Gifts of Honor by Stacy Gail and Rebecca Crowley

Reviewed by Desere


I adore to read the books about kick ass hero's from the war. The action, drama and look behind the lines of fire as always been a favorite to me, and when the author take the time to go behind the lives of those that serve it is even better than all the action bom'bs and gunfire.

Yet there are not enough reads focusing on the lives of the men and woman who put it all on the line to protect others. Therefore I was simply delighted to be offered the chance to read a double look into the lives of two men and the life after war.

The first read Starting from Scratch by Stacy Gail is about the life of Sullivan and Lucy. Wounded in action he returns home but has no memory of his life with Lucy, he asks for a divorce and it seems the happy ever after is no longer. But the miracle of Christmas might just save them both.

I loved the emotion in this read, it was so touching and powerful it was as if I could grab both characters and bang them both over the head to let them see that it is neither one's fault, and simply a test of life and how strong their love can be to withstand tragedy.  A truly sweet, romantic and sensual read.

" Can their love be found in the memories from the past" 5/5 star review 



The second read is from Rebecca Crowley titled Hero's Homecoming and tells of the whirlwind romance between Chris and Beth. Chris is wounded in battle and returns home blind and cannot help but feel like less of a man than he use to be, he takes this new found frustration to life out on Beth and it looks like the love once found on the fast and furious ground of passion has brunt out.

This read was of course a whole lot more intense than the first read in this book, leaning to move around in life when suddenly blind is not something I think anyone can imagine as being easy.

The author showed true insight into the differences of being able to see the ones we love and to only being able to touch them whilst relying on the image our mind brings into focus.

The emotional and truly vivid look into blindness and the learning curve was so strong and so fantastically brought to life by the author, I cried the entire read through. It did at first feel like the instant connection between Chris and Beth was a bit fast, but then again love happens at first sight and goes from there, but at one stage it did feel like it was happening a little easily as it goes from meet, fall in love in a few days and then separated for months before being thrown back at each other.

However it reminded me that as in real life, sometimes love has no limits and logical goes out the back door. A really heart-wrenching look into letting someone else help you pick up the pieces of your once perfect life when you are simply not strong enough to do it on your own.

"The power of touch"  
5/5 star review 

** E-arc provided in exchange for a honest review 

Popping the Cherry by Aurelia B Rowl

 

Reviewed by Desere


There are many firsts in life for all of us but undoubtedly the one that will always stand out is our first time with yes unfortunately sometimes the right one sometimes the wrong one.

Some are lucky to have the first time go off without a hitch and it even lasts a lifetime, but others will tell you that loosing their virginity just plain sucked, either due to the setting being wrong, the guy or girl being the wrong one, just about anything can be blamed.

The new read from author Aurelia B Rowl tells the story of Valentina, all her first's have been a disappointment from driving to any first in any relationship they all failed somehow so what she is worth is debatable.

Her friends decide to intervene and create Operation : Popping the Cherry in order for Valentina to find the right guy to loose her virginity to and have the perfect first time, no failures allowed.

Valentina however finds herself rather wanting to avoid the whole Operation and instead finds herself spending more and more time with her best friend's older brother ( talk about the ultimate fantasy for we all know that best friend's brothers are usually so tempting) and as the a deep friendship forms the web of finding the one and holding onto friendship becomes more and more entangled.

This was a fabulous read, I very much enjoyed the author's touch of giving each and every chapter a little theme, it let me know what was coming next yet at no stage was it predictable in the sense that I see the chapter title and think "Ah okay so that's what's most likely going to happen".

I loved the how the author gave me enough insight into each characters point of view to bit by bit layer back their emotions and finally emerge as one.  But as it happens in some reads of this nature the authors tend to give a little too much insight and it ruins the story for me, as am all too quickly able to figure out where it is going, Aurelia B. Rowl did not push too far nor did she give too little for me to grasp onto, the perfect dose of he thinks, she thinks, okay they think.

Yes, in this read I could tell that Valentina and Jake are meant to be but the author kept it almost secret drawing it out and letting it all burst with a explosive finish. I enjoyed the backdrop settings and found the dialogue a mixture of emotional and deep understanding and delightfully intriguing.

The character of Valentina was fabulous s! The author really let her perspective of the situations shine through and Jake was the ultimate gentleman genuine perfect hero material!

I am taking away a message of when getting to the first time for anything , take it slow. When the time is right you will know it , and even if you make the mistake of thinking it is the right time and it turns out it is not you will have the memory of knowing that you tried whether it's driving, kissing, jumping, sex no matter it will all fall into place eventually, just don't ever give up. What you seek might be right in front of you.

I highly recommend this read for all fans of young adult reads, you will take away a powerful message of life has it's up's and down's but it also presents opportunities worth waiting for and the memory of terrific brilliantly written characters. Excellent work Aurelia !


5/5 star review
" Popping the resistance to love" 

Making the first move by Reese Ryan

Reviewed by Desere


Imagine finding the man of your dreams but then instead of him making the first move you do, only your move is not the standard romance your way into his life move, it is moving away to a complete different town! Talk about getting out of Dodge!

But would you feel as if life is not fair or would you try to find a way to make it work and somehow get the guy's attention? Or how about if the guy comes after you to show you he is ready to make any move you want him to, would you consider taking the plunge and tell yourself a long distance relationship can indeed work?

These are only some of the endless questions that Melanie has to face when she finally has the job of her dreams and the man of her dreams in her sight, only when she discovers the deep, dark secret her dream man stripping-you-naked-is-all-I-need Raine carries she needs him to prove that he is worth the risk , the only and most important question left is will he,or will she be left with a broken heart?

The main characters of both Melanie and Raine we very well written by the author. Melanie was a lot like some woman today very focused on her work and I adored that she pushes so hard to make her career a success, but I also felt that she was pushing a little too hard. As in real life today many woman tend to forget about that life has other elements to it, and keep going after the "my job is almost done just one more push and I will be there and able to relax" thus marriages end, relationships are destroyed beyond repair, parent child emotions are affected, the list goes on, but it made the character of Melanie very real to me and that I simply adored. I loved that the author used her work as a backdrop to not only take her back to her hometown and have a change at repairing her family ties but that she also used it as a buffer between Melanie and Raine, it showed that we can all do well in remembering that all work and no play indeed makes us very dull.

The character of Raine was simply delicious and the author gave him so many yummy layers it left me breathless. I adored that he was mysterious it kept me on the edge of my seat wanting to find out what he was hiding. He was the kind of hero that when you start the read and he makes his move you think "awh how sweet and so incredibly romantic" then as the read continues you start thinking " okay that is still sexy but what is he hiding and just how bad it is?"  I adored how the author peeled back his layers to reveal the real man but not by giving too much or too little of the mystery at a time rather letting it unfold in such a manner that you know you need to keep going the best is going to come any minute now!

I am taking away a message of life is not always all about work, if that is the only thing you focus on you will for sure end up alone and with only the memory that once you could have had it all. And most importantly never hold someone's past or current situations against them, rather let go and step up to the plate with the knowing of taking a risk once in a while could lead you to the kind of happiness you never imagined.

I highly recommend this read for all fans of romance with a different approach. The author has a fun and fresh writing style and intertwines the lives of her main and secondary character with vivid detail. The read does start off a little slow but do not let that discourage you from going on, trust me it gets better and the more the various elements start to take life and the more characters are introduced into the read the better it gets.

A sweet,sensual and emotional read!
4.5 star review
" He opens up her eyes to love but will she risk her heart for it?"

Copy supplied by the author in exchange for a honest review

The Striker's Chance by Rebecca Crowley

Reviewed by Desere

Many people out there have the sometimes thrilling and exciting job of changing people for the better, and when I say this I want you to think psychologist, specialist, hairstylists the list goes on and on.

But what if your job is to change a celebrity to take them to a level of stardom that will strike every possible stardom crazed fan out there out of the arena and the player right into the hands of the great teams of history?

If it is what you trained for than it is easy right, and falling in love with the star along the way to perfect stardom image is no problem, should not effect your opinion at all right?

In this read from author Rebecca Crowley she not only showed that it is never easy to change another person, but it is also never as easy as you think to not let your feelings get in the way.

The read is about Holly, she has the chance to make it big time, all she has to do is make Kepler "Killer" De Klerk the star he use to be before a accident left him in the game but not all in the game. But what she finds is that Mr-for-you-I-will-bare-my soul is not the "killer" nor is he anything he is pretending to be. There is much more to this man than meets the public eye. She is left with having to chose between kicking the ball into the media's court and landing herself her a dream job or going for the man she has fallen for.

Both main characters of Holly and Kepler were brilliantly written by the author. I loved that Holly is focused and pushy in getting what she wants, and of course I simply adored that Kepler let's her get so derailed from the tracks and twists her into the kind of knots no woman wants to be in! I simply loved that the author let's Holly go on a journey of self discovery through the eyes of Kepler, magical touch Rebecca!

The character of Kepler was to die for hero material, strong, hot, passionate about the game but also a tortured hero! I simply could not get enough of how the author keeps letting these little bits and pieces from his life pop up in the read showing me and also Holly that there is so more to this man. It not only kept my attention but also let fall in love with the real him more and more with each bit revealed.

The backdrop settings were very well incorporated into the read, it felt as if I was on the field living the game. The dialogue was laced with emotion and passion, sexy and also at times funny. I loved the conflict between Holly and Kepler it had me laughing and rooting for them, and made for brilliant entertainment!

I am taking away a message of when having to chose between the love of your job or the love of your life, the decision will always be hard but there is always another challenge, another client, but you might never find the forever kind love again.

I highly recommend this read for all fans of sports related romance reads. It had drama, emotion, passion and sweet sensual understanding of the most beautiful kind. I look forward to reading many more reads from this author. Bring it on Rebecca, let the games begin!

5/5 star review
"It's all about the image until it gets stripped down to love" 

eARC provided by the author in exchange for a honest review

Boomerang Bride by Fiona Lowe

Review by Nas

BOOMERANG BRIDE is a Carina Press release by author Fiona Lowe.

Matilda Geoffrey arrives at a small US town in a bride's dress carrying a wedding cake. She wanted to surprise her fiancé, whom she met online in a chat room.

Marc Olsen finds her standing in front of an empty shop and decides to help her. Then he finds out she's been scammed by her virtual fiancé.

He takes her in and offers her a job. Is it out of kindness of his heart? Or is it because something stirs in him even though Matilda is not the kind of woman Marc usually dates?

He has left the small town as soon as possible to escape the confines of familial responsibilities. After all, he was thrown into it at an early age by his father's death. He's back from New York just for the holidays but find himself sucked deeper in the responsibilities of a sick sister and her angry teenage son.

I loved the "Aussie" to "American" translations in this book. At times it resonated with me and at other times it was hilarious!

Author Fiona Lowe came up with an emotionally satisfying, sweet and witty story. It has great characters and is full of sizzling sexual tension. Yet the warmth and sensitivity she showed while touching on the subject of breast cancer and a woman's loss of self-confidence in herself after the mastectomy, was heart-touching.

Her hero, Marc, with his "Viking" good looks was delicious. The heroine, Tildy, who at first appeared scatter-brained, turned out to be an intensely emotional, tender with her big heart and quest for a perfect family. Tildy, surprisingly, was with perfect business sense and started her own business. This was inspiring, after she was scammed out of her money. Both the characters are smart and sharp-witted and matched up perfectly in this well written story.

Earlier I was recommended by a friend that, "If you want to read a perfectly crafted book with scene and sequel, goal, motivation, conflict and which flows magically- read any of Fiona Lowe's books!" and I found it to be so true in the case of BOOMERANG BRIDE!

I liked author Fiona Lowe's style. It seemed like she was writing about real people in situations that could happen. Scenarios came alive as do people with her use of dialogue and situation that help us know them better.

Even the secondary characters were all so real and truly the imaginary is so vivid, I don't believe, I've ever read a book that pulled at my heart so immediately and so strongly!

Boomerang Bride is well worth reading and I recommend it for an emotionally satisfying story.

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