjoying life again after a decade of playing the ice queen, and the first man she finds is Sam.

Sam doesn't like Maddy, because he buys into her persona. Sam doesn't like to admit that he has emotion, and as an artist he's completely blocked without admitting he is feeling things. He's determined to fight his way through artist's block without thinking about the things he's pushed down. When he starts this 12 day affair with Maddy it forces him to realize that by ignoring what he feels, he'll be in the same place looking in forever. I liked Sam quite a bit. He's bluntly honest about everyone's life but his own, and doesn't take anything from Maddy.

Is the romance believable? It is very fast (WHAT IS WITH FAST IN EVERY BOOK???) and the climatic ending is fairly anti-climatic. It is true that they have known each other for a long time, and the 12 days are very emotionally intense so I suppose it is entirely possible. Is it a satisfactory ending to the Copper Ridge series? No, I really need to see Daddy West get his, but as everyone pairs up and has babies it seems that the end is nigh without that bit of resolution. Would I recommend the series as a whole? Yes-- but only to someone who has already developed a love for a small intertwined town. I would not recommend this one to a new reader as it is very hit or miss.

Hold Me, Cowboy comes out on November 8th.

Lauren Layne's Wedding Bells series

Anyone who's been around here for a while knows how much I enjoyed Lauren Layne's New York's Finest series last winter. When I saw that she was writing a series that was about wedding planners, set in NYC, I couldn't snatch them up quick enough. But then I had them all on my Kindle, and they titles are so similar that I couldn't keep straight what order they were supposed to be read in, and I'm way too lazy to look it up, so I just read other stuff. A couple weeks ago I decided that I'd just read them out of order, but I needed to dive in, and I did.

First up is a little novella called From This Day Forward, which I really didn't like at all. This one is about two wedding photographers, who have a history (which is a plus in a novella) but the entire story was about sex between two childish people who couldn't just use their words. This really didn't leave me wanting to move on, but I reassured myself that it was just the novella length and kept going.

The first full length book in the series is To Have and To Hold and it is definitely better than the novella. Brooke Baldwin is a rock star wedding planner on the West Coast, who has just planned the wedding of the decade-- her own-- when she is horrified to find out that he fiancee is a con man. She flees to New York and joins the Wedding Belles, where her first job is the plan the wedding of rich heiress Maya Tyler.  Maya's older brother, Seth, is certain that there's something fishy going on with the groom, and attempts to enlist Brooke's help in uncovering it. But how do you convince a wedding planner to sabotage the wedding she's planning?

One thing that Lauren Layne does really well is sexual tension and this book is no exception. Seth and Brooke are on fire from the first moment they see each other. I love seeing them deal with this, in the middle of client negotiations and planning that thwarts each other. Seth is impossibly wealthy and accustomed to getting this way in all things, and occasionally  pouts badly when he doesn't get what he wants, but his love for both Maya and Brooke shines through very clearly. It's hard to pin down the time line, so it doesn't feel rushed, but at the same time the book is lacking the falling in love that I enjoy so much. This one goes right for the physical, which to be honest is also a good book, but it doesn't really make me close the book with the same type of satisfaction that a good love story does.

The second book in the series is For Better or Worse, and features the assistant wedding planner and her sexy next door neighbor. Heather has never really been in love and believes it's not for her. She's from small town Michigan and her entire life's goal has been to be a wedding planner in New York City. She doesn't have time to fool around or look away from her goal. Josh has recently overcome a bout with cancer, and can't take life seriously-- he knows how short it can be and refuses to add anyone else to the list of people who would be devastated by his death.

This one hit almost all of my sweet spots. The dialogue is truly excellent, the plot is believable, Josh is terrific. I believed that these two could fall in the love, and the romance itself is much better than in the previous book. The ending isn't tied with a pretty bow- Josh IS a cancer survivor- but so realistically handled that you can believe that these are real people and you close the book with complete satisfaction. (If you can ignore Josh's extraordinary wealth, but hey, everyone needs a superpower.)

The last book in the series,To Love and to Cherish, has SO much potential. Alexis, owner of the Belles, is a bit of an ice queen. I never really liked her through the whole series, so I was hoping that all would come to light in her book.  Her hero is Logan, who is the Belles accountant. Logan has been madly in love with Alexis since the moment he laid eyes on her, eight years ago. Eight years is a long time to patiently wait, and Logan is ready to make his move.

This one is really hot, and the plot outline is equally good, but both Logan and Alexis were misses for me. Alexis has a standoff personality, that could have been good but I didn't feel was very well written. Logan would be my ideal beta hero turned alpha, but he "knows what Alexis really wants" way way too often. He's not abusive, but very high handed and not always in a sexy way.  Plus, his sudden ability to BE an alpha at all, after years of being the polite accountant, isn't really believable.While I didn't dislike this one, and it doesn't finish the series nicely, I would not recommend it.

Overall, it's very hard not to compare the series to Nora Robert's Bride Quartet. Both feature a cast of women planners, and while this one doesn't break it down the same way, both feature a complete badass-in-control leader (Alexis here, and Parker for Roberts). Unfortunately, Roberts does it much better. I'm still a fan of Layne, but the New York's Finest series beats this one hands down.

To Love and To Cherish will be out on October 18th.

Darkest Journey by Heather Graham

So,  Darkest Journey by Heather Graham.

Here's the summary, from Amazon:

They say it's about the journey, not the destination…

Charlene "Charlie" Moreau is back in St. Francisville, Louisiana, to work on a movie. One night, she stumbles across the body of a Civil War reenactor, the second murdered in two days. Charlie is shocked to learn that her father—a guide on the Journey, a historic paddle wheeler that's sponsoring the reenactment—is a suspect.

Meanwhile, Ethan Delaney, new to the FBI's Krewe of Hunters, is brought in on the case. He and Charlie have a history of their own, dating back to when he rescued her from a graveyard—led there by a Confederate ghost!

I know. I've been threatening to do this forever, but... this is it. I can't read more of these. While I quite appreciated the first couple I read, and I still enjoy the ease and lack of required thought for these, I just can't with the phoned in plot any longer. There's either so many plot holes you could drown in them, or there's just zero hints or signs and the killer turns out to be out of the blue. Red herrings abound and then are explained away needlessly. If the romance were strong, I'd probably keep going with the series, but the romances are always insta-love. They feel a connection to each other because they can both see ghosts, so it must be love? I don't feel like any of the characters are any different from any other title in the series, and eh, this is why I stopped reading Fool's Gold too.

Now let's see if I can actually resist when I see the next one pop up...

Darkest Journey comes out on September 27th.

Fearless by Kimberly Kincaid

Don't you hate it when you read a book you enjoy, but then fail to write the review until you start to forget details and then you just feel guilty about it?  Yeah. That.

Here's the summary, from Amazon.

Firefighter Cole Everett's life revolves around the firehouse. Committed to saving lives--and to the guys who always have his back in the most dangerous moments on the job--Cole's focus is a coveted spot on the Fairview Rescue Squad. When his captain asks him to mentor a rookie firefighter, he jumps at the chance, hoping it will help to prove his skill. But the new "guy" is none other than Savannah Nelson, a female firefighter as stubbornly determined as Cole is, and a whole lot curvier in all the right places . . .

Savannah won't let anyone extinguish her dream of fulfilling her family legacy and becoming a top notch firefighter--and she's happily surprised when strong-willed, sexy Cole is willing to give her the chance she deserves. Concentrating on the job isn't always easy when the heat between them flares higher every day, but Savannah won't give up--not even when one of Station Eight's veterans seems bent on trashing her reputation. To stop a string of possible arsons, Savannah and Cole will need to eliminate every distraction--but can they let their love go up in flames?

I read the previous book, Reckless, back in the winter, and while I didn't find it to be a winner, I was still looking forward to the rest of the crew. Unlike Katherine, I wasn't really drawn to Cole at all, and didn't really remember him, so it was all pretty fresh. Happily, I turned out to like Cole and Savannah quite a bit and found them both believable. Savannah desperately wants to be a firefighter, and on her own merit. She comes from a family of male firefighters and knows that if she doesn't move away from home she'll never be able to believe if it's her, or her family that leads her to success. She works hard to pull her own weight and doesn't let being a woman limit her at all. Unfortunately for her, not everyone in the firehouse is on the same page.

Cole is given the position of training Savannah to take his place in the rotation after he is promoted to a coveted squad position.  This requires quite the balancing act, he can't delude himself into thinking she is ready, if she isn't, but he's also eager to move into his new role. Cole never hesitates or holds back based on her gender and Savannah never fails to meet expectations. I loved seeing her be a badass in a physical way in a demanding job.

The chemistry between them is certainly there, and their first encounter/kiss ends in a potentially awkward situation, but Kincaid pulls us through. I did find it a bit unbelievable that they could leave all of that heat outside the fire station, so that no one knew. It is strictly forbidden to date within the house, and this becomes a major plot point late in the book. I'm not entirely sure that I'm convinced in the ultimate resolution of the side story with the arsons, but I did believe in the romance, which is what I read it for. While this series isn't one of my go to favorites, I would still recommend it to anyone who is already a fan of this type of setting.

Fearless came out on July 26th.

Two quick romance reviews

Sleepless in Manhattan by Sarah Morgan

I am a complete Sarah Morgan fangirl, but this one, oh it tested me. It's a friends to lovers story, which I love, and for the vast majority of the book I was all in.  Jake had some commitment issues, but he was willing to admit (to himself) that this relationship was a good thing. He wanted it out in the open even. He just didn't want love. Well anyone who has ever read a romance knows what's gonna happen, right?  Even that was fine, because of course that was the point, but immediately after the big showdown there is this scene that is so absolutely mortifying (to them, and moreso to ME) that I put the book aside. For weeks. I just could. not. imagine. seeing how that was gonna play out. Then my NetGalley Guilt (TM) got the best of me and I picked it back up, and shockingly, it was just fine. Because of course it was.  I have the next one in the series locked and loaded on my Kindle, and as soon as I have a quiet moment we're on.

Hold Your Breath by Katie Ruggle

Now this one I LOVED. I can't wait to read the next one in the series. In fact, as soon as I finished I ran right to my NetGalley account to see if I couldn't pick up the next book, only to discover that I had missed out on book 2, but could still grab book 3.   Lou is a bit annoying at first, but she settles down a bit as the book progresses, and I loved her interactions with Callum.  Cal is s take charge, alpha leader, but isn't overly loud or obnoxious about it, as heroes can often be. I loved seeing them fall for each other, and thought the ultimate resolution to this book was excellent. However, there is an overarching story line involving the dead body that isn't cleared up and is obviously going to be the thread that ties the series together, so if you're interested, know that there is a completely unresolved plot point.

Haunted Destiny by Heather Graham

Krewe of Hunters, I can't quit you, not even when you aren't very good...

Here's the summary:
Between the evil and the deep blue sea…

A historic cruise ship, a haunted ship, the Celtic American Line's Destiny, sets sail from the Port of New Orleans—with a killer on board. He's known as the Archangel Killer because of the way he displays his victims in churches. And how he places a different saint's medallion on each body. No one knows exactly who he is or why he's doing this.

Jackson Crow—head of the FBI's Krewe of Hunters, a special unit of paranormal investigators—is assigned to the case, along with local agent Jude McCoy. Then Alexi Cromwell, who works in the ship's piano bar, is drawn into the situation when a victim's ghost appears to her—and to Jude. She and Jude share an attraction, and not just because of their mutual talent.

There are many suspects, but one by one they're ruled out… Or are they? In the end, Jude and Alexi have to rely on each other to catch the killer and escape his evil plans for Alexi.

I don't even know where to start here, so jumping in feet first with the characters. First, there are a lot. In fact, there's a cast listing at the start of the book, like an old-school romance. There are enough characters that sometimes one of the main characters (like say Jackson, head of the Krewe!) would show up and I'd have no idea who he was. Once again, I found the FBI agents to be pretty interchangeable, and won't likely remember which book was Jude and which was Jackson.  Alexi is pretty likable tho and I think I'll remember her.

The romance, like all the Krewe books, is predicable and fast with very little attention paid to development. Why do they love each other after only a week? I have no idea. The book kind of tries to take the angle that it's because they share the ability to see ghosts, but even that isn't really pressed. As with the others, you just have to accept the romance and move on.

So why do I even read them if I can't keep the characters straight and the romance is flat? Because they are still compulsively readable. The plots (usually) move along well, and I'm always interested in seeing how Graham will blend the paranormal into the story seamlessly. In that aspect, Haunted Destiny is actually really well done, the ghosts are woven in well and seem natural there. Unfortunately, Haunted Destiny dragged along. They were stuck at sea, there was no contact with land for outside help in the FBI investigation because of a giant storm (but the captain was always in touch with the cruise line? What? But FBI couldn't get help with the serial killer on board? This makes no sense.)  There are only a limited number of suspects and rather than just suck it up and detain them they let them wander the ship and kill off a couple people.  It just made no sense. I still read it in an afternoon, so you can see that lack of sense isn't a real game stopper for me.

Would I recommend this one to a friend? No, I probably wouldn't. Will I keep reading them? Clearly, I can't stop.

One Night Charmer by Maisey Yates

Maisey Yate? Yes, please!

From Amazon:
Copper Ridge, Oregon's favorite bachelor is about to meet his match

If the devil wore flannel, he'd look like Ace Thompson. He's gruff. Opinionated. Infernally hot. The last person that Sierra West wants to ask for a bartending job—not that she has a choice. Ever since discovering that her "perfect" family is built on a lie, Sierra has been determined to make it on her own. Resisting her new boss should be easy when they're always bickering. Until one night, the squabbling stops…and something far more dangerous takes over.

Ace has a personal policy against messing around with staff—or with spoiled rich girls. But there's a steel backbone beneath Sierra's silver-spoon upbringing. She's tougher than he thought, and so much more tempting. Enough to make him want to break all his rules, even if it means risking his heart…

So it looks like Maisey Yates is going to follow the plan laid out by Shalvis' Lucky Harbor and Mallery's Fool's Gold and run an extended small town series focus around small groups of three, a series within a series. This is a setup I enjoy, and of course now I'll be keeping my eye out looking for potential matchups.

As it turns out, this one is a bit hard to talk about without spoilers, as a major event happens early on in the book. This was shocking to me, something you rarely see in novels published this decade, and I immediately worried that it would fall flat.  The unfolding is well done tho, with the reader clearly in the loop from the first moment and instead of playing off as completely corny, the expectation from the reader is built up nicely.  I thought it was handled really well. However, I suspect some readers will hate it. (Sorry to be vague, but spoilers!)

Ace is charming and hot and from his appearance in the first three Copper Ridge books I thought I knew who he was. As it turns out, Ave hides a lot behind his role as the helpful bartender, and his life is empty and lonely. Ace knows everyone and likes everyone but feels like he's messed up so much of his life outside of Copper Ridge and can't really ever recover.  Fortunately for him, Sierra comes along and demands that he face his past (it's really not optional, at all) and while he struggles a bit with it he ultimately pulls it together.

Sierra is a bit of a contradiction. She is a spoiled rich kid, absolutely, but she's also smart and capable. She might have worked at daddy's ranch, but she was good at it. She struggles to find her place when she leaves the ranch, because of course everyone thinks she only got the job because she's family, when really she's a hard worker and completely able to handle what's thrown her way.  I did have a hard time with her stubbornness, and was grateful when she acknowledged that even she wasn't consistent (for example, she keeps driving the truck her dad paid for, after cutting ties.)

In the end, I did enjoy this a good bit. I wasn't expecting to, after the big secret is revealed, but it ended on a good note and I would not hesitate to request another.

One Night Charmer is released on April 19th.

Nobody but You by Jill Shalvis (Cedar Ridge #3)

When a Jill Shalvis comes up on NetGalley I can't hit "Request" fast enough. Sadly, Nobody but You didn't begin to compare to the previous book in the series, My Kind of Wonderful.

SOMETIMES YOU CAN GO HOME AGAIN . . .
After an overseas mission goes wrong, Army Special Forces officer Jacob Kincaid knows where he must go to make things right: back home to the tiny town of Cedar Ridge, Colorado. All he needs to scrub away his painful past is fresh mountain air, a lakeside cabin, and quiet solitude. But what he discovers is a gorgeous woman living on a boat at his dock.


Sophie Marren has nowhere else to go. She's broke, intermittently seasick, and fighting a serious attraction to the brooding, dishy, I'm-too-sexy-for-myself guy who's now claiming her dock. Something about Jacob's dark intensity makes her want to tease-and tempt-him beyond measure. Neither one wants to give any ground . . . until they realize the only true home they have is with each other.

I was SO excited for Jacob's book. I was certain that his would be the fourth, and last, in the series, with the younger sister coming next and then wrapping the series up with Jacob's return home from overseas. So when I realized that Jacob would be next I got all excited and couldn't wait to see how Shalvis was going to bring him home. I even read the preview at the end of the previous book, which I never, ever do!  I did ultimately love Jacob and Sophie, and felt like his homecoming was well done, but I didn't love the way the series itself wrapped up. It seems as though the sister, Kendra, won't be getting her own book, and the precarious position the resort is in is wrapped up in a pretty bow.

But about the love story! Jacob is everything I wanted.  He's wounded from war, and finds it impossible to believe that his family wants him back. His heart leaps at every slight bit of hope from his brothers, especially Hudson. I  could feel just how much he wanted them to want him. Parallel to this, he meets and befriends Sophie and while there is a ton of sexual tension there, he also really just wants to be around her. She's not part of his family or his past and he can really relax and be accepted for himself.  I can't say that I loved his behavior surrounding him mom during his absence- it's meant to paint him in a good light, but I feel like it made him a bit of an ass to his siblings.

Sophie is a hot mess. A hot mess who made a rash decision that ends her living in the most miserable place ever. She's a hard worker, and determined to get out of her mess, but it's hard to believe she's as hard up as presented. First of all, she has no housing payment, how is she always scraping up the $20 to moor her boat? I loved the way she turned her work experience into a steady job by the end, but it seemed like too much too fast and I didn't completely buy it.

Did I believe in the relationship? Actually I did. Jacob really needed the outsider, a place where he felt relaxed and accepted, and for-god's-sake Sophie needed someone to ground her a bit. They both get a bit stubborn by the end, and some things are just a step outside of believable, but I did ultimately like them together.

My biggest complaint of the book is that the last 25% seems to squeeze in all the other resolutions- the sister, whose story I REALLY wanted, and that of how they fix the resort's problems. It's possible that she'll write a fourth book, I guess, but it seems like she's already tied up all the ends. Despite this, I'll keep reading everything Shalvis writes, and keep hitting that Request button without even reading the description.

If you're interested in reading the entire Cedar Ridge Series, there's a Rafflecopter giveaway <--right here="" p="">

About Jill Shalvis

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis lives in a small town in the Sierras full of quirky characters. Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is, um, mostly coincidental. Look for Jill's bestselling, award-winning books wherever romances are sold and visit her website for a complete book list and daily blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.

Jill’s Social Media:

Website: JillShalvis.com

FB: Facebook.com/jillshalvis

GR: https://www.goodreads.com/JillShalvis

T: @jillshalvis

IG: @jillshalvis

P: https://www.pinterest.com/jillshalvis/

Buy Links

Amazon: amzn.to/1nJOatw 

B&N: bit.ly/250OcyR 

IndieBound: bit.ly/22gObop 

iTunes: apple.co/1TJDOYH 

GooglePlay: bit.ly/1RKiLPz 

Kobo: bit.ly/1QTy644 

Cuff Me by Lauren Layne

Cuff Me is the third book in the New York's Finest series by Lauren Layne. I really enjoyed the first two and was not disappointed by this one.

Here's the summary:

Vincent Moretti is one of the NYPD's top homicide detectives-and one of the most eligible bachelors in town. His family, however, thinks he should date his longtime partner, Jill-a sassy, sexy, smart-mouthed blonde who drives him absolutely crazy.

Behind the quiet authority, tough-guy demeanor, and dark aviator glasses lies a man with a big soul-and a hard body that can soften any girl's heart. After years as his coworker, Jill Henley has given up hope that anything could happen between her and Vin. Besides, loving him would break all the rules. But seeing Jill with someone else triggers feelings in Vincent he never knew he had. Now he'll have to stop playing good cop/bad cop-and find a way to convince her to be his partner for life. . .

I admit, I was turned off by the teaser from the previous book. Vin seems a bit like an asshole, instead of just being blind to Jill's feelings. This means I was completely happy to see that most of the story is about Vin realizing what he wants, and Jill being blind to it. Sadly for Vincent (happily for the reader, or it'd be a short book), he's very very bad at expressing what he's feeling, even to himself.  While I wouldn't quite describe a friends to lovers storyline, there are a lot of similarities, as they are friends and have been partners for six years. (For me, a friends to lovers storyline has a lot more time spent together outside of work, without that work boundary.) As you read about Vin's struggle to figure it out, your heart can't help but break a little for him each time she doesn't see it. By the end of the book I came to really love Vin, and wanted badly for his love to be returned.

That said, I had some issues with the rest. Jill is cute and likable, and while in theory I can understand why she's seeking love elsewhere, in practice I found her new love interest to be such a sham. I mean, he's perfect. He's clearly written so that no one, not the reader, not Jill, not Vin, could actually dislike him. There's never a moment where you actually wonder how she'll get out of that relationship, nor is there a moment of crossing the line to stepping outside of it with Vin. It's very very safe.  Add to this that Vincent's family, who is meddling just enough to be interesting in the other two books, are nearly on his door step daily handing out love advice, and it wasn't my favorite in the series. I would still absolutely recommend the series, and Lauren Layne, to other romance readers, but this one is not a favorite.

Cuff Me is out on March 29th.

Reckless by Kimberly Kincaid

I'm way behind the draw on this one, completely misplaced the release date in my head!

Here's the summary, from Amazon:

Zoe Westin may be a fire captain's daughter, but feeding the people in her hometown of Fairview is her number one priority. Running a soup kitchen is also the perfect way to prove to her dad that helping people doesn't always mean risking life and limb. But when she's saddled with a gorgeous firefighter doing community service after yet another daredevil stunt, the kitchen has never been so hot.

Alex Donovan thrives on adrenaline, and stirring a pot of soup doesn't exactly qualify. He's not an expert at following the rules either, not even when they come from the stubborn, sexy daughter of the man who's not only his boss, but his mentor. Determined to show Zoe that not every risk ends in catastrophe, Alex challenges her both in the kitchen and out. One reckless step leads to another, but will falling for each other be a risk worth taking, or will it just get them burned?

Ok, so we know how much I enjoyed the Pine Mountain series, and this one is a spin off of that one, in the form of an interesting, fairly unlikable, firefighter- Alex Donovan.  We last saw him near the end of All Wrapped Up pretty much taunting poor Brennan.  Thankfully, that situation is resolved to bring everyone around again, but as Reckless opens Alex is once again showing his brash, unmanageable side. This lands him in a stint of community service with the captain's daughter, Zoe.

To be honest, I can't say that I ever really loved Zoe OR Alex. Alex is reckless and daring, lives every day to it's fullest, and while Kincaid does her best to draw the line between foolhardy and controlled recklessness, I can't say as I'm very attracted to people who do all the Dangerous Things. I did really love how he came around at the end, and how willing he was to be open and honest about his feelings. Mainly it was his hobbies I found off-putting.

I didn't ever warm up to Zoe.  I can't relate at all to her career choices, and didn't ever feel like she really believed it in her heart, it was all wallpaper for me. And then when she's cared to take a risk and complete a grant application and freaks out? Seriously? Where is the risk in that? Even I, who has never worked in a non-profit, knows that it's all about the grants. You just DO them, right? Then the story line with the need for security at the soup kitchen went no where at all, even tho it seemed that a) Alex would have a history here and b) a big deal! I always find the trope of either "my mom was married to a firefighter (or cop)  so I definitely can't risk it!" OR it's opposite "My mom was married to a firefighter (or cop) and no way I'd put anyone else through that!" both to be lazy.

In the end, this one wasn't a winner, but that doesn't mean I'm not looking forward to the rest of the series. For once there wasn't a preview at the end, so I have no idea who comes next.

Some Kind of Wonderful by Sarah Morgan

Some Kind of Wonderful is book two in the Puffin Island series. I read the first book, First Time in Forever, this summer so of course I wanted to read this one too.

Here's the summary, from Amazon:

Her whole life, Brittany Forrest has dreamed of adventure. And at the age of eighteen, she thought she'd found it when she married bad boy Zachary Flynn. But after just ten days, their whirlwind marriage went up in smoke. Now, the daredevil pilot is back on Puffin Island. The sparks between them are as powerful as ever, but can Brittany risk the life she's built for a second chance with Zach?

First of all, my copy from NetGalley did not include the Susan Mallery title, but the Sarah Morgan is a full length novel and not a novella tacked onto the end.

Alright, so what did I think of Brittany and Zach? Individually they are both fairly well done, tho I thought Brittany might have some tendencies toward being sheltered, despite her globe trotting career and history.  After her 10 day marriage to Zach as a teenager, Brittany runs away from Puffin Island to become an archaeologist. She travels the world and absolutely loves her job. She's more or less forced back to Puffin Island for the summer and has to spend the summer mostly idle. She finds work to occupy her time at a local camp, the same one that Zach first came to Puffin Island to attend as a teen. She seems pretty ok with stepping away from her career for the summer, despite not expressing any dislike of it prior to this.

Zach first came to the island as a troubled teen. He has a giant chip on his shoulder, for good reason, and the camp is more something he has to do than wants to do. He comes back home off and on over the years, and subconsciously considers it his home. He doesn't want to admit to his relationship with the camp director as his adopted family, and he doesn't want to admit how much the camp means to him. He wants to think of himself as this outsider, this troublemaker that the island can't trust. And, to some extent, this is true. The island doesn't trust him. I found this completely ridiculous that they would hold this crazy grudge for a decade.

So did the romance work for me?  It's not great. While I did ultimately believe they were right for each other, it felt really unbalanced. Brittany was almost a non-entity in the romance, as she tried incredibly hard to put no pressure on Zach at all. She didn't want to spook him or scare him, even as she realized she still loved him, and so she completely rolled over and let him call the shots. I didn't really like that. I wanted her to tell him what she wanted and needed and how she felt, and that really didn't happen. I suppose Morgan had reasons for writing it this way (reasons that she clearly explains within the novel, but that I didn't buy) but I wish she'd gone a different direction with it. I still enjoyed the book a good bit, and have to admit that I'm REALLY interested in the final book in the series, whenever it comes out.

My Kind of Wonderful by Jill Shalvis

So this has been a tiring week. My kids still don't sleep and now I've sabotaged myself TWICE in one week with romance novels. The first was a Julie James title, and last night was My Kind of Wonderful by Jill Shalvis. (Er, last night as I'm writing this, but I'll be scheduling this post for the release date. Hopefully when you read this I won't be as tired. HAHAHA, riiiiiight.)

Here's the summary:
UNEXPECTED AND UNDENIABLE . . .

Bailey Moore has an agenda: skiing in the Rockies, exploring castles in Europe, ballroom dancing in Argentina. Now that she has a second lease on life, she's determined not to miss a thing. What she doesn't realize is that item #1 comes with a six-foot-one ski god hot enough to melt a polar ice cap. She doesn't want to miss out on him either, but Hudson Kincaid isn't the type of guy to love and let go. And as gorgeous as Cedar Ridge is, she's not planning to stick around.

As head of ski patrol at his family's resort, Hud thinks he's seen it all. But never has he run into someone like Bailey. She might look delicate, but her attitude is all firecracker. And her infectious joy touches something deep within him that he's been missing far too long. Now he'll just have to convince Bailey to take a chance on her biggest adventure yet . . . something rare and all kinds of wonderful.

Oh Hudson. I love you. I wish you were a bit less stubborn, but I love you.  When I read Aidan's story I thought that he was going to be the brother who always had to be in control of everything, but nope, turns out it's Hudson. (Meanwhile Gray, the older brother who you'd think would be the in control one can only think about getting it on with his wife, which frankly got a little old.) Hudson blames himself for everything that goes wrong, for reasons that are at time fairly unclear. He takes the blame for his twin disappearing after high school and believes he doesn't have the right to be happy until he gets Jacob back. This is ridiculous, and everyone but him knows it, but that's his main stumbling block in a happy relationship.

Meanwhile Bailey has really just starting living after spending much of her life too sick to dream and while she believes that Hudson is just one more check mark on her list of living life fully, she's quickly coming to realize that what she suggested is not what she wants. Bailey really has no reservations, once she figures herself out. While she's stubborn and it takes a bit for her to get over Hud's stubbornness, she always does. She's easy going and understanding and possibly makes things a bit too easy for Hudson.

The attraction is clearly there, and the intimate moments are well done. I love that Hudson firmly believes Bailey when she tells him she's ok, and doesn't ever treat her like a fragile flower who can't DO things just because she was sick before. The one thing that doesn't stop him at all is her health and her future health- she tells him she can handle it, that she's ok, and he accepts what she says without coddling her. Like I said, I stayed up WAY too late to finish this one up and read the entire book, start to finish, last night. This hasn't happened in a very, very long time.  I am so happy to have a great Shalvis series after the end of Lucky Harbor, and I'm enjoying this new cast of characters. I can not wait for Jacob's story, which turns out to be next (I really thought they'd save him for last, but it looks like we're going in age order of the siblings.)

My Kind of Wonderful comes out today.

Steal Me by Lauren Layne

I admit that I grabbed Steal Me on a whim from NetGalley. This isn't an author that I've ever read before, but something about the description grabbed my attention so I went for it. I was absolutely NOT disappointed!

Here's the summary, from Amazon:

Being a cop might be in Anthony Moretti's blood, but protecting and serving the city of New York has always been more than just the family business. If that means his love life stays locked up, well then that's just another sacrifice made in the line of duty. That is, until he sets eyes on the gorgeous new waitress at The Darby Diner and suddenly Anthony's morning coffee is leaving him a whole lot more hot and bothered than usual.

Though waitressing at The Darby isn't exactly Maggie Walker's dream job, it pays the bills and gives her time to work on her novel. Now if only she could stop fantasizing about gorgeous Anthony Moretti every time he sits down at her table, she'd really be in great shape. But when he needs her help identifying a criminal threatening The Darby-and Maggie recognizes her ex-husband-she fears her fresh start might be a pipe dream. Faster than a New York minute, Maggie and Anthony find themselves in one perilous pursuit that only gets hotter with each and every rule-breaking kiss.

I've discovered lately that I am a big fan of big town contemporary romances, as well as the small town ones. Everyone knows the small town one- everyone knows your name, and even if you're the sheriff or a cop you're also the librarian, or maybe a cowboy. There's one hardware store and the same family has run it forever. There's no anonymity and no fresh starts without the town gossiping.  By contrast, I've read a half dozen or so lately that seem as they they would be similar- in this one we have a cop and a waitress, for example. But the feel of the book is completely different. It's not laid back and easy, and while they might be friends with their coworkers, they don't have the job as a favor to someone else or working for someone they've known since they were six. In many of them, both the hero and heroine are very competent and settled in their life- they aren't starting over at a new job or town.  I find that I'm liking that there is no Lucille posting every moment on Facebook.

So what did I think about this book? I freaking LOVED it. I read it in one sitting. Anthony knows what he wants and he is gunning for it. His life dream is on the line here and he can't be waylaid by a relationship that would get in the way both personally and professionally. He has some history that has rightfully scared him away from relationships, and it takes a couple lectures and near misses before he can see the foolishness of that. He is unapologetic about where he wants to be in life, and is willing to sacrifice a lot to get there.  He's also got a great relationship with his family, particularly with his brothers and his Nonna, and I loved the scenes with everyone in them.

Maggie is strong and determined, and while she is starting over- in a way, it's been 18 months- she's also not a timid or apologetic woman. She's waiting tables in a diner and living in a cosy tiny apartment while she works hard to achieve her real dreams (as opposed to just wishing for them). Her past comes to catch up with her in the book, and while it's clearly not something she enjoys, rather than whine and moan, she puts on her big girl pants and deals with it. On the rare occasion that she mentally backslides, she's able to see for herself that she's not thinking clearly instead of letting the situation get worse.

I loved this book. The tension between Anth and Maggie in the first half- building to their first kiss- was spectacularly done. I can't think of another book I read this year that did it as well. I finished reading the book around 11pm, which is embarrassingly far past my bedtime, and immediately sat up to see if I could find a copy of the first book,  Frisk Me.  I will absolutely be following this series, and this author, very closely.

Steal Me came out on November 24, 2015.

All Wrapped Up by Kimberly Kincaid

I read the first four Pine Mountain novels, so All Wrapped Up was a no brainer.

Here's the summary from Amazon:

Talk about a hot lead…
Christmas is coming to Pine Mountain—and it has a way of stirring up memories, good and bad. Nick Brennan may manage the Double Shot bar smooth as good whiskey, but his past is a hot mess. When he runs into a burning building to save a little boy, some people start thinking there’s more to his heroism than holiday spirit. And then the local reporter assigned to the story turns out to be gorgeous Ava Mancuso, the girl who got away.

Ava knows what it’s like to have a past. But the changes she’s seen in Nick since she knew him do more than set off her natural curiosity—his warm eyes and gruff charm have her instincts fired up. Still, all the chemistry in the world doesn’t erase history, even when Nick invites her to his little sister’s mistletoe wedding. Does he have a heart under all those secrets? Or is this going to be just another Christmas past?

I've been waiting for quite a while as Brennan was one of my favorites from the other novels, so I started reading this one pretty much the day I got it. Which probably makes you wonder why I'm just writing this review 6 weeks after it was released, huh? Well, it got tense for me. See, Brennan is trying hard to keep his life quiet. He has a tragedy in his past that he desperately wants to keep hidden. He suffers from it both physically and emotionally, but Ava's job is pretty much requiring her to figure it out and reveal it, or she loses her job.  I spent much of the book wondering how the job could possibly mean that much to her, and why didn't she just grow a backbone and stand up for herself already? It was a sucky job, and the potential she sees (that I don't) would be miserable too. So I dragged and dragged and dragged through the major parts of that. I just couldn't bear to see her hurt him for this crappy job. Fortunately, that was eventually resolved in a way I could live with, and the ultimate coming together was satisfying.  Did I end up loving Brennan/Nick as much as I thought I would? Yeah, pretty much. As it often happens, the hero carries the story for me far more often than the heroine.  Would I continue to read Kincaid? Yes- in fact, even more now that she got me through this potentially awful situation.