Saturday 31 August 2013

Adam's Boys - Anna Clifton



© Bianca  


ANNA CLIFTON - ANNA'S BOYS

release date -  1 September - 2013
155 Pages

Escape Publishing - Harlequin Australia

Before reading ADAM'S BOYS you should/could/want to read
FALLING FOR THE LAWYER
 it's about JP and Alex - who we will meet again in Adam and Abbie's book!


5 Stars




Wrong girl — wrong time? Adam’s fling with Abbie just weeks after the death of his wife may have been all wrong, but their time together gave him the strength to return home to his newborn son, Pete, and start their new life together.

Wrong guy — wrong time? Abbie's fling with Adam may have been all wrong, but their time together gave her Henry, the sunshine in her life, and although Adam is long gone, Abbie can never regret the time they spent together.

But two wrongs don't necessarily make a right. Adam Cooper is back, and when he learns the truth about his unknown son, he is hell-bent on creating a home and family for his boys, even if it means blackmailing Abbie into taking part.

Abbie has scars from her own tumultuous childhood, and losing Henry would destroy her. But with only mistrust and pain to bind them, can she and Adam ever find a way through regret to love and the family they could be?




Sydney, Australia. Present Day.

Abbie is trying to stay calm - but she will soon see the father of her son again. Only Adam doesn't know he has another son.
Four years ago they had a 3-week affair when Adam ran away from London and his 3-months old son Pete. He was grieving for the wife he just lost. And that's when he met Abbie - who was working at his Law-Firm. They spent wonderful days together - but his guilt made him pull back and leave for London again.

Now he's back for the Incipio-Cancer-Charity event at the Sydney Opera House and Abbie finally wants to tell him about Henry.



Only it doesn't happen exactly the way Abbie was hoping. He almost rudely brushes her off - he doesn't have any time to talk now - she should make an appointment at the Firm.
But then he also dances with her that night.
Are there maybe some sparks left?

Ok - that's it....

I don't want to spoil anything .... only a few not-too-spoiling-points:

- Abbie, Adam and the 2 boys will have an exciting run-in at the supermarket.
- Coincedentally the boys both visit the same school
- Adam thinks it would be wonderful if the 2 boys could be friends - because his Pete has been sad a lot.
(that's when he still doesn't know about Henry being his son!)
- Adam insists on them moving in together for the time he will be in Australia

Paddington - Sydney


- we will spend time at the beach

Bronte Beach - Sydney

- we'll go on a trip to England - and meet Adam's parents at their country estate in Cotswolds.


- there will be fights
- they will get together and leave each other multiple times
- 2 people might dance to the following song:

Coldplay - Paradise

WILL THERE BE A HAPPY END??? ☺ I'M NOT TELLING! GO AND BUY THE BOOK!



My Opinion:

I really liked the story - could've been a bit longer - but it was a sweet and moving romance! 

  When I saw the cover of the book and then read the blurb - I was intrigued. But then I started reading and it was something completely different. I was expecting something heavy and complicated but what I got was a fast read - a moving Romance about 2 people finding or not finding each other again after 5 years apart - and with a lot of obstacles to overcome.

I really like the cover photo - but for me it didn't really fit the book. The picture looks sad and I really expected a dark - autumn rain-kind-of story. As if the guy in the picture is a widower  - all alone with 2 kids - which of course is not the case.

Another thing that bothered me a bit was the line: ALL THOSE YEARS or something similar - they say it sooo often in the book - and it was only 4 years!!! They make it sound like 20 ☺

BUT - anyway - it was a wonderful Romance - with two people who didn't get on my nerves all that much ☺ Most book Characters are annoying once in a while - just like here too - but I really liked the story.
And those 2 boys are just adorable!!!


And the End was really wonderful! - not saying if it was happy - I just said wonderful! ☺

I liked the places the book takes us to - Sydney - the beach - the englisch country town. I could really picture it all.


I missed the sexy parts a bit - but that's just me - I like my romances steamy ☺
At least there was some kissing!


It was a wonderfully moving Romance - had me in tears a few times!

I hope we will get to read Justin's story next - he's one of the 3 partners in the Law Firm.


HERE ARE THE LINKS TO THE BOOKS and AUTHOR
 


Click here to purchase the book on amazon.co.uk

Click here to purchase the Kindle e-book at amazon.com 

Click here to purchase the Nook e-book at Barnes & Noble 






ABOUT ANNA
(stolen from her homepage!)

I was a lawyer in a past life, but am now a stay-at-home mum to several children, their constant stream of visiting friends, and several pets. We all live in an often too-small house in Sydney, Australia.

There is also a rather nice husband in the mix who is bemused about how my compulsive writing squeezes itself into the family schedule. Thankfully, like all good heroes, he knows better than to get in the way of the woman he loves on a mission.

Apart from reading and writing my great loves are travel photography (samples of which I'm afraid you won't be able to avoid in this website!), piping-hot coffee in the morning, and watching my husband enjoy doing the thing I hate doing most - cooking!

✪ Fatal Strike ✪ Shannon McKenna ✪ Review ✪





© Bianca  



SHANNON McKENNA
FATAL STRIKE
  •  McCloud's & Friends #10
  • 400 Pages
  • release date -  24 September - 2013


★★★★★
5 Stars


 


When Lara Kirk was abducted months ago, Miles Davenport vowed he'd bring her home. But the mission failed. Miles has become totally obsessed; he can practically hear Lara pleading for him to save her. Finding her after all this time will be next to impossible...
Lara Kirk lives in a shadowy world where reality and fantasy are one. Her captors have poisoned her body with concoctions that enhance psychic abilities--and they seem to be working. To escape, Lara has formed a deep attachment with a man whose virile, sensual presence in her mind is her only comfort. She's not even sure if he's real--until the six-foot-five-inch powerhouse bursts in to rescue her...
Once freed, Lara has no choice but to trust Miles with her life as they run from enemies too twisted to imagine. But they're also fighting a dangerous attraction that could kill--or save--them both. 
Either way, it's going to be a hell of a ride...

Click here to see the McCloud's Series on goodreads



My Opinion:


Like all books in the series - I loved it!


 We already know and love Miles from the earlier books in the series and we heard about Lara in the previous book One Wrong Move.

We start Fatal Strike a few months after Miles' brain was horribly tortured in One Wrong Move. He's physically ok now - but his mind is slowly driving him insane. The bad guy almost fried his brain - he can now see and hear better and every touch hurts - even the computer wi-fi waves hurt him. (and he's a computer geek!!)
One good thing - the only good thing - about this whole mess is that he has dreams. Very erotic dreams about Lara Kirk - the girl he was trying to save but couldn't. He believes she's dead.

But she's not - she's still being held captive by Thaddeus Greaves - he is using her as a guinea pig - he wants to perfect the psi-max drug that Lara's mother created. The drug that was responsible for killing both her parents. Well - the drug did not kill them, of course - bad guys did.

After thinking for weeks that Lara is just a dream - that it's just his mind finally going insane - Miles finally starts to believe that she might be real - that she could still be out there somewhere.

With the help from an old lady he finds a clue to where she could be held.
And with the help of the McCould clan he tries to save her.

Only Greaves has so much psychic power that he almost ends up killing the McClouds - because they don't have any mental shields to keep him out of their heads.

Of course we end up escaping - with Lara. But Greaves doesn't stop looking - he wants Lara for himself - and he keeps hurting and killing innocent people on his way to find her.


 But ..... that's all I'm telling you ☺
I don't want to spoil your reading pleasure ☺



____________________________________________________________

I REALLY LOVED THE BOOK!!!


I loved all the McCloud's books - they were all really erotic and exciting reads.


Fatal Strike was just as good as the other 9 books in the series.

I had always hoped that Miles would one day get his own story - and ta-daaaa - here it is ☺

Now the only one without his own book is cop and McCloud friend Sam Petrie - I hope he and Sveti will be next ☺

The only thing that I didn't like is the PSYCHIC stuff in the book - and the last books in the series as well. I hate everything super and paranormal. And this is just sooo far out of my believing-range, that I almost stopped reading a few books ago. BUT  - I loved the McClouds and you can't just stop reading a series where you love every single one of the extended family ☺

The book would have been sooo perfect without the psychic elements - don't know what the Thriller part would have been about then, though - but that's the author's job - to think about interesting things.☺  Just no psychic stuff anymore please!

But even with the psychic element - I still loved it.

Miles is sooo grown up all of a sudden - the mind-raping-torture session in the last book, somehow turned him into a real alpha - hero - manly - man ☺


And Lara is such a nice heroine - she's not getting on my nerves at all! Normally the girls in books are really annoying :) well sometimes at least. Lara is really nice - and she loves Miles right from the start - before she even met him.

They can't depend on the McClouds too much - because without any mental shields they would all be in too much danger - so the 2 of them have to save themselves. Which is really exciting and adorable to watch/read.


But don't worry - we still see enough of the McCloud clan!!

Another tiny little thing I didn't like - there were too many UH's and AH's and UHM's in the book. If it was only one person doing the stuttering uh-ing - it would be ok - but it's all of them!
BUT - the rest of the language I really like - it's not such a stiff and formal english like in other books. It's just like normal people would talk in real life.

I ENJOYED THE BOOK A LOT
 - and I'm sure you will too - if you loved the first 9 books in the series - you will SOOO LOVE this one too! It was worth the long wait - we FINALLY have a book about Miles ☺ YAYYYY


Will there be a happy end??? 
Yes of course! But the way to that HEA will be dangerous and exciting!



Now hurry up Ms McKenna - we need Sam's story!!! ASAP!




LINKS TO THE BOOK AND AUTHOR


ABOUT SHANNON:
STOLEN FROM HER HOMEPAGE



HOW IT ALL BEGAN
I started writing my first romance novel in secret. I was working a temp job in an insurance office in Manhattan at the time, and the office manager had made it clear that even if there was nothing to do, I still had to look busy-- never one of my big talents. I felt bad about the wasted time, though, and I needed something to round out my other chosen career, which was singing. Yeah, that's right. Most artists choose a more practical Plan B to back up their improbable Plan A. Me? No way. "Long Shot" is my middle name.
So I sneakily set up a Document 1 and a Document 2 with a spreadsheet on it. If my Boss du Jour walked by I could quick-like-a-bunny switch screens, and whenever the coast was clear, I went back to my story. Not that I was slacking, mind you. If there was work to be done, I did it. The sneakiness felt familiar, though, because I've been teased about reading romances since I was a kid. I think the day I finally grew up was the day I stopped trying to cover up what I was reading on the bus, train or subway. Let people think whatever they like.
It wasn't until I moved to Italy (details of that Long Shot provided later on) that I got serious about writing, though. I found myself with many long, quiet days alone with nothing to do, so I slogged my way bravely to the end of the manuscript and sent it out. Everybody rejected it-except for Kensington. I wrote for them for a few years, and then made a bid for an erotic novella for the new Brava imprint, and oh joy, they accepted it. Then I wrote BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. And so on, and so forth.
That's how I started. I can't think of anything I'd rather do. I never knew it would be so scary, and so hard . . . all that solitude and silence, a blank computer screen, and no one to blame. But still. It's worth it. It's great.


MY OTHER LIFE
I was originally convinced that I wanted to make it as a singer in NYC, so I was temping to support my music habit. I sang with various ensembles that performed medieval and renaissance music, I sang lead in a fabulous Celtic fusion band, I sang church gigs, I sang weddings and funerals, smoky cabaret and country/blues, Christmas carols dressed in a Dickens outfit in shopping malls, I was even a strolling madrigal singer at the Renaissance Faire in one of those cleavage-enhancing lace-up bodice thingies. I did everything I could possibly think of to make the rent. Those were my wild years. Then, Italy…which is a lot mellower than NYC. And oh. The food. Words fail me.


ROMANTIC ASIDE
A brief word about the Renaissance Faire. I never did a goofier, more ridiculous or worse-paying gig, but I have to say, the place was a sizzling hotbed of summer romance. Such a variety of gorgeous men in tights to choose from, and I've always loved historical romances. Yum.
Then one day, I saw a group of Italian musicians strolling by. They were all handsome, as Italians are wont to be, but the lute player was just delicious. His legs in tights surpassed all other legs, and those long, tanned fingers twinkled so deftly over the lute strings, it just made me quiver. His name was Nicola, and he didn't speak a word of English, but I was undaunted. I followed him around, dreaming up excuses to talk to him, insofar as I could. Then I saw him at the cast campfire that night, whipping up a delicious pasta dish over two tiny camp stoves for more than fifty people with such grace and flair, my knees sagged beneath me. What could be sexier than a man who can cook? After we devoured his bounty off paper plates, he played Bach for us on his classical guitar, naked to the waist in the flickering firelight, green eyes flashing. Hold me back. (No one did.)
The ultimate summer romance ensued, but he went back to Italy when the summer was over. I resigned myself to a bittersweet memory of What Might Have Been, but I couldn't stop thinking about him. A year later, I quit my job, broke my lease, put my stuff in a friend's basement, bought a ticket to Italy, and went to find him. Yeah, it was nuts…but we've been together for two decades now. Really. Passion makes you reckless. Must've been the effect of all those romance novels.

Improbable though it may seem, it worked out fine. Now I live in Southern Italy, of all things, and oh, if I ever thought I needed a challenge or an adventure, this is certainly that. Someday I'll write a book about it. It'll be a sharp-edged comedy. But when it comes to love, Nicola will always be my inspiration

Thursday 29 August 2013

Beats (Hard Rock Harlots #2) by Kendall Grey - Release Day



WARNING: BEATS is specially formulated for horn dogs, porn oglers, smut peddlers, BDSM junkies, M/M and M/M/F addicts, DP dabblers, body modification connoisseurs, and lovers of A2M backdoor sexy times. If you dont fall into these categories, cant stomach hot man-on-man action, or if you have no idea what the above acronyms mean, please back away from BEATS now. This isnt the book youre looking for. Failure to heed this warning could inadvertently throw unauthorized users into a persistent vegetative state, or at the very least, require administration of a defibrillator to the chest and/or groin area. Nobody wants that.

For months, shy drummer Jinx Hardwick has been silently crushing on her tall, dark, and scary bandmate, Toombs Badcock. Drawn to his frightening ink and scars, she yearns to uncover the shadowy secrets lurking behind his silver eyes, but Jinx is too intimidated to even look at him, let alone talk to him. 

When she stumbles upon Toombs and their manipulative lead guitarist Rax in a compromising position, Jinx realizes her chances of winning Toombss heart arent just a long shottheyre nonexistent. To make matters worse, Jinxs family needs her at home. Shes about to back away from it allToombs, the band, her dreams of fame and fortunewhen Rax makes her an offer she cant refuse: a no-holds-barred night alone with Toombs. 

Theres one small catch. She has to go through Rax to get it.






 
Stalk Kendall here:

Wednesday 28 August 2013

✪ Detained ✪ Ainslie Paton ✪




Bianca & Janeane





AINSLIE PATON - DETAINED
• 322 Pages
• release date - 1 September - 2013
• Escape Publishing - Harlequin Australia


★★★★★

5 big + fat Stars


From one of Australia's hottest new authors comes a story about an international scandal, a billionaire, and a fearless reporter who might just save the day...

Confined in a cold, dull room in the depths of a Shanghai airport, a journalist chasing a career break and a businessman with a shadowy past play a game of truth or dare
deliberately not exchanging names.

They tell each other their most painful secrets and burning desires. One dare leads to a kiss and a wild night of illicit passion, setting off a dangerous sequence of events, bringing exposure and disgrace.

Only the brutal truth can save them. But it will also rip them apart. And it will take more than daring before they can build a new truth together.


 

OMG - can a book be any better than this one???  


I started reading with not very high hopes - I read the blurb and thought - hm yeah well - this book will probably have 150 pages and the whole book will be in that airport-room and they will have sex and then there will be a happy end!

I WAS SOOO WRONG!

Yes - we start out in that cold airport room - well no - we don't actually.
Darcy is on her way from Sydney to Shanghai for an interview that will either make or break her career as a Journalist for the Sydney Herald. She is supposed to get an exclusive - never been there - interview with reclusive Billionaire Businessman Will Parker from Parker Corporation. But the Shangai immigration people won't let her leave the airport because something is wrong with her Visa. They detain her in a little cold room until the Visa-problem can be cleared.


After she's been freezing her butt off in there for a little while - she gets company - another poor guy with Visa difficulties.


They don't exchange names - but they exchange so much more. They play a game of truth or dare and they end up telling each other their life stories. Lots of sparks are flying between Darcy and the good-looking stranger. Before they're released from the room 5 hours later, they end up on the little couch doing some erotic things ☺ But I'm not telling you what!  ☺


When Darcy arrives at the Peninsula Hotel she finds herself in one of those horribly expensive suites


- curtesy of her stranger - who she calls Tara - because that's the town he grew up in.


They then spend a very sexy weekend together ☺



She wasn't sure she could undo the other buttons without needing help. She wasn't sure of anything except being with him was inevitable, and delicious, and stupid. His look burned her skin, made it zing like the first rush of a too hot shower. She fumbled the remaining buttons undone, let the dress fall to her feet and stood there in her mismatched underwear.
"I want you naked." She couldn't do it. She knew her body wasn't fashionable. She had hips and a backside. And despite the yoga she wasn't toned to magazine image perfection. The family joke was tables had better legs. And his body was incredible, even with the scars that marked him. And the room was too bright. She went to turn off the light nearest her. "Leave it." Hand on the switch, their eyes met. He repeated, "Leave it." She turned it off. "Fine then--but the bra goes." "So you do know how to compromise." "I know how to win. Do you want me to do it for you?" She did. She didn't. She saw nothing in him to suggest he didn't like what he saw. She unhooked her bra, let it slide down her arms and watched his eyes flare with satisfaction. Then she leant across and switched on the light. "You win."

And I don't think I'm spoiling too much when I say that our stranger is - of course - the reason Darcy is in Shanghai in the first place: Will Parker. She's extremely angry when she finds out - and once she's back in Sydney she writes an article. An article that could destroy Wills life and business. And it kind of does. LOTS of horrible and suspensy and heartstopping and moving things happen because of that article! But I'm not telling you any more! ☺ 

WILL THERE BE A HAPPY END??? ☺ 
I'M NOT TELLING! GO AND BUY THE BOOK! 

 


As I said before - I wasn't expecting all that much - and that's the best way to start reading a new book. I was totally surprised. I don't even know what kind of genre this book is! It's not a Thriller - not Erotica - not Romance - but it's all those things and so much more!!! I couldn't put the book down! I was completely hooked from the first pages!  I was even crying!!!


I loved Will and his sad past and the way he made himself into what he is today. And I felt sooo sad for him when things went horribly wrong. And Darcy - she's a sweet girl - falling in love with this stranger. And then making this one mistake and then trying to make everything right again.  There are only 2 things that I didn't like - first - the sex scenes felt a bit cut-off at the end... They start out really sexy and romantic and erotic but then it's like the author was too embarrassed to be a bit more sexually explicit! It wouldn't have hurt the book at all to make those scenes a bit longer ☺ Just my opinion ☺

And then the Cover-picture! The models - especially the girl - both look like cold and ruthless KGB Spies! And that's not what Will and Darcy are!!! Should this book ever come out in print - and I really hope it will - please change the cover! 
↑↑ UPDATE - THE COVER HAS BEEN CHANGED ↑↑
THANK YOU - whoever's responsible for doing that... this is the old version:


And that's all I didn't like! Amazing, huh? Normally I have LOTS to complain about - even when it's 5-star book ☺  I think I want to go visit Shanghai now!!! ☺


Please go and buy this wonderful non-genre book ;) 
Let's just call it a Heartbreaking Erotic Thriller! ___________________________________________________   


 


I didn't know what to expect when I picked up this book - which I think is a good thing anyway.
After reading the blurb, it sounded like everything would happen while being detained in an interview room at an airport.  So wrong - the story begins after they leave the airport!
 Darcy Campbell is an ambitious reporter for a Sydney newspaper.  She gets flown to Shanghai for the career break she needs - an exclusive interview with reclusive Australian billionaire, Will Parker.
 Arriving in China, she is stopped at immigration for irregularlities with her visa, and is detained in a freezing room at Pudong Airport.
 After a while, she has a fellow detainee.  A sexy fellow Aussie.  Darcy feels an instant attraction to the handsome stranger, and it seems the attraction is mutual.
To fill in the time, Darcy and the stranger start a game of Truth or Dare.  
 


With no names given, Darcy and handsome stranger realise that they can be more truthful with each other than they have ever been before.  Things get quite personal, and their attraction and bond gets stronger.  There may even be a little bit of this involved....
 


After finally being released, handsome stranger, whom she has nicknamed Tara after the town he grew up in, drops her off at her hotel and seemingly drives out of her life.
But they can't keep away from each other, and they spend a wonderful weekend together, enjoying the anonymity of the situation.
 On Monday, Darcy goes to interview Will Parker - only to find out that the interview is cancelled, and that Tara is Mr Will Parker himself.
Darcy is furious, hurt and humiliated by Will. She also knows that his cancelling the interview has destroyed her career.
 

On returning to Sydney, Darcy runs a story with information she gathered in Shanghai, something that garners worldwide attention, and could ruin Will personally and professionally. 
 


The article leads to things occurring to Will that he had dreaded all his life. But can things be fixed?  For that, you are going to have to go buy Detained and find out!
 Ainslie Paton had me run through a whole range of emotions - I laughed, I cried, I was afraid for the characters.  This line particularly made me laugh (the Aussies amongst us will laugh with me).
 

"Darcy didn't do pretty.  Pretty took time and consideration and while she was no bush pig  Andy's favourite description of an unattractive woman, she'd rather be acknowledged for her thought patterns than her eye make up."    
 


 I loved Will - the way he walked away from his traumatic past to make himself into the man he is today -both the good and the bad.  His love and the things he has done for his "brother" Pete - the only real family he has ever had - pulls at the heartstrings.  
Darcy has a father and a brother who are more like colleagues or acquaintances.  I for one think she would be better off without them at all.  She has a heart of gold and works hard to correct the mistakes she makes in her life.
The interactions between Darcy and Will are sexy, sweet, funny, heartbreaking... their relationship is the epitome of the
 



 I could not put this book down once I started reading, and was up till all hours of the morning finishing it!
 I thoroughly enjoyed the ride Ainslie Paton took me on, and I am definitely going to read more of her work!
 

↓ LINKS TO THE BOOK & AUTHOR ↓ 




STALK AINSLIE ON:


 Ainslie Paton is a corporate storyteller working in marketing, public relations and advertising. She’s written about everything from the African refugee crisis and Toxic Shock Syndrome, to high-speed data networks and hamburgers, and for everyone from George Clooney to Barry Humphries—as Edna. She writes cracking, hyper-real romances about strong women and the exciting men who love them.