Promise of Darkness (Dark Court Rising #1) by Bec McMaster

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Princess. Tribute. Sacrifice. Is she the one prophesied to unite two warring Fae courts? Or the one bound to destroy them?

In a realm ruled by magic, the ruthless Queen of Thorns is determined to destroy her nemesis, the cursed Prince of Evernight.

With war brewing between the bitter enemies, the prince forces Queen Adaia to uphold an ancient treaty: she will send one of her daughters to his court as a political hostage for three months.

The queen insists it’s the perfect opportunity for Princess Iskvien to end the war before it begins. But one look into Thiago’s smoldering eyes and Vi knows she’s no assassin.

The more secrets she uncovers about the prince and his court, the more she begins to question her mother’s motives.

Who is the true enemy? The dark prince who threatens her heart? Or the ruthless queen who will stop at nothing to destroy him?

And when the curse threatens to shatter both courts, is her heart strong enough to break it?

Rating: B+

I’m a big fan of Bec McMaster’s London Steampunk and Blue-Blood Conspiracy series, and was excited to read Promise of Darkness, the first book in her new fantasy series, Dark Court Rising.  Dabney Grinnan – publisher of All About Romance – is also a huge fan of Ms. McMaster’s work, so we both eagerly dove into this one, and then had a chat about what we thought of it.

You can read the rest of this review at All About Romance.

His Wayward Bride (Romance of the Turf #3) by Theresa Romain

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Though their horse-racing family is as troubled as it is talented, all of the Chandler siblings have found love…except eldest brother Jonah. Married four years ago and abandoned after his wedding night, single-minded Jonah now spends his days training Thoroughbreds—while his lost bride is a family mystery no one dares discuss.

And that’s just the way Jonah and his wife, Irene, want it.

The biracial daughter of a seamstress and a con artist, Irene has built a secret career as a spy and pickpocket who helps troubled women. By day she works as a teacher at Mrs. Brodie’s Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies; in spare moments she takes on missions that carry her everywhere from London’s elite heart to its most dangerous corners.

Jonah agreed to this arrangement for four years, until Irene’s family fortunes were made. After surviving on passionate secret meetings and stolen days together, now it’s time to begin the marriage so long delayed. But as these two independent souls begin to build a life together, family obligations and old scandals threaten to tear them apart…

Rating: B-

I enjoyed the first three books in Theresa Romain’s Romance of the Turf series, which focuses on a family of successful horse-breeders and trainers based in Newmarket.  One of the attractions of the series has been that there’s nary a duke or earl in sight – historical romance about non-aristocratic characters is relatively rare, so the author is to be applauded for writing about the gentry instead of the nobs.  It’s been a while since the last title in the series (Scandalous Ever After) was released, but  I did remember that the eldest of the Chandler siblings, Jonah, had appeared and/or been mentioned in the earlier books, and that he was married… but that his wife, for some unexplained reason, wasn’t around.

As it turns out, Irene Chandler – née Baird – is a teacher at Mrs. Brodie’s Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies (as featured in the novella duo by Ms. Romain and Shana Galen), an exclusive boarding school in Marylebone that teaches classes in self-defence and pick-pocketing alongside the more traditional subjects.  Irene has been a teacher of geography and history there for six years, and loves it; but like some of her fellow teachers, she also carries out certain extra-curricular activities at the behest of Mrs. Brodie.  Irene is, in fact:

… a sort of spy. A thief.  A secret agent.  The headmistress of her academy had ties to prominent people across England, and she pulled strings to make sure their power was used for good.  Irene was, when needed, the physical hand who did the pulling.

As a biracial woman – her mother is a black Englishwoman, her father a white American – Irene knows only too well the feelings of powerlessness and helplessness in the face of injustice.  She loves the life she has built for herself and is fulfilled by it, even as she recognises that her work is of the sort that will never, ever be done when there are people who need the sort of help Mrs. Brodie can provide.  But she made a bargain four years earlier, one that is going to change the course of her life, and payment is now due.

You can read the rest of this review at All About Romance.

One Perfect Rose (Fallen Angels #7) by Mary Jo Putney (audiobook) – Narrated by Siobhan Waring

This title may be downloaded from Audible via Amazon

Can a woman with a past and a man with no future find lasting love?

Stephen Kenyon, Duke of Ashburton, has always taken the duties of his rank seriously – until a doctor’s grim diagnosis sends him running from his world of privilege. Traveling incognito, he yearns to experience life to the fullest in what time he has left.

When Stephen rescues a drowning child, he is drawn into the warm embrace of the Fitzgeralds, a family theatrical troupe brimming with laughter and affection. And their enchanting, compassionate daughter, Rosalind Jordan, stirs emotions he’s never known before.

Widowed young, Rosalind is happy organizing her exuberant, close-knit family. She doesn’t expect to fall in love with a quiet stranger, whose wit and kindness speak to her heart. When Stephen tells Rosalind the truth of his condition and proposes marriage, she accepts despite the shadow of inevitable loss.

Together, they find profound passion and companionship. Yet neither dares speak of love, for only a miracle will give them the future they desperately desire…

Rating: Narration – B+; Content – B+

One Perfect Rose is the seventh and final book in Mary Jo Putney’s Fallen Angels series, and was originally published in 1997. Audiobook versions of the first two books appeared a few years ago (Thunder and Roses in 2013, and Dancing on the Wind in 2014), but the narration was fairly poor in both (I reviewed Dancing on the Wind, and it was horrible!), and production halted until earlier this year, when four of the remaining books were released (I can’t see that book four has been recorded), thankfully with a much better narrator at the helm. As a result, listening to One Perfect Rose was a pleasure rather than a chore!

Stephen Kenyon, Duke of Ashburton, is a quiet, reserved man who has always done what was expected of him. He’s taken his duties and his responsibilities towards family, dependents and title seriously, and he married – and was faithful to – the woman chosen for him, even though he didn’t love her nor she him. Now aged thirty-six, and with his stentorian, exacting father dead, his dukedom prospering and the mourning period for his late wife ended, Stephen is finally able to think about living for himself for a change. He plans to travel, to do things that make him happy – until his physician informs him that he has a tumefaction of the stomach and liver and has, at best, only three to six months to live.

You can read the rest of this review at AudioGals.

Well Met (Well Met #1) by Jen DeLuca (audiobook) – Narrated by Brittany Pressley

This title may be downloaded from Audible via Amazon

Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him?

The faire is Simon’s family legacy and from the start he makes clear he doesn’t have time for Emily’s lighthearted approach to life, her oddball Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or her endless suggestions for new acts to shake things up. Yet on the faire grounds he becomes a different person, flirting freely with Emily when she’s in her revealing wench’s costume. But is this attraction real, or just part of the characters they’re portraying?

This summer was only ever supposed to be a pit stop on the way to somewhere else for Emily, but soon she can’t seem to shake the fantasy of establishing something more with Simon or a permanent home of her own in Willow Creek.

Rating: Narration – B+; Content – C+

There was quite a bit of pre-publication buzz about Jen Deluca’s Well Met, and positive reviews together with the fact that I’ve enjoyed Brittany Pressley’s work in the past suggested it would be an audiobook I’d enjoy, so I requested a copy for review. The final verdict? Mixed feelings. The narration is excellent, but the story and characters felt somewhat underdeveloped. I also missed the dual PoV that’s common in so many contemporary romances. There’s a reason we don’t get the hero’s perspective, but the lack of it does make him seem rather two-dimensional, which, for a hero-centric reader/listener like me, wasn’t ideal.

After losing her job and breaking up with her long-term boyfriend, Emily has temporarily relocated to the small Maryland town of Willow Creek to be with her older sister, who is recuperating from a car accident. She figures it’s as good a place as any to lick her wounds and figure out where she goes from here. Emily has also assumed the role of ‘Adult in Charge’ when it comes to her niece, Caitlin, and when the story opens has driven her to the local high school on a Saturday morning so that Caitlin can sign up to take part in the town’s annual Renaissance Faire. Cait is very excited about joining the faire for the first time – but Emily isn’t so enthusiastic when she’s informed that because her niece is only fourteen, she won’t be able to ‘do Faire’ unless she’s accompanied by an adult. Gah! But what can Emily do? Cait is so excited and would be SO disappointed not to be able to take part so Emily agrees… although her first glimpse of the gorgeous Mitch – “Tall, blond, muscled, with a great head of hair and a tight T-shirt. Gaston crossed with Captain America with a generic yet mesmerising handsomeness” is what really tips the balance.

You can read the rest of this review at AudioGals.

Goalie Interference (Hat Trick #2) by Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn (audiobook) – narrated by Kirt Graves

This title may be downloaded from Audible via Amazon

Ryu Mori has had a stellar season as goalie for the Atlanta Venom. So when he’s called into management’s office, he’s expecting to hear he’s the new starting goalie for the team, not that some new guy – an incredibly hot, annoyingly bratty rookie – is here to compete for his spot.

Not everyone gets to play in the best league in the world. Emmitt Armstrong knows that, and he’s not about to waste the opportunity after grinding his way from the bottom to the top. If the Venom are looking for a meek, mild-mannered pushover, they’ve got the wrong guy.

Ryu doesn’t want to admit the other goalie’s smart mouth turns him on. Beating Armstrong at practice feels good, sure, but there are other more fun ways to shut his rival up.

In this league, it’s winner takes all. But there’s more to life than winning, and if Emmitt and Ryu can get past their egos and competitive natures, they might just discover they work better as partners than they ever imagined possible.

Rating: Narration – B+; Content – B-

Although Goalie Interference is the second book in Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn’s Hat Trick series featuring the Atlanta Venom ice-hockey team, it can be listened to as a standalone without any problem. (The first book, Off the Ice is enjoyable (probably my favourite of the two) and well-narrated by Kirt Graves, so if you like the sound of this, chances are you’ll like that one as well!) Goalie Interference is an enemies-to-lovers story with a difference, in that both leads play for the Venom rather than opposing teams, so the dynamic is perhaps a little different, too. I enjoyed the story overall, although I did find myself asking questions about certain aspects of it (more later) and found the ending a little flat, but I’ll definitely be picking up the next book when it comes out.

After a few seasons as the Venom’s back-up goalie, Ryu Mori expects – quite reasonably – that after the team’s starting goalie is traded to another team, he will automatically step into that slot. He’s dedicated, works hard, knows his team and is a damn good goalie – so when he learns that he’s going to be sharing goal-keeping duties with rookie Emmitt Armstrong, Ryu is not exactly overjoyed.

You can read the rest of this review at AudioGals.

Graveyard Shift (Not Dead Yet #3) by Jenn Burke

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Ghost/god Wes Cooper and his not-life partner, vampire Hudson Rojas, have settled into cohabitation in an upscale part of Toronto. So what if their hoity-toity new neighbors haven’t exactly rolled out the welcome mat for the paranormal pair? Their PI business is booming, and when a suspect they’ve been tailing winds up in the morgue, it’s alongside a rash of other shifters in apparent drug-related fatalities.

Now Wes and Hudson must connect the dots between the shifter deaths and an uptick in brutal vampire attacks across the city. Throw in a surprise visit from Hudson’s niece—who may or may not be on the run from European paranormal police (who may or may not exist)—and guardianship of a teen shifter who might be the key to solving the whole mystery (if only she could recover her memory), and Wes and Hudson have never been busier…or happier.

But when a nightmare from Hudson’s past comes back to haunt him, their weird, little found family is pushed to the brink. Mucking this up would mean Hudson and Wes missing their second chance at happily-forever-afterlife…

Rating: A

Graveyard Shift is book three in Jenn Burke’s original and entertaining Not Yet Dead series of paranormal romances, and is a satisfying and poignant send off for Wes, Hudson and their found-family of witches, vampires and other supernatural beings.  While each book in the set could work as a standalone, I’d advise reading them in order so as to gain the best understanding of the events and character backstories that have led them to the point at which we meet them again in Graveyard Shift.  If you haven’t yet started the series, please be advised that there are spoilers for the other books in this review.

It’s been almost a year since not-ghost Wes Cooper was reunited with his ex-boyfriend, Detective Hudson Rojas, thirty years after they split up.  Almost a year since Wes was turned into a god when he, Hudson and their friends foiled an attempt by a demon to return to the living plane, and almost a year since Hudson retired from the Toronto PD to become a private investigator.  Following the events of the previous book, Wes and Hudson are living together in their new home – a large house with plenty of room for the new family they’ve created – the business is going well, they’re very much in love and they’re living their best not-lives, happier than they’ve ever been.

When the story begins, Wes and Hudson are on a stakeout at the behest of Ren Oshiro, vampire and a former… associate of Hudson’s who’s become something of a friend in recent months.   Walter Gordon is a junior accountant in a firm Ren owns who has recently begun buying things he shouldn’t be able to afford and Ren wants to know if he’s stealing from the company. Wes and Hudson follow Gordon to a restaurant and Wes – in his ghostly form – observes him receiving a package that looks like it contains drugs.  Dealing would certainly explain Gordon’s new-found wealth, and Wes and Hudson continue to follow him until he loses control of his car, crashes  into a tree and dies on impact.

You can read the rest of this review at All About Romance.

Rebound (Pucks and Rainbows #1) by L.A. Witt (audiobook) – Narrated by Michael Ferraiuolo and Nick J. Russo

This title may be downloaded from Audible via Amazon

A 40-something single dad, a 20-something hockey star, and a whole lot of baggage. No, this couldn’t possibly blow up in their faces.

Officer Geoff Logan has his plate full. His cop’s salary and Marine retirement aren’t enough to make ends meet. He’s got war wounds and demons that are in it for the long haul. His teenagers are, well, teenagers, plus they’re pissed that he left the boyfriend they loved. Can’t a guy catch a break?

Seattle Snowhawks center Asher Crowe has it all. A seven-figure salary. A literal house on a hill. A stable, loving relationship with an amazing boyfriend. At least, that’s what the world sees. Behind closed doors, he’s been living in a private hell, and when he finally works up the courage to end things, his boyfriend refuses to go quietly.

One call to the cops, and suddenly Geoff and Asher’s paths cross. But is the connection between them simple chemistry? Kindred spirits? Or just a pair of lonely hearts looking for a hot distraction?

And even if it’s more than physical, is there really a future for two men from such vastly different worlds? Especially when the past comes knocking?

Rating: Narration; A – Content; B+

Rebound, book one in L.A. Witt’s Pucks & Rainbows series, pairs a twenty-something hockey star with a forty-something cop and ex-marine, both of whom have recently ended long-term relationships with abusive partners. Naturally, both men bring a lot of emotional baggage to the table, so maybe a no-strings rebound fling is what they both need, a simple distraction while they deal with all the other stuff going on in their lives and sort themselves out. It’s a well-written – if slightly predictable – story featuring two engaging leads that takes a realistic look at the issue of domestic abuse in gay relationships and the perceptions – personal and public – that come with it.

When Officer Geoff Logan and his partner Laura are called to a disturbance at a local restaurant, Geoff is surprised to recognise one of the parties involved as up-and-coming hockey star, Asher Crowe, centre for the Seattle Snowhawks. While Geoff and Laura wait for back-up, Geoff talks to Asher about the fight and learns Asher had just broken things off with Nathan – his long-term , physically abusive boyfriend – having deliberately chosen to do so in a public place in the hope that Nathan wouldn’t make a scene… which obviously didn’t turn out as Asher had hoped. Geoff, who has very recently ended a six-year relationship with a man who manipulated him emotionally for years, sees something of himself and his own situation in Asher, and after seeing him safely home, tells the younger man to call him if Nathan ignores the warnings he’s been given to stay away and offers to check up on him at the end of his shift – an offer Asher gratefully accepts.

You can read the rest of this review at AudioGals.