Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Beast

BEAST Tour Banner

BEAST by Alana Albertson 

Publication Date: June 14, 2016 

Genres: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Military Romance

BEAST Cover

Purchase (99c or #FREE with #KINDLEUNLIMITED!): Amazon

Synopsis: 
Love doesn’t need to be perfect, it just needs to be true.

Isabella—Grady Williams is a national treasure, the youngest living Medal of Honor recipient, America’s scarred superhero. With tattooed arms sculpted from carrying M-16s, this bad boy has girls begging from sea to shining sea to get a piece of his action. When my father squanders away my college fund, I make a deal with this dirty-talking Devil Dog—I will pretend to be Grady’s girlfriend for the Marine Corps Ball, and my dad will write Grady’s war memoir. Grady is fearless. Hell, this badass jumped on a grenade to save his fellow Marines! As much as I crave him, I refuse to allow myself to become addicted to a dangerous man who will detonate my heart.

Grady—Isabella Cuesta is an angel who can see beyond my mangled skin, a pawn used to repay her father’s debt, a woman who makes me feel like a man instead of a monster. But I no longer believe in fairy tales. She’s mine until our contract ends. I’ll take her hard and rough, listen to all her hopes and fears, lay down my life to protect her. This beauty will never let herself love a dangerous man like me—a man who has killed, a man who runs towards gunfire, a man who never backs down from a fight. But without her love, I’m not a man—I’ll remain forever a beast.

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BEAST Kindle Graphic

BEAST MUSIC PLAYLIST

Grenade by Bruno Mars
One by Metallica
I'm Not Giving You Up by Gloria Estefan
Tale as old as Time - by Beauty & the Beast Soundtrack
If You're Reading This by Tim McGraw
One Hell of an Amen by Brantley Gilbert

#AMERICASBRAVESTBEAST

Beast Teaser 3



Beast is the heartbreaking story of what happens when a veteran comes back from war. Grady Williams made the ultimate sacrifice for his country and it sends him home from war scarred and mentally damaged. He doesn't think anyone can like him now that his body is so scarred and disfigured, but then he meets Isa. 

Isa is just trying to stay out of the spotlight of Hollywood and finish her education. When she meets Grady, it started as a one night thing, but then she started to talk to him and get to know him. And it made her want to know more, even when Grady tries to push her away, she wants to fight to stay in his life. 

There were many emotions that this story brought out in me. Hope, despair, sadness, happiness. So much happened that effected the way I felt about the characters and made me relate to what they were feeling. I loved that I could get that involved into what was happening in these fictional character's lives. 

With that being said, the main reason for my three star rating was the lack of emotion in a certain scene. I was so connected to most of this book, and I think that's why I was majorly disappointed that a scene that should have had me bawling my eyes out, or at the very least upset, I felt nothing for. It just happened and then was over and left me disappointed. 

I did like the characters, and there was a secondary character that caught my attention enough for me to hope she gets a book too. I wasn't sure how I felt about her at first, but then I found out more of her story and it has me hoping she'll get a book. 

This was my first book from Alana Albertson, but it certainly won't be the last. The pace of the book moved fast but there was never a moment where it was too fast or where I got confused about what was going on. Everything came together nicely, and I really liked the very end of it. Overall, this is a book recommended by me and I hope everyone will enjoy it. 



ABOUT ALANA ALBERTSON

Alana AlbertsonAlana Albertson is a multi-award winning author, current President of Romance Writers of America’s Contemporary Romance Chapter and the former President of both Romance Writers of America’s Young Adult and Chick Lit chapters. Alana Albertson holds a Masters of Education from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Stanford University. A recovering professional ballroom dancer, Alana currently writes contemporary romance, new adult and young adult fiction. She lives in San Diego, California, with her husband, two young sons, and four dogs. When she’s not spending her time playing with her sons, dancing, or saving dogs from high kill shelters through Pugs N Roses, the rescue she founded, she can be found watching episodes Homeland, Devious Maids, or Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads | Newsletter | Amazon Author Profile

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Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Slow Grind




Title: Slow Grind
Series: Men of Mornington #1
Author: Eva Spencer
Genre: Romance
 Release Date: June 28, 2016



Blurb

Only the good die young. It’s a phrase I wish never existed.

Best mates shouldn’t get cancer, especially terminal at twenty-seven. And experimental treatments shouldn’t cost a hundred grand. But sometimes life just fucking sucked.

Then I got an idea to raise the cash. If a woman could strip her way through uni, we could strip our way to a cure, right? We were attractive Aussie guys, and with the help of Max’s kid sister, we could nail the choreography.

I hadn't seen Aubrey since she was twelve. She’d gone from a pig-tailed, freckled tomboy into the sexiest chick I think I'd ever met. I made a promise to Max to steer clear, but when she was choreographing our routines …

The Men of Mornington were going to heat things up, and things just got a whole lot hotter..








Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK


Aubrey had the biggest crush on her brothers best friend when she was younger. Her young heart thought they were perfect together and that he would soon realize they belonged together. But then she moved to the states with her dad and didn't get to see him anymore. Now, she's all grown up and going back home to help her brother who just got the devastating news that his cancer has returned. 

Drew is left feeling helpless when his best friend has gotten some of the worst news anyone can get, and he wants to do anything he possibly can to help. When he hears of a treatment that could potentially help he comes up with a way to make the money to afford it. Stripping. And who better to help with the choreography than his mates younger sister. He just had no idea she turned into such a beauty...and now he doesn't know how he can keep his hands off of her. 

Aussie guys stripping. That's really all you needed to hear, right? If not you're ten kinds of coo coo bananas because that's all I needed to know to want to jump into this book. The fact that it was a best-friends-little-sister trope was an added bonus, since I will always love those kinds of stories. Slow Grind had everything I wanted in it; the hot strippers, the secret touches and flirting, and the forbidden love. I really enjoyed this story and I can't wait to get the next book.

Drew was a great character, willing to do anything to save his friend. I could connect to him very well because his relationship with Matt kind of reminded me of my friendship with my own bestie. Having a close bond like that is something wonderful, and these authors wrote the friendship amazingly well. I love reading books that involve close friends and in this story it just made it all the more interesting. 

Bottom line, you're going to want to read this book. The relationship between Drew and Aubrey was kind of slow building and it took some time for them to finally give in to their attraction, but it never got boring. There was a lot of other stuff going on in the book, so it constantly had my attention. It's a definite recommend from me. 



Excerpt

“I’ve invited Drew and the guys around tonight for drinks, okay?”

I stand at Max’s bedroom door and peer inside. I can just make out the shape of his body on his bed. He rolls over and switches on his lamp, squinting up at me and wiping the sleep from his eyes.

After a few days of making sure this plan can actually work, Drew and I are ready to let the others in on it. I’m nervous, because I have no idea how they’re going to react. Especially Max. But, at the end of the day I know this will work. It has to.

“How long have I been asleep?” he mumbles, struggling to sit up. I walk over to help him, but he waves me off. “I’m okay, Aubs.”

I hang back as much as it kills me to watch him fight to do something that’s so normal for the rest of us, my fingers fidgeting in front of me. He hates it when I try to help him, but I do it without even thinking—it’s my second nature, I think. I just want to make things as easy as I can for him. I did even when he wasn’t sick. I guess I got the nurture and he got the nature. Nope, that’s a lie, he got the nurture too. A pair of peas on a pod, I guess.

“Only a few hours. I wanted to let you rest as long as you were able,” I say, answering his question. “Mom said you were having trouble sleeping through the night, but then I thought you might be hungry, so I’ve made soup. Mom also said you can usually handle that on your stomach when you’re not feeling well. Is that okay?”

“You’re cooking is enough to kill any appetite I have. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” he chuckles. I glower at him, but it’s nice to hear him laugh again, even if it is at my expense and even if it is a little morbid. How do you tell a guy with a body that’s giving out on him that it’s too soon to be making death jokes? I suppose you can’t, can you?

He stands up and I hand him his robe, consciously making sure I don’t try to help him. He follows me out to the kitchen, where the aroma of chicken soup fills the air. He wanders over to the trash and picks up an empty can, laughing and shaking his head.

“Opening a can and heating it doesn’t exactly qualify as cooking,” he says.

“Yeah, well, it’s my kind of cooking,” I respond defensively, snatching the can off him. I toss it back in the bin and set two bowls on the counter. “Go and sit down,” I order.

I pour the steaming soup straight from the pot into two bowls and carry them over to where he’s sitting, placing one in front of him, the other on the opposite side. He obliges, and I wait to take my seat until he’s taken his.

“You better have given me the one with more,” he teases. I smile, my mind going back to our childhood when we used to fight over which drink had more in it, or who got the bigger slice of cake. I remember our dad complaining because for a very long time I even had to have the blue cup because Max had a blue cup. Then, as I grew older, everything became a competition; who finished dinner first, who got to sit in the front seat. Still, as I sit with the soup, I find myself wondering if I can finish before Max, so for the first time I can actually win. It’s hard being ten and being in competition with a teenage boy—they can eat enough for ten men and still have room to steal the dessert.

“Remember the time when you stole the ice cream from the freezer, and when Mom realized one was missing, she refused to let us have another until one of us owned up to it?” Max chuckles and takes a small sip of the broth, leaving the noodles and small chunks of chicken behind in the bowl.

I laugh and roll my eyes. “It’s been twelve years. You can own up to it now,” I say. “I was so pissed at you for making me miss out. You could have at least taken one for me. You knew she wouldn’t let either of us have any until we fessed up.”

“It wasn’t me!” he laughs and holds his hands up in surrender. “I was sure it was you.”

“Even back then, me and mom fought all the time. I wouldn’t dare risk having her unleash her special, sophisticated brand of crazy on me,” I scoff. Max has no reason to lie to me after all this time, so the more I think, the more my mind wanders, then realization hits. “Wasn’t Drew there that day? In the afternoon?”

Max nods, confused, and then breaks out into a smile. “That sneaky little bugger. That bastard owes us ice cream.”

“I’ll make sure he follows through,” I giggle. “You know how I feel about my desserts.”





Author Bio

Eva Spencer, a combination of Ashley Suzanne and Missy Johnson. Independently, we have over 30 novels, and have decided to write our co-written works under one pen name to make it easier for all of you to follow!!! We love new readers and can't wait to chat with you!



Author Links

Dark Mafia Prince




Title: Dark Mafia Prince
Author: Annika Martin
Genre: Dark Mafia Romance
 Release Date: June 28, 2016


Blurb

THE DARK MAFIA PRINCE IS BACK TO RECLAIM ALL THAT HER FAMILY STOLE.

Aleksio

Don’t look at me like that. So trusting.

Like you think I’m not a monster.

Like I won’t wrap your hair in my fist and bend you to my will.

Like I won’t sacrifice you, piece by piece, to save my brother.
I’m the most dangerous enemy you’ll ever have because every time you look at me, you see somebody good. That friend who died.
And when you look at me like that, I die again.

Mira
I spent years making myself invisible.
A good girl, apart from the noise.
Then you came back, beautiful and deadly in your Armani suit.

Don’t look at me like you still know me, you say.

But I remember your smile and those sunny days.
Before they lowered your small casket into the ground.

Before they told us the prince was dead.





Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK


Aleksio has been on the run since he was a young boy, ever since his parent's were murdered. Presumed dead by every one other than the man after him, he lived a hard life. But now he's back to get his revenge on the man responsible for his "death." And if he has to go through the mans daughter to get his vengeance, so be it. The Prince has risen, and no one is safe. 

June has just been a really good month for me to discover new authors. I'm always a little hesitant when I'm reading an author I haven't read before, but so far it's worked out for me wonderfully lately, and Annika Martin is another example of why you should always try something new. I enjoyed her style of writing, and it kept me captivated for a few hours. Basically, anything that can make me ignore reality while three kids are running around my house is a thumbs up in my book. 

My three star rating was because I went in to this book expecting a romance, which it was, but not enough for my liking. The majority of the book was focused on Aleksio and his hunt, rather than his interactions with Mira. I would have liked to see more of them together before the end since that's what I had my hopes set on. 

My expectations got the better of me, but if you start this book without and hopes of a grand romance, I think you will thoroughly enjoy it. Yes, I was a little disappointed by the lack of scenes with both Aleksio and Mira, but the suspense of the book is what kept it good. I loved getting to see Aleksio and his brother search for answers and I never knew what they would do. I love when a character is unpredictable and it makes you pay attention to them to see how far they'd go to get what they want. 

Bottom line, I think anyone that is obsessed with Mafia books like I am should give this a chance. Aleksio wasn't the typical Mafia Prince so I think many people will be surprised by him and his story. Dark Mafia Prince can be read as a standalone but I think by the end you'll be dying for the next story, just like I am. 







AUTHOR BIO

Annika Martin is a NYT bestselling author who enjoys writing dirty stories about dangerous criminals! She loves helping animals and kicking snow clumps off the bottom of cars around the streets of Minneapolis, and in her spare time she writes as the RITA award-winning author Carolyn Crane.


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Rake's Redemption



RAKE'S REDEMPTION
by 
Chantal Fernando
Now Live! 




In New York Times bestselling author Chantal Fernando’s latest novel in the Wind Dragons Motorcycle Club series, Rake—baddest of the bad boys—gets his own romance at last!

Rake is known for being up for anything, in and out of the bedroom. He’s wild, he’s deadly, yet quick with a joke or a stolen kiss. Known as the player of the WDMC, he loves women, the more the merrier. However, behind his womanizing façade, Rake hides the pain of losing his first love, Bailey. He hasn’t loved anyone since, and doesn’t think he ever will.

Seven years after their split, Rake and Bailey run into each other at the MC’s favorite club. Old wounds resurface, secrets are spilled...and passionate feelings are awakened. But they’ve each done things to hurt the other, hurt them too badly to get over it—haven’t they? Only when Bailey’s connection to Rake puts her in danger from another Club member does he realize that there’s nothing he won’t do to protect her—and claim her as his once again.






Adam and Bailey were high school lovers that thought they would last a lifetime. Young and in love, they had plans to grow old together and never leave the others side. But those plans fell apart and they went there separate ways to deal with the heartbreak. Several years later they run into each other, both at very different points in their life. Bailey now a teacher, and Adam, now known as Rake, part of the Wind Dragons MC. Neither of them want to deal with another broken heart again, but they also can't stay away from each other once they realize they live in the same town again. Will their love last this time, or are the headed for more pain?

"Because Rake is my guardian angel. Or maybe my personal grim reaper."

This is one of my favorite MC series, and I just can't get enough of it. I have loved every character that Chantal Fernando creates, and Rake and Bailey were no exception. I loved how different they were but how they brought out the hidden sides to each other. In the previous books we got to see the tough side to Rake and how much of a player he was. But in this book we learned that he could actually be really sweet at times and he cared so much for those around him. Made me swoon more than a little. 

The great thing that I loved about Rake and Bailey's relationship was that it only moved forward. We knew they had a past, and of course if was brought up at times, but it never took over the building relationship that was happening in the present. I was really happy that we didn't have a bunch of flashbacks happening or too much harping on what went on when they were younger. It was important to how they got back together, but after that their relationship only got stronger and more mature, and it was good to see. 

The one thing I had a problem with was how fast Rake and Bailey seemed to go from enemies to lovers. I understood when they were angry at each other and their was some tension, but then the change in Rake kind of came out of no where. I just would have liked if that transition was done a bit smoother. 

But the bottom line is that I still loved this book and the couple. Getting to see the past characters and what they were doing in their life was a great bonus to the story also. I highly recommend this series to all my MC lovers. Rake's story could be read as a standalone but I still recommend reading the other books as well. 













★ ☆ ✮ ✯ ~ WIND DRAGON'S MC SERIES ~ ✯✮ ☆★


❥ ❥ DRAGON'S LAIR ❥ ❥

❥ ❥ ARROW'S HELL ❥ ❥
#OutNow

❥ ❥ TRACKER'S END ❥ ❥
#OutNow

❥ ❥ DIRTY RIDE ❥ ❥

❥ ❥ RAKE'S REDEMPTION ❥ ❥
#LIVE

❥ ❥ WILD RIDE ❥ ❥
#PreOrder #99c Releases July 11, 2016

❥ ❥ WOLF'S MATE ❥ ❥
#PreOrder Releases August 16, 2016
Chantal Fernando is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author whose novels include two books in the Maybe series—Maybe This Time and its follow up, This Time Around; and her latest releases, Toxic Girl and Saxon. When not reading, writing, or daydreaming, she can be found enjoying life with her three sons and family. She lives in Western Australia.





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