Aug 25, 2017 | reviews, romance
As an Arrow, an elite soldier in the Psy Council ranks, Judd Lauren was forced to do terrible things in the name of his people. Now a defector, his dark abilities have made him the most deadly of assassins – cold, pitiless, unfeeling. Until he meets Brenna…
Brenna Shane Kincaid was an innocent before she was abducted – and had her mind violated – by a serial killer. Her sense of evil runs so deep, she fears she could become a killer herself. Then the first dead body is found, victim of a familiar madness. Judd is her only hope, yet her sensual changeling side rebels against the inhuman chill of his personality, even as desire explodes between them. Shocking and raw, their passion is a danger that threatens not only their hearts, but their very lives…
Caressed By Ice, by Nalini Singh
So for the last two books, I prefaced my reviews with the caveat that although I love the series and the books, the couples involved weren’t my favorites. (Which, when there are 14 couples in the series …it’s going to happen.)
That’s not the case with this one.
Judd. Swoon. I would absolutely be a member of the Judd Lauren Fangirl Society. Sign me up! And Brenna? Brenna is more than his match, in every way.
Honestly, this is one of the books in the series that I go back to over and over and over again. I’ve probably listened to the audiobook version at least five times. I’m writing this review without having reread the book for it because I don’t have to; I know this book inside out.
That being said, if you haven’t read the first two books yet, stop. There will be some spoilers for the first two in the discussion of this book — nothing major, but it’s kind of unavoidable when it comes to talking about these characters. So. You with me?
We met both Judd Lauren and Brenna Kincaid in the first book of the series, when Brenna was kidnapped by the serial killer targeting Changeling women. Sascha helped the SnowDancer and DarkRiver Changeling Packs discover the killer’s identity before it was too late and Brenna’s life was saved. Judd, who along with his brother and nieces and nephew had been living with the wolves, helped implement the plan.
Now, months later, Brenna is still dealing with the aftereffects of her kidnapping and torture. Sascha has done what she can to help but Brenna is understandably still wary of allowing anyone into her mind. Indeed, she feels like she can hardly keep the killer out, seeing and feeling his evil again. Then the first victim appears and she wonders if she truly is going insane. Judd is the one person she feels like she can turn to in the den, except it turns out he’s been keeping some secrets of his own.
I can’t think of anything about this book I don’t like, honestly. Brenna is marked by her experiences but not defined by them and the book does a lot to emphasize that. We learn a lot about Judd’s background and why Silence matters so much for some Psy. We get some insight into the wolves, who have so far been side characters, and it’s fascinating to see the differences between the cats and the wolves. Along the way, we still get to see some old friends — both Faith and Sascha show up — and meet some new ones. There are hints of a deeper discontent building amongst the Psy, something we started to hear about in the last book. And all of this is done while pulling off one hell of a story.
I truly believe that if you want to give this series a fair shot, reading through Judd and Brenna’s story is the bare minimum required. The worldbuilding has led to this point, where you’re fully invested in the characters and can start to see the overarching plot. Each book builds on the last and this is a fantastic example of what she can do with that.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go swoon over Judd some more.
Aug 18, 2017 | reviews, romance
Wedding photographer Mackensie “Mac” Elliot is most at home behind the camera, but her focus is shattered moments before an important wedding rehearsal when she bumps into the bride-to-be’s brother…an encounter that has them both seeing stars.
A stable, safe English teacher, Carter Maguire is definitely not Mac’s type. But a casual fling might be just what she needs to take her mind off bridezillas. Of course, casual flings can turn into something more when you least expect it. And Mac will have to turn to her three best friends—and business partners—to see her way to her own happy ending.
Vision In White, by Nora Roberts
I don’t normally read contemporary romance. I can’t really say why, it’s just …not my thing? I’m not even sure why I ended up reading this the first time, but once I started the series I couldn’t stop and I think the first book is my favorite.
I think what makes this series work for me is the set-up: the story focuses on four childhood friends who go into business together running weddings. That is, each of them takes on their own area of expertise and they join together to provide full service weddings in a gorgeous old mansion. Mackensie, or Mac as she’s known, is the photographer of the group.
Somehow, despite having gone through my own wedding planning, I still don’t entirely hate the concept. I might even occasionally look at a wedding blog or two still. Something about the happily ever afters that gets me every time. So you can understand why this premise caught my eye, even before we add in the friendship between the women of Vows. (I’m a sucker for a good friendship.)
I definitely find Mac to be a character I can relate to. She’s occasionally impulsive, a bit of a night owl, and prefers to be behind the camera instead of in front of it. Life has left her with some pretty serious scars and she still has some growing up to do, particularly where it involves her relationship with her mother. (Not that I can blame her for this — there’s not much in the way of redeeming features where her mother is concerned!) Carter’s hurts are less severe but he’s not perfect. (Adorable? Yes. Perfect, no.)
The way their relationship grows is believable and I loved the glimpses we get into the trials and tribulations of running a wedding-related business, from family related drama to the simple realities of just how many pieces come together to pull off a wedding. It helps move the story along without feeling intrusive or unnatural, and it gives a lot of different perspectives on what weddings mean to people, even as it recaptures the moment for me. Your mileage might vary, of course, but that’s one of the things I love about this book.
I also love the friendship between the women at the heart of this book. They’re a family at heart and you can see that in their interactions with each other. It’s one of the things that drew me on to the next book, even though (again) this isn’t my normal sub-genre. It’s a cute, light read and hit enough of my favorite quirks to make it work for me, so if this sounds interesting to you, I recommend picking it up for a look. (Added bonus, aside from the first book the audiobooks are read by Angela Dawe and I’ve raved before about how much I love her.)
Aug 11, 2017 | fantasy, reviews, romance
War is coming for the dragon knights…but love may find them first.
A chance meeting with a young male dragon seals the fate of one adventurous female poacher. The dragon’s partner, a ruggedly handsome knight named Gareth, takes one look at the shapely woman and decides to do a little poaching of his own.
Sir Gareth both seduces and falls deeply in love with the girl who is not only unafraid of dragons but also possesses a rare gift—she can hear the beasts’ silent speech. He wants her for his mate, but mating with a knight is no simple thing. To accept a knight, a woman must also accept the dragon, the dragon’s mate…and her knight, Lars, too.
She is at first shocked, then intrigued by the lusty life in the Lair. But war is in the making and only the knights and dragons have a chance at ending it before it destroys their land and their lives.
Maiden Flight, by Bianca D’Arc
Having indulged in a few favorites recently, I was feeling up to something new as I sat waiting for the car at the dealership today. This one was another one of the bargains I picked up on Amazon and I was in the mood for a light read. (I’m still on that not-Regency kick, with a few exceptions. Fair warning.)
Maiden Flight, which is the first in a series, is set in a fantasy world where dragons bond to knights, who are supposed to serve and do all sorts of knightly things (protecting the innocent from marauding creatures, etc.). The knights are exclusively men, although the dragons are a mix of male and female, and it appears (although I’m not 100% sure) that for a man to take a woman as his mate, she must be able to hear the dragons.
The added complication, of course, is that because of the bond between a dragon and his knight, the dragons cannot mate until their human half has an appropriate outlet for the feelings the act inspires. And since the knights are exclusively male and women who can hear the dragons are rare, this typically means that marriage to a dragon knight involves two husbands.
Needless to say this is a somewhat steamy book. The focus is heavy on the dilemma of convincing the heroine to take both Gareth and Lars as her husbands and the secondary issue of convincing her mother, Adora, to move to the Lair as well (there’s some very heavy foreshadowing for the next book) but not a lot of character development or romance. All parties involved fall in love immediately, because fate. The writing style mimics this somewhat, with the focus very much on telling the reader what’s happening.
Still, even if it was more erotica than romance, there were still some interesting ideas and I’d read the next one in the series if it were available on Kindle Unlimited. It’s very much a “what you see in the description is what you get” sort of book so if the description intrigues you, I’d pick it up if the price is reasonable. (Free is always a reasonable price for me.) It definitely met the “light read, bit of fluff” criteria for my read today.
Aug 4, 2017 | reviews, romance
Used to cold silence, Faith NightStar is suddenly being tormented by dark visions of blood and murder. A bad sign for anyone, but worse for Faith, an F-Psy with the highly sought after ability to predict the future. Then the visions show her something even more dangerous–aching need…exquisite pleasure. But so powerful is her sight, so fragile the state of her mind, that the very emotions she yearns to embrace could be the end of her.
Changeling Vaughn D’Angelo can take either man or jaguar form, but it is his animal side that is overwhelmingly drawn to Faith. The jaguar’s instinct is to claim this woman it finds so utterly fascinating and the man has no argument. But while Vaughn craves sensation and hungers to pleasure Faith in every way, desire is a danger that could snap the last threads of her sanity. And there are Psy who need Faith’s sight for their own purposes. They must keep her silenced–and keep her from Vaughn…
Visions of Heat, by Nalini Singh
I wrote about how much I love the Psy/Changeling world in my review of the first book, Slave to Sensation. Even if that book wasn’t necessarily my favorite, there was still plenty to seduce me and pull me onward, into the next story. Visions of Heat is a worthy successor, even if it’s not my favorite book in the series either. The worldbuilding is still there, building on the foundation laid in the first book, and Nalini gives us the first real glimpse of what sets her books apart for me compared to a lot of romance series: how much other characters play a role.
We met Vaughn in Sascha and Lucas’s story, since Vaughn is one of the Sentinels in DarkRiver. He’s a jaguar, not a leopard, but that doesn’t make a difference when it comes to being Pack. Faith, on the other hand, is an F-Psy, capable of seeing the future. And not just any F-Psy but the most powerful F-Psy of her generation.
When she starts having dark visions of murder instead of the normal business forecasts she’s used to, Faith finds herself forced to seek out Sascha in an effort to obtain answers from a Psy not linked to the Psynet — and therefore the Council. She can’t risk word of her potential mental degradation getting back to anyone, not if she wants to maintain what little freedom she has. Of course, trying to meet Sascha puts her directly in Vaughn’s path and sparks fly.
I really like how Faith grew as a character over the course of the book. She starts sheltered and somewhat naive but has a core of inner strength that she draws on to deal with Vaughn, who most definitely pushes her out of her comfort zones. Vaughn, while being everything a hero should be, mostly stands back and provides the pillar of strength she needs him to be as she grapples with emotion.
One of the things I like best about this book, however, are the side characters (again!). Sascha and Lucas both show up, along with the other DarkRiver Sentinels. Judd Lauren also makes an appearance, as do a few wolves from SnowDancer. It really gives you the sensation that this is a living, breathing universe, where the characters are part of a whole instead of in the sun for their one brief moment and then never seen again. Nalini does this incredibly well and it’s a huge factor in why I’m still in love with this series today.
Which is why it should go without saying that if you haven’t read this yet, stop waiting and start!
