Category: B reviews (Page 37 of 74)

Unsuitable by Ainslie Paton

October 29, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I received a review copy from the author.

In the interests of disclosure, the author and I chat on Twitter often and we met when I was in Sydney in March of this year. If I didn’t think I could be objective I wouldn’t review her work here. Ultimately, it is for readers of the review to decide if it has any value to them.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Can they make trailblazing and homemaking fit, or is love just another gender stereotype?

Audrey broke the glass ceiling.

Reece swapped a blue collar for a pink collar job.

She’s a single mum by design. He’s a nanny by choice.

She gets passed over for promotion. He struggles to find a job.

She takes a chance on him. He’s worth more than he knows.

There’s an imbalance of power. There’s an age difference.

There’s a child whose favourite word is no.

Everything about them being together is unsuitable.

Except for love.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I moved this one up the TBR queue when I realised it had a male nanny. Not only is he a male nanny, he’s tall and broad, so he doesn’t fit the physical picture of a male nanny one may naturally assume. That’s not me being sexist – that’s made explicit in the book. His body actually works against him when he’s looking for work in his chosen field. He doesn’t look like a thug but he does look like a muscly giant of a man. Very nice to look at in the man candy stakes but kind of incongruous when paired with a nanny role. Let’s face it, nannying is considered “women’s work” – not just by men, by almost everyone. There’s no reason this should be the case, other than prejudice but that doesn’t mean it isn’t real.
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Rocky Mountain Rebel by Vivian Arend, narrated by Tatiana Sokolov

October 18, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: This is one from my personal library.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Vicki Hansol made different choices than her less-than-reputable mom and sister, yet her fiery temper has left her branded with the same town-bad-girl label. When she desperately needs a change of scenery, her get-out-of-town-free ticket arrives—and requires that she face down one of her deepest fears.

Easygoing Joel Coleman has nothing to complain about, but he’s never really done anything to brag about either. The youngest member of the Six Pack Ranch is looking to make some changes in his life that include stepping out from under his twin brother’s shadow.

So when the bold beauty with the smart mouth approaches him with a proposition, Joel is intrigued. Her request for him to teach her to ride soon takes on a whole new meaning. All that passion in his arms, his bed, in the barn . . . hell, anywhere he can get it? Bring it on.

But tangling the sheets leads to unanticipated complications, and by the time the dust settles, everything family means is going to be challenged.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I do like those Coleman boys. *fans self* Joel and Jesse are the twins in the family, with Joel the younger by about 30 minutes. In previous books, we have seen Joel and Jesse “double teaming” various happy, consenting girls but Joel is finding he wants to step out of that now that they’ve finished college. He wants to have a girlfriend rather than just hookups and he doesn’t want to share with Jesse anymore.
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Breakable by Tammara Webber

October 12, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I finally got around to listening to Easy on audio. When I was browsiing my TBR for what next to read, I felt it was the right time to read this one. I bought it when it first came out but the timing was never quite right before.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) He was lost and alone. Then he found her.

And the future seemed more fragile than ever

As a child, Landon Lucas Maxfield believed his life was perfect and looked forward to a future filled with promise — until tragedy tore his family apart and made him doubt everything he ever believed.

All he wanted was to leave the past behind. When he met Jacqueline Wallace, his desire to be everything she needed came so easy…

As easy as it could be for a man who learned that the soul is breakable and that everything you hoped for could be ripped away in a heartbeat.

Warning: Spoilers for Easy follow.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I think part of the reason it took me a while to actually read the book was that I was a bit scared I wouldn’t like it. I adored Easy. Would Breakable be a re-hash? Would it be boring? Would it somehow retroactively impact my enjoyment of the first book? As it happened, I was very much feeling the NA love after successful reads from Kristen Callahan and Sarina Bowen. Being up to date on my audiobook reviewing commitments (which is kind of unprecedented but yay me!) I decided to revisit Easy via the audiobook which was waiting patiently on my TBL. And, about halfway through the listen, when I was searching my TBR for my next read and I was all caught up in the Lucas love, I thought – well it’s time. And there was a beautiful symmetry to listening to Jaqueline’s perspective and reading Lucas’s. I think it wouldn’t have worked as well if I hadn’t already read Easy and it probably helped that I was halfway through the listen before I cracked open the book – because I never caught up to Lucas’ POV but I also had Jacqueline’s perspective fresh in my mind when I read reading. In the end, for whatever reason, none of my fears were realised and I enjoyed the heck out of Breakable. I’d say it’s not quite as good as Easy because it essentially tells the same story but in more detail and from another perspective. So it’s not entirely “fresh and new” (although there are aspects of the story which are). But it wasn’t boring and it didn’t feel like just a “re-hash” either. If anything, it made me love Easy more.

Reaper’s Stand by Joanna Wylde

October 6, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I received a review copy from the publisher via NetGalley

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) As Reapers Motorcycle Club president, Reese “Picnic” Hayes has given his entire life to the club. After losing his wife, he knew he’d never love another woman. And with two daughters to raise and a club to manage, that was just fine with him. These days, Reese keeps his relationships free and easy—he definitely doesn’t want to waste his time on a glorified cleaning lady like London Armstrong.

Too bad he’s completely obsessed with her.

Besides running her own business, London’s got her junkie cousin’s daughter to look after—a more reckless than average eighteen-year-old. Sure she’s attracted to the Reapers’ president, but she’s not stupid. Reese Hayes is a criminal and a thug. But when her young cousin gets caught up with a ruthless drug cartel, Reese might be the only man who can help her. Now London has to make the hardest decision of her life—how far will she go to save her family?

Trigger warnings: I have hidden them because some are spoilerish.

Spoiler

pregnancy loss for one of the characters, violence against both men and women, rape (off page) of a female character, some violence between Reese and London including some rough, dub-con sex.

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What worked for me (and what didn’t): Reese “Picnic” Hayes has been a fascinating character right from the beginning. As President of the local chapter of the Reapers MC he doesn’t turn a hair at violent and illegal behaviour. He’s also a loving dad and, up until the death of his wife, Heather, from breast cancer, a devoted husband. After Heather’s death, Reese became a total manwhore. He’d screw any willing woman, didn’t want a relationship – actively discouraged any such thinking and was convinced that there would never be another “old lady” for him.

The Understatement of the Year by Sarina Bowen

September 29, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: The author kindly provided a review copy.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) What happened in high school stayed in high school. Until now.

Five years ago, Michael Graham betrayed the only person who ever really knew him. Since then, he’s made an art of hiding his sexual preference from everyone. Including himself.

So it’s a shock when his past strolls right into the Harkness College locker room, sporting a bag of hockey gear and the same slow smile that had always rendered Graham defenseless. For Graham, there is only one possible reaction: total, debilitating panic. With one loose word, the team’s new left wing could destroy Graham’s life as he knows it.

John Rikker is stuck being the new guy. Again. And it’s worse than usual, because the media has latched onto the story of the only “out” player in Division One hockey. As the satellite trucks line the sidewalk outside the rink, his new teammates are not amused.

And one player in particular looks sick every time he enters the room.

Rikker didn’t exactly expect a warm welcome from Graham. But the guy won’t even meet his eyes. From the looks of it, his former… best friend / boyfriend / whatever isn’t doing so well. He drinks too much and can’t focus during practice.

Either the two loneliest guys on the team will self destruct from all the new pressures in their lives, or they can navigate the pain to find a way back to one another. To say that it won’t be easy is the Understatement of the Year.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I can’t even tell you how happy it makes me that this romance featuring a gay couple is part of this series. Sure there are people who, for whatever reason, will not want to read a romance featuring two guys, but I love that it’s just seamlessly integrated into the Ivy Years. I’d love for queer romance of all stripes to be a tag rather than a separate subgenre. Books like these make me think we might get there one day.

My Bluegrass Baby by Molly Harper, narrated by Amanda Ronconi

September 15, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: This is one of my own purchases. I think Harper and Ronconi are a winning combination.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) When Sadie and Josh compete for the same Kentucky Tourism Commission job, sparks fly – turns out Kentucky really is for lovers.

Sadie Hutchins loves her job at the Kentucky Tourism Commission. Not only could her co-workers double as the cast of Parks and Recreation, but she loves finding the unusual sites, hidden gems, and just-plain-odd tourist attractions of her home state. She’s a shoo-in for the director’s job when her boss retires at the end of the year…until hotshot Josh Vaughn shows up to challenge her for the position.

Josh is all sophisticated polish while Sadie’s country comfort, and the two have very different ideas of what makes a good campaign. So when their boss pits them against each other in a winner-takes-all contest, they’re both willing to fight dirty if it means getting what they want. But it turns out what Josh and Sadie want could be each other – and Josh’s kisses are the best Kentucky attraction Sadie’s found yet!

What worked for me (and what didn’t): Molly Harper’s sense of humour just works for me and when Amanda Ronconi is narrating, it just adds to the fun. Ronconi’s comedic timing gels nicely with the text. This author/narrator combination feels in sync to me. There’s nothing earth-shattering about the stories, a Harper audio gives me reliable enjoyment and I know it will make me laugh. This series appears to be audio only and Audible only – although Goodreads tells me that the third book is going to be released by Pocket Star this month. When I did a search, the only versions which showed up of this book were from Audible however.