Sky is a woman on a mission. She intends to kill the man who killed her husband, but she can’t do it herself. Her preacher husband knew her well and made her promise not to kill his murderer. Of course, Sky is also half Native American so she quickly finds a way to keep her promise…while still enacting her justice. She’ll find someone ELSE to kill FOR her. She selects none other than ‘the Limey’, as famous for his ability to hunt down outlaws as he is for his crisp British accent. But Sky never counted on developing feelings for this Limey, just as she never really counted on living past her justice.

Max is a bounty hunter extraordinaire. So how this native woman got the drop on him he’ll never know. She wants him to kill a man and it’s a man he wants to kill so there really shouldn’t be a problem. Except now Max must marry in order to maintain his inheritance in England and he doesn’t really have any prospects in mind. So he strikes a deal with Sky. They’ll marry, go to England, secure his inheritance, and return to kill Sky’s first husband’s murderer. But neither of them could guess just this ‘deal’ would change their lives.

As I said, westerns aren’t my cuppa tea, but this one did manage to maintain my interest and keep me reading til the end. The story crosses two continents, touches on a third, and has several ‘side stories’; yet they all manage to come together into one cohesive whole. Pretty tricky that. The lead characters were irritating at times, but not enough to make me stop reading. The feelings and reasoning behind their decisions and actions mostly made sense, and the heat level wasn’t bad either!

While I’m not going to become a fan of western romances (and I wish I could tell you why, but they just don’t feel ‘right’ to me), I’m also not sorry I read this engrossing story by Shirl Henke. For western romance fans, I’d suggest you check out not just “Pale Moon Stalker”, but Henke’s back list too. Her writing and story weaving is too good to pass up.

I had my 30th birthday a few months ago, and sometimes it seems amazing that I survived it.  After all, it seems that 30th birthdays in books are always distressing for some reason or another.  Usually it’s some sort of emotional trauma, but in “The Accidental Demon Slayer” by Angie Fox it’s a whole level of traumatic.

Preschool teacher Lizzie Brown’s plans to celebrate with a night out on the town are quickly interrupted when her previously-unknown biological grandmother and a demon show up within minutes of each other at her apartment.  At the exact moment she turns 30, she becomes the “Exalted Demon Slayer of Dalea” and becomes a target of demon assassins.  Her grandmother, who also happens to be a hardcore motorcycle enthusiast, whisks her away to a coven of fellow biker-witches to learn about magic and her powers.

While Lizzie is trying to get a handle on her new life, she meets Dimitri Kallinikos.  Dimitri is a hot guy who can shape shift into a griffin.  This can come in handy, especially since he has appointed himself as Lizzie’s “protector”.  Things get complicated when Lizzie’s Grandma is consequently kidnapped, and when Dimitri’s motivation to be Lizzie’s Protector is called into question.  Although she’s barely a few days into her demon-hunting career, Lizzie must face a demon in hell in order to save her Grandma and to help out Dimitri.

I wanted to like this book.  I truly did.  The writing style is fresh and fast, and it had an interesting premise.  But I couldn’t get past the fact that nothing I read seemed to ever be explained – either to Lizzie or to the reader.  I originally wasn’t too upset by the confusion, realizing that it would take time for Lizzie to learn about this new world.  But in the matter of pages she seems to go from incompetence to complete control.  An example of this is the treatment of spells as physical items that can be created and stored in Mason jars.  Lizzie goes from knowing nothing about these spells to being able to immediately identify the specific spells and their effects on sight, and I’m not exactly sure where she gained that knowledge.  And, while we learn that demon slaying is a trait that runs in the family, we never really learn why, or what Lizzie is supposed to do with all her power.

Unfortunately, it seemed that the more I read, the more disappointed I was.  I constantly felt like Lizzie suddenly was an unexplained expert in things she knew nothing about.  However, “The Accidental Demon Slayer” is Angie Fox’s first book, and I think she shows great promise as a writer.  Like anything else, writing takes practice, and I’m hoping that she’ll have hit a better grove when the next book in the series, “The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers” comes out next spring.

Reviewed by Kristina

Now where can I get a dragon of my own? Especially one that turns into a mouth-watering specimen of masculine beauty? Ah well, I guess I’ll just have to settle for Allyson James’ dragon men and her latest book “The Dragon Master.”

This is her third (and final?) dragon book set in modern day San Francisco. Her dragons live in ‘dragonspace’ and only cross into the human world on rare occasions or when called by certain individuals of power who have learned the dragon’s real name. When in the human world, they normally appear as men since the magic has mostly left the human world and humans no longer believe in them. James provides each different color of dragon with different personalities and powers, and then weaves these threads into a very entertaining, readable, and super hot story!

Carol, or Li Mei, doesn’t believe in magic or dragons or ghosts or anything else she can’t see, feel, and touch. She’s worked hard to Americanize herself and has poured her soul into first her studies and now her business. So when she’s accosted by a naked man who claims to be a dragon and accuses her of ‘calling and enslaving’ him, she’s pretty sure he’s a loony even if he is the most gorgeous thing she’s ever seen. But it will take a lot less than 24 hours for Carol to realize that the world is a much different place than she thought, that there’s something inside of her trying to get out, and that a whole bunch of people suddenly want to kill her. Now if she and her dragon man can just stay alive long enough for her to figure this out, she’ll be happy.

Seth is a fire dragon and possesses more magic than the other dragons who have apparently become ‘trapped’ in the human world. Although he’s only ever been enslaved once before, it’s not something a dragon forgets and he’s furious. But there are a few things that are very different about this calling. First, the Dragon Master is a woman! Second, she keeps insisting that she didn’t ‘call’ him. Third, he’s in a human male form. And fourth, the feelings and emotions thrumming through this form are pretty strange, and WOW doesn’t the Dragon Master smell good? Uh, she feels pretty good too, and why does he feel the need to protect her? Now if he can just figure out if this is more of her sorcery…or something totally new to this dragon.

This hero and heroine have some pretty big conflicts to deal with. There’s the whole force vs. free will thing going on not to mention that he’s really large and scaly and she’s—not. Neither one really knows what love is and because of some other plot devices, they really have to figure it out on their own. And speaking of plot, I enjoyed the twists and turns of this one and, as always, appreciate the light humorous touches. Some events and motives I figured out beforehand, but there were just as many that came as quite the surprise. But even with a collapsed time span, the story and the relationship proceed at a measured pace with gradually increasing tension. And the tension and sexual interactions between our hero and heroine are red hot (get it? Fire dragon, red hot?) from the first.

I like Allyson James’ writing. I also like the historical and contemporaries she writes under the name Jennifer Ashley. If “The Dragon Master” is the last of her dragon stories, I’ll be a little sad. I read all three and even though they were written in the same world with some recurring characters, I still found each book just different enough to keep me coming back for more. But on the plus side, she does provide a peek at an upcoming paranormal series which will see its first release in January 2009. I guess I can wait until then…grudgingly.

Until next time…

Reviewed by Julie

If you love action, suspense, intrigue, mystery and hot erotic romance, than the latest in Sydney Croft’s ACRO series is definitely the book for you! Seduced by the Storm is the third book released in the series, and it is action packed with all of the above qualities. I also realized belatedly that Sydney Croft is also Larissa Ione, whose Demonica Series is also worth checking out! Now, on to the story…

Wyatt Kennedy is an ex-Navy SEAL that now works as an Agent with the Agency for Covert Rare Operatives a.k.a. ACRO. He has the power of Telekinesis as well as an ability to seduce anyone by releasing highly potent pheromones. Wyatt is fiercely loyal to ACRO and while on a mission to destroy a computer that can cause terrifying weather phenomenon he meets Faith Black. Faith is also an agent, however she works for a different agency. One based in England and one that not even ACRO knows about. Her mission is to steal the same computer that Wyatt is sent to destroy, however, neither of them knows about the other…

Wyatt and Faith meet in a bar one evening while on the same mission and have an instant connection. They share a night of passionate romance that seems like something more than just a one-night stand. Wyatt’s powers however, keep anyone from remembering sex with him after it happens, so when he runs into Faith the next day, and she remembers him, Wyatt knows there is something “special” about her. The two of them embark on a mission together, slowly falling for each other while both trying to do the right thing for their Agencies. Can they manage to work together without falling in love, or worse, perhaps even killing each other?

Seduced by the Storm is exceptionally steamy AND well written. I also love a side story going on between two other operatives- Annika and Creed. This was almost like two love stories in one book! I enjoyed the amount of suspense and action that carried through until the end. The story didn’t lose steam as it went on; in fact I think it gained momentum. Wyatt and Faith’s relationship builds as the story progresses and I couldn’t help but root for them the entire time. There were definitely some angst-worthy moments that kept me reading long after I should have been in bed! This was a very satisfying installment of the ACRO series by Sydney Croft, and I cant wait for “Taming the Fire” which is the fourth book in the series and is scheduled to be released in the Summer of 2009.

Reviewed by Heather

Marianne Stillings’ “Killer Charms” is a combination of a paranormal romance and mystery.  It features Andie Darling, a San Francisco police detective who is desperate get a promotion into the Homicide division.  But to get the job she has to prove that Logan Sinclair’s claim of clairvoyance is simply his method of scamming vulnerable people.  However, in order to get the evidence she’ll need in court, Andie has to set herself up as bait for Logan.

For his part, Logan is immediately intrigued by Andie.  As a man who is used to getting any woman he wants, he is fascinated by her stubborn streak of independence, especially as he tries to figure out what makes her tick.  However, he is determined not to let her distract him from his current con – obtaining a valuable diamond necklace called the Star of Avril from a woman whose brother recently passed away.

The book changes tone about halfway through, when a secret about Logan is revealed.  However, once the secret was known, I then had a hard time trying to figure out why such an elaborate setup was needed for the first half of the book.  It probably didn’t help that I read the book piecemeal, with several interruptions between each section.  It’s possible that the con would have made more sense if I had read the entire book at once.

All that being said, Logan truly lives up to the book’s title, and is very charming.  He and Andie have great chemistry as they try to out-wit each other in the first half of the book, and then as they work together in the second half.  The villain in the book is easy to spot, but his character seemed very weak, and it was obvious that he existed solely to cause trouble for both Andie and Logan.  For those that have read Marianne Stillings’ work before, this book also includes updates on Andie’s two brothers – Nate and Ethan – who each previously had their own romance story told in earlier books.

Overall, I liked Marianne Stillings’ Killer Charms, but would strongly recommend that it be read in only a few sittings.  I happened to read it in a very disjointed fashion, which perhaps contributed to my confusion over the plot at the end.  Still, Logan and Andie are very likeable characters, and you truly were able to see how they grew and changed as their relationship developed.  Additionally, while this book had some paranormal elements, those elements typically weren’t as central to the story as is typical in a paranormal romance.

Reviewed by Kristina

“Goddess of the Sea” is my first foray into P.C. Cast’s ‘Goddess Summoning’ series about normal women transformed by their willingness to believe in the spark of the Feminine Devine that makes all women magical! But the series is not about witchcraft and crones and spells and such, rather it celebrates the female viewpoint and the joys to be found in the care of tending of beauty in whatever form it’s found, whether it’s nature, art, or humanity.

CC is an Air Force Sergeant who’s afraid of flying and not too fond of water either! So when the C-130 aircraft taking her to Saudi Arabia crashes in the Mediterranean, she’s terrified. She becomes entangled with the sinking plane and is sure she’s about to die. Then she’s rescued by–a mermaid? And the mermaid is asking whether or not she wants to live…well, duh?! Suddenly she’s trapped in the body of the mermaid and there’s a merman after her and another merman who’s really hot and…oh wait, you guys need to read the book to get the rest of the story.

Cast’s story is an enchanting mix of fairy tale, drama, magic, love, and discovery. I probably read WAY more into this tale, but here’s a few things I took away from this book:

-No matter what kinds of physical/physiological changes occur, we’ll still be the same inside.

-There’s no ‘magic bullet’ to solve problems, it takes a combination of innovative thought and the will to try new things and maybe even look silly doing so!

-Not even a whole group of men is a match for one determined woman ***big grin***.

-Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder and what’s inside will never fade or wither (stole part of that phrase from the Bible).

-We are always stronger when we lean on our friends.

-Love is worth sacrificing for. Sometimes the sorrow of love lost seems unbearable, but there’s no telling what’s around the next corner.

I could go on, but I think these were the ‘biggies’.

It’s obvious that Cast has done her homework regarding the USAF. As a proud veteran, I appreciated her attention to the terminology, names, and places that give this story it’s ‘real’ contemporary feeling. I also appreciated that the heroine is enlisted, yet still a strong, feminine woman with ethics and morals. The threads of this tale were woven together skillfully and it was a very smooth read. Although the romance and passion were fairly quick, it was necessary to the author’s plot and this is a kind of fairy tale! And speaking of passion, if you’ve ever wondered how merpeople ‘do it’, you’ve really got to read this one. She did a grand job of depicting sensual lovemaking with legs or fins!

“Goddess” of the Sea” is a love story.  It’s both contemporary and historical.  It also imparts a message of feminine empowerment and strength without denigrating the male gender and that’s not so easily done. P.C. Cast has penned a tale that will entertain you. It will also make you laugh and make you cry…but end with a smile on your face.

Until next time…

Reviewed by Julie

I’m not sure if Jade Lee meant the opening scene in her latest “The Dragon Earl” to be hysterically funny or if it’s just me. But as soon as I began picturing the scene in my head I couldn’t stop giggling. The lavish society wedding of a future Earl interrupted…by 3 Chinese monks in robes. The scandal! Can’t you just see the oh-so-proper upper class British nobility snobs? Too delicious.

Evelyn has been groomed from the cradle for her role as the future Countess. It’s a role that sometimes stifles her, but it is what it is. When her beautiful wedding is interrupted by 3 Chinese monks, she quickly takes control and tries to salvage the day as best she can. But really, even if one of the monks is white, how could he possibly think he’s the rightful Earl?

Jacob, or Jie Ke as he is now known, never wanted to make this trip to England in the first place. But his abbot has forbidden him to take his vows as a full-fledged monk until he reclaims he rightful place…and then decides to give it up. All his intentions are to do just that, until he catches sight of the beautiful woman who used to be the girl he remembers.

This story was in some ways moving and in some ways confusing. There was quite a bit of Asian philosophy embedded in the plot with Jacob not really knowing what the abbot’s intention were by making him return to England. I found that rather odd as I could see it right away, but I guess the book would have been much shorter then. The push and pull between the main characters was at times irritating, she’s pushing him away and then she’s kissing him, he’s ‘pleasuring’ her and then he says he’s leaving. This goes on until almost the last page and I sometimes found myself wanting to yell at them to just make a decision and stick with it!

There’s some pretty heavy petting which is beautifully written and the love scenes are definitely smoky, but I never really felt a strong emotional connection between these two. The words were there, but the underlying feelings just didn’t appear for me. I also got extremely irritated when the whole mystery portion of the book was never solved. I can only assume that the author intends to continue with it in another book, but I’m still ticked.

I’m not sure if it’s the whole ‘mysticism’ thing or the unsolved mystery or the lack of emotional impact that caused me to finish reading “The Dragon Earl” by Jade Lee and think, “Uh, huh…well alrighty.” It just didn’t resonate with me, but fans of Asian lore may react differently. Ah well, different strokes for different folks, right?

Until next time…

Reviewed by Julie

Did you go crazy for the Matrix with Keanu Reeves? Can you believe in a post-apocalyptic world of altered existence? Do reality shows thrill you? Then maybe you should sign up to be a viewer for Michelle Maddox’s new show depicted in her book “Countdown.” This story is a thrill a minute rocket ride of action and suspense with a bit of romance thrown in.

Seven years ago Kira’s family was killed as she hid under her bed. So now she’s a 22 year old orphan who’s afraid of the dark. Too bad for her since she wakes up bound, in the dark, in an unknown place, with only the sound of someone else breathing. When the lights come on, she sees her companion. He’s hot, he’s hurt, he looks dangerous, and he’s also cuffed and foot. He’s also apparently crazy since he tells her they only have a few minutes for BOTH of them to get free or they’ll BOTH be dead…oh, and he’s a convicted rapist and murderer. Unwilling to believe, yet unwilling to die either, they free each other and pass ‘round one’!? Now Kira learns he’s not crazy. They are contestants in some kind of demented reality show, they both have surgical implants in their heads, they can’t be more than 90 feet apart, and the only way to get off the ‘show’ is to win or to die.

I can’t say much about Kira’s ally without giving away too much. Suffice to say that she will have plenty reasons to trust, and then not to trust. In a world that’s turned topsy-turvy and inside-out, Kira will have to rely on her intuition and the feelings she gets when she touches people to help her figure out not who the good guy is, but if there’s a good guy at all!

I’m not normally a fan of this type of action book. But this one kept my interest and kept me reading, even though occasionally it got a little ‘too’ weird or there were a few ‘too’ many convenient coincidences. But I reckon that could just be part of the twists and turns in this story. Since I’d never read anything by this author, I did a little checking and found out that Michelle Maddox is another pen name for Michelle Rowan who writes a series of comedic paranormal romances I sometimes enjoy. Makes sense, as I enjoyed this book in spite of myself! So if wild conspiracies, ‘the day after’s, non-stop action, and a reality show with a bit ‘too’ much reality sound good, I think you’ll enjoy “Countdown” too.

Until next time…

Reviewed by Julie

Another tortured hero served up for our delectation! “Where There’s Fire” is my first contemporary romantic suspense by Maureen McKade. I didn’t realize that I had recently read one of her historical romance novels until I was typing this review and my fingers remembered the name. Then, of course, I had to check out why and bingo! Now, I find myself comparing her writing styles and realizing that there are many similarities. Not so strange, I guess, but still. A serial arsonist turned murderer, a twisted pimp, a drug-addicted ‘ho, and in the middle of it all one female cop and one mysterious man.

Shoni is a good cop, 2^nd generation with a father who died young in the line of duty. Until recently she was a firm believer in rules and regulations. Until her mother was killed by a drunk driver who got off because the arresting cop blew the Miranda warning. Now she’s struggling to keep faith in a justice system that seems to favor the bad guys. And she’s walking a fine line between integrity and revenge, using her work as a substitute for grief. Her latest case is arson, and she may have a serial arsonist on her hands. If she doesn’t catch a break soon, her boss will be calling in the Feds. Into this mess, steps a handsome hunk of mystery man. She saw him save a young girl in an alley, and now he’s saved the tenants of her latest arsonist attack. She’s drawn to this hero who wants no recognition and no assistance, even though it’s obvious he’s not the usual homeless type.

‘John’ can’t remember anything beyond waking up a few weeks ago, badly beaten and apparently left for dead. His memory keeps flashing to scenes of death and blood and he’s afraid to go to the cops. The last thing he needed was this cop to take an interest in him, even if he can’t help but return that interest in a decidedly different manner. But his memories also show flashes of a woman and a little girl calling him Daddy. So until he can figure out who he is and who they are, he’ll have to keep his distance.

There were a lot of things to like about this story. I got a kick out of the fact that he’s the one with amnesia and she’s the one who can help him…since it’s usually the other way around, eh? Also, the ‘mystery’ portion was fairly well done with good pacing of the whodunit clues and I didn’t know ALL the guilty parties until the very end…Nice! The urban setting was a necessity since it would be hard to pull off the amnesia angle in a small town where everybody knows everybody. And the sexual attraction between the main characters was just spicy enough to keep me reading.

My biggest complaint regarding this story was the pace of the whole “amnesia, fear of cops” bit. I figured out he was ex-military and probably one of the special teams WAY before the author admitted it. And I thought it was pretty blatant which made the characters seem a bit dim to not be able to figure that out for themselves. And the whole ‘fear of cops’ thing was rather obtuse to me too; I mean how many bad guys save a little girl and a building full of fire victims? Ummm, I’m thinking none. And if you don’t know who you are wouldn’t the most important thing be to check the missing persons? But he obsessed on this for fully half the darn book! Kinda brought down his IQ points for me.

So in the end, the good and the bad were rather evenly weighed for me. It’s definitely a romantic suspense since there’s both romance and suspense and the balance is really about 60/40 with suspense having the edge. I’d probably read another contemporary by this author, but it wouldn’t be on my for sure list.

Until next time…

Reviewed by Julie

Listen up ladies! This is a  book out of every woman’s fantasies. A man who cooks, cleans, takes care of you (and your dog), AND has lots of money! I know what your saying “Its too good to be true” right? Nope. It’s “Romeo, Romeo” by Robin Kaye. This is a little escape into just about every woman’s dream.

Rosalie Ronaldi is a high-powered career woman. She earns good money, is independent, and thinks she’s pretty decent looking, even if her behind is just  a little big.  On her way home from work one evening, she gets a flat tire. When she’s done cursing in Italian and Spanish (she thought she should be thorough) she notices a really hot man in  a tow truck has pulled up to rescue her. Little does she know, he might just rescue her from her life too!

Nick Romeo is a self made millionaire who also happens to be Brooklyn’s most sought after bachelor. When he leaves the car dealership he owns in the tow truck so he doesn’t get his Viper dirty, he sees a gorgeous woman on the side of the road kicking a flat tire! He offers to help, and manages to coax a date from Rosalie without her ever realizing who he is.

When Nick and Rosalie begin dating, it all starts very casually, no strings attached. But when Rosalie gets pneumonia and Nick rushes her to the hospital, he realizes how much he actually cares for her. He takes care of everything for her including cooking, cleaning, organizing, and walking her dog. Now, Nick is in over his head. He is getting serious with her and she still doesn’t know who he is. Oh, and he forgot to tell her about his history with her younger brother…  Will they ever be honest with each other so they can be together, or will their stubbornness keep them apart?

When I starting reading this book, I had no idea how much I would enjoy it! Robin Kaye is a wonderful author who has a fabulous writing style that sucks you in right from the beginning. “Romeo, Romeo” is a delightfully fun and romantic read that would have you wishing for a little Romeo in your life.

Reviewed by Heather