Tag: novella (Page 22 of 29)

Five Dates by Amy Jo Cousins

January 12, 2015 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: This is a freebie written for the Goodreads MM Romance Group’s Love’s Landscapes event.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Helping his sister Lucy raise her kid has put Devin’s love life on hold. When he loses a bet to her and the penalty is to go out on five dates with men she’s chosen from Guys4Guys.com, he thinks that’s bad enough. Finding out she used a thirteen-year-old picture of him to score a date with a young guy who looks like a rock star? Epically bad.

Jay thought he wanted to fall for an older man. But his last boyfriend left him feeling humiliated and determined to stick to guys his own age. When he realizes he’s been conned into a date with exactly the kind of man he’s sworn to avoid, he’s ready to walk away on the spot. Only Devin’s swift apologies convince Jay to accept dinner to make up for the deception.

“The date doesn’t count for the bet unless you get a goodnight kiss.” After one not-a-date dinner with Jay, Devin isn’t worried about his sister’s rules. He just wishes he could convince Jay to go out with him for real. Jay wants no part of Devin, but Devin wants every part of Jay . . . so he asks Jay to help update his look for the rest of his dates. But once Jay’s made Devin over into the perfect date, will he be able to let him go?

Dear Author,

I lost a bet with my sister. I was so sure the Broncos would win. Now it is time for me to pay up. She has decided I need a man in my life. She submitted a profile for me at Guys4Guys.com and set up five dates. I haven’t been on five dates in the past five years. And if the thought of five first dates isn’t scary enough, check out the photo she put in my profile.

Yes, that hot, young, guy really is me… thirteen years ago! To be twenty-two again. I miss my thirty-two-inch waist and six-pack.

Photo Description:

A good-looking, young blond man leans back against exposed pipework. He is shirtless and his jeans look a little old-fashioned with their light wash. His arms are huge and he sports a six-pack, although he’s already looking the tiniest bit soft around the waistline. As if that six-pack might not quite be there in ten years…

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I was so charmed by this novella. I’d have happily read a full length book about this couple. Devin is such a nice guy – he’s made sacrifices for his sister and nephew but he’s not at all resentful. He’s also not a doormat. He’s kind of shy and a little lonely but it takes losing a bet to his sister to get him out on some dates. The first one is with Jay – a younger guy who is pretty pissed off that he was the butt of a bet between the siblings and who thought he was meeting a guy 13 years younger. Jay has baggage – he was in an abusive relationship with an older guy and he’s sworn off dating them – even though that’s where his attractions lay.
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Rocky Mountain Angel by Vivian Arend, narrated by Tatiana Sokolov

January 9, 2015 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: When I listened to Rocky Mountain Rebel recently, I realised I had accidentally skipped this book. So I bought it and rectified the lack.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Allison Parker needs a convincing excuse to come home to Rocky Mountain House, a hopelessly romantic reason that won’t let her mother suspect the truth—that Allison has discovered Mom is keeping a terrible secret from the family.

Gabe Coleman is struggling with two of the roughest parts of ranching: dealing with his bull-headed mule of a father and making enough to pay the bills. When his old friend Allison offers to help him develop his ideas for organic ranching—in return for pretending to be her fiancé—it sounds like the perfect set-up.

Yet the deception leads them in an unexpected direction, where their shared daily hells are erased by nights of heavenly distraction. It’s not supposed to be real, but once the gates are opened, there’s no denying they’ve found in each other a little bit of paradise.

To break free of the past and face the future, though, will take more than temporary pleasures. It’ll take putting their hearts on the line.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I enjoyed this one and I say this fondly: the set-up is ~~a little~~ fairly unbelievable. Allison’s mother is very ill but doesn’t want to tell the family. Someone has told Allison and she wants to come home but doesn’t want to let on that she knows. So, plan A is “pretend to be engaged to Gabe Coleman”. Not, “I got retrenched from my job so I thought I’d come home for a while” or something else a little more realistic. Because what we want is the two protagonists in close proximity so the business of falling in love can begin, I could overlook some of the logic problems here. Gabe, to his credit, does at least think about what the deception might mean for his relationships with his (very large) family. At base, there is a longstanding connection and attraction between the pair and the rest is just excuses. However, once the proximity begins, things progress a lot more believably. There was a definite chemistry between the pair and but for logistics (they lived in different towns, Allison wasn’t planning on coming back and Gabe is very tied to his land), they would have started dating a year before I think.
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December Round Up

January 3, 2015 / Kaetrin

Monthly Mini Review

Room for Just a Little More by Beth Ehemann – B- At the end of the first two books, Kacie and Brody got engaged and this book takes us through to the wedding. I’m pretty sure it’s meant to be something for fans of the series and is, effectively, an extended epilogue so we get a glimpse of the HEA. Brody continues to be perfect and a wonderful father to the girls and earns many many brownie points and best fiance/husband ever points. Kacie is contacted by her biological father and he’s a real piece of work, let me tell you. It’s difficult for me to understand a character who just walks away from his own daughter like that but my own husband has one just like him so I know they happen in real life. In fiction, it’s tempting to call them out as being without nuance but I know from my husband’s POV, there is little nuance to be had and it is Kacie and Brody telling this story after all. They know what they see. And what they see sucks. I didn’t really approve of Brody going behind Kacie’s back but his heart was in the right place even if I disliked his methods. That said, I can see it working for Kacie and Brody in a way it wouldn’t work for Kaetrin. Brody does just enough not-quite-perfect stuff to retain his almost perfect status and feel somehow more believable because of it. He’s still pretty perfect though. I see on Goodreads that Viper is getting a book of his own so maybe we will see a bit of Brody and Kacie and the girls in that. It’s a 100 pages novella which was entertaining and enjoyable but it’s very much an epilogue rather than a must-read. I liked it for what it was and, to be honest, I don’t think it was trying to be anything else. Continue reading

Kaetrin’s Favourites for 2014 (part the first)

December 22, 2014 / Kaetrin

I tweeted out my top 10 (or 12 depending on how you count them) books for the year on 17 December so those who follow me on Twitter will not be surprised by this list. Here’s the version with pretty pictures. It’s a list of books I liked. That’s it.

These are my favourite new releases for 2014. It’s not a best of because I’m sure there are many wonderful books on my TBR of Doom or which haven’t made it that far even. Besides, personal taste being what it is, what does “best” really mean anyway?

I’m not really ranking the top 10. They were all wonderful and memorable and enjoyable and I loved them. That said, perhaps the biggest surprise to me is that when I do a “favourite book of 2014. Go!” gut check, the 1st answer which pops into my head isn’t even a romance. (Do I need to turn in my romance card?) So, I guess, *if pushed* I’d say the number one read was:

The Martian by Andy Weir. It’s a cracker of a book. If a reader has any interest in sci-fi or space travel books at all, I highly recommend it. The science is sound and the writing is engaging and funny and the tension is dialled right up there all the way to the end of the book. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist (heh) to read or understand it (trust me on this) and did I mention that it’s funny? Continue reading

Divine Tarot by Thea Harrison, narrated by Sophie Eastlake

December 9, 2014 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I was gifted this one.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) In “True Colors”
Alice Clark, a Wyr and schoolteacher, has had two friends murdered in as many days, and she’s just found the body of a third. She arrives at the scene only minutes before Gideon Riehl, a wolf Wyr and current detective in the Wyr Division of Violent Crime–and, as Alice oh-so-inconveniently recognizes at first sight, her mate.
But the sudden connection Riehl and Alice feel is complicated when the murders are linked to a serial killer who last struck seven years ago, killing seven people in seven days. They have just one night before the killer strikes again. And every sign points to Alice as the next victim.
In “Natural Evil”
Claudia Hunter is on a road trip through the Nevada desert when she sees the body of a dog on the side of the highway. Pulling over to investigate, she quickly determines that the enormous animal is clinging to life. While working to save him with the help of the local vet, Claudia realizes there’s something about the creature that seems “more.” Other. “Wyr.” Which makes this case of animal cruelty attempted murder.
Too injured to shape shift, Luis Alvaraz is reluctant to tell Claudia what he knows about his attack, afraid it will only make her a target. But the sheriff is corrupt, and his attackers know Luis is alive and vulnerable. To make matters worse, a sandstorm is sweeping into town, and if they’re going to survive the night, Luis will have to place all his trust in Claudia.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I’ve actually bought all the novellas in digital format but apart from the latest trio of novellas featuring Dragos, Pia and Peanut, I haven’t actually read any of them. Bad Kaetrin. I found it easier to slip the novellas into my listening and, as Sophie Eastlake is a favourite narrator, I knew they’d be worthwhile. I’m really happy that all the novellas are available on audio and are produced with such high quality. Continue reading

November Round Up

December 1, 2014 / Kaetrin

Monthly Mini Review

Holiday Sparks by Shannon Stacey, narrated by Savannah Richards – B I read this novella in the Naughty and Nice anthology when it first came out (scroll down a bit to see the brief reviews). Sometimes when I can’t decide what to listen to next a novella length story is low risk – this one was only a couple hours long so the time investment was small. And, I had fond memories of the story. Chloe Burke is a web designer who lives in Boston but has come back to her small Maine hometown ot housesit for her parents in the weeks before Christmas. Electrical problems lead her to electrician and all round hotty, Scott Quinn. They went to school together but he looked a lot different then (he was a nerd). Sparks fly (heh) and they start a fling. The conflict is that Scott is embedded in his hometown and Chloe is going back to Boston. Given Chloe’s job, it has a relatively easy resolution once they are committed to seeing if the relationship holds to its early promise and it is perfect for a novella length story. It’s sweet, sexy and low angst and I liked it very much.

I hadn’t heard Savannah Richards narrate before. She had convincing deeper tones for Scott and generally a pleasant voice to listen to. However, there was one thing which bothered me and it’s very much a “it’s not you it’s me” thing – articulating it is hard because it is an aural thing. The best I can do is to say there is kind of a lowering of pitch and a kind of … trailing off at the end of many sentences. It bugged me a bit. I’m sure others won’t notice it at all and others who do, won’t mind it but it’s the sort of things that I hear straight off and, over time, it gets a bit like fingernails on a blackboard to me. Fortunately, it’s a short novella so I didn’t have time for annoyance to truly set in. Honestly, the rest of the narration was very good. I think I’m just fussy.

I’m sure I bought this as a stand alone – but my records don’t tell me if it was a special release. All I could find at Audible today was the entire anthology.

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