Adrienne read and liked Verity's review of The Italian's Secretary Bride (Harlequin Presents):

"From the title, U’d think it’s just another tale of office affair, but this time it’s the boss’s bro who romances the secretary. Luca runs half of the family business & thinks Alice is in luv / has been having hanky panky w/ Roman, ‘cuz she...more From the title, U’d think it’s just another tale of office affair, but this time it’s the boss’s bro who romances the secretary. Luca runs half of the family business & thinks Alice is in luv / has been having hanky panky w/ Roman, ‘cuz she goes above & beyond her duty in saving her boss by taking the knife wielded by a deranged stalker. She suffers from PTSD & doesn’t let anyone know. Luca also doesn’t know she’s a widow. They’ve gotten off on the wrong foot from the get-go & been antagonistic w/ each other. Alice believes Luca is a serial womanizer who changes women as often as he changes his underwear. Her low opinion of him is compounded by the fact that she overheard Luca‘s scathing remark that he thinks she’s a doormat & she never bothers to disabuse him of the notion. Little does she know that Luca harbors an attraction for the curvaceous secretary ‘cuz he disguises it under sarcasm, snooty, hostile & condescending attitude whenever they interact. When Roman tells Alice to stay around for dinner to clear up the air w/ Luca, she balks @ 1st but caves in to his persuasion. By the time he shows up (late ‘cuz he had to rescue an ungrateful 5 y/o kid from hell, I mean, from the verge of death), she’s found chatting w/ another dude, who happens to be his acquaintance, which makes his opinion of her plummet even more, thinking she flirts w/ every bloke that comes her way. Her fuse gets lit by his judgmental attitude, hence the ensuing witty & funny jibes. Things go downhill from there as she walks out & he follows her, persuading her to dine @ another restaurant where they continue to trade verbal darts. After Luca fesses up that he’s always wanted her to strip for him, she decides to seduce him & strategy # 1 would be to shape up, which leads to more encounters @ the gym & swimming pool. 1 thing leads to another, their hawt chemistry finally combusts. Alas, he’s incensed when Alice exhibits a cool-as-a-cucumber indifference after their heated encounter. He goes back to her, only to find the shock of his life when he incidentally eavesdrops a phone conversation revealing Alice is preggers. He thinks it’s not his bun in her oven, but he figures, why not kill 2 birds w/ 1 pebble ? His dad has been pressuring him & Roman to get hitched & continue their family line, so now’s a good time. He proposes MOC & Alice sets the record straight that he’s barking up the wrong tree. It isn’t her baby, it’s her SIL’s. Fate plays a cruel joke on her ‘cuz she finds out later on that she’ll be a single parent after all. The problem is, how’s he gonna react to the bombshell ? Things between ‘em have been colder than the north pole.

I really liked this book & esp the feisty brainy heroine. It’s not angsty & doesn’t have the most romantic ending ever, but I had a blast savoring the author’s charming wit. I can’t believe I’ve never read KL before, I must’ve been living under the rocks, or mayhap I have read hers but since my gray cells resemble a Teflon pan, nothing sticks =^P Luca & Alice volley giggle-worthy zingers after zingers @ each other. Even the 2ndary characters’ - as brief as their appearances are – caustic remarks were entertaining. Alice is a refreshing change from the usual plethora of spineless, tongue-tied, virginal HP heroines. She’s not the promiscuous witch that Luca has always assumed. The back blurb indicates : “She’s successful, sexy & pregnant !” She really epitomizes the slogan. I luved her self-deprecating humor– esp when she lamented her weight, that she starved herself for 3 weeks & it would be nice to have lost 1 pound LOL… - & the way she goes toe to toe w/ Luca, while secretly drooling over his sumptuous self. Alice isn’t afraid to speak her mind & gives as good as she gets. I cheered when Alice gave the skanky jealous bitches @ the gym a piece of her mind when they rudely made a disparaging remark ‘bout her desirability factor w/ her still in the vicinity. She’s not someone they can mess w/ (cue that song’s catch-phrase : “I am woman, hear me roar…”). Luca luvs her the way she is & I adored him even more ‘cuz he doesn’t expect her to doll herself up to be a trophy secretary. He actually goes ga-ga over her demure secretarial outfits. They act like they have a mutual dislike but deep down inside, they lust after 1 another’s delectable bods. After overdosing myself on a string of Margaret Mayo books w/ mixed results, I decided to pick this up ( it’s been languishing in my TBR pile). I might be glomming now. I’m keen on reading Roman’s story.
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Adrienne read and liked Rane's review of She's Got It Bad (Harlequin Blaze #464):

" When Liam Masters sees a nude portrait of a woman, he’s blown away to see a face from his past, his first love, Zoe Ford in all her glory, thinking she must be in need of help, Liam does everything to help Zoe, but what if she doesn’t need the h...more When Liam Masters sees a nude portrait of a woman, he’s blown away to see a face from his past, his first love, Zoe Ford in all her glory, thinking she must be in need of help, Liam does everything to help Zoe, but what if she doesn’t need the help but he does? With deep scars from their pasts Zoe and Liam must help each other heal the wounds on their hearts and souls

Everytime I pick up a Sarah Mayberry I know am in for a great plot but an even greater character depth packed into a novella that will keep you reading in one sitting. The leads were not your avenge “normal” leads that was a refreshing change from the norm in romance land. With the heroine being a rocker chick whose not only tough but knows her mind with a soft heart and on the other side the hero being a bike builder that could be a bit stubborn, he had a lot of demons to deal with..

Liam and his mother ran away from his father who was an abusive drunk, after his mother’s death, Liam was taken in by the Ford family, and falls in love with the fifteen year old Zoe. In Liam’s eyes Zoe is everything good in the world, and when she offers her heart and body to him one night, he turns her away and leaves her, the Ford family and everything behind . Twelve years later Liam has made a name for himself as a bike builder, when an friend asks him to check out some art for his new house. Liam is shocked speechless to see Zoe in all her naked glory on canvas. Taking the painting quickly, Liam decides then and there Zoe must be in trouble for her to stoop so long to pose naked for a painting. The innocent Zoe he remember can’t be the same woman in the painting, but she is! To put icing on the cake she’s also a tattoo artist and a rocker who is sex on two legs on stage. A tough as nails Liam can’t get over the change in the Zoe now to the Zoe he remembers. As Liam slowly digs deeper into the change in Zoe, demons from his past start to resurface as he feelings and attraction to Zoe start anew.

Liam was a total hottie, when he gets a tattoo from Zoe, I could just picture him in that chair with all his muscle and sexy smile. *fans self* Liam’s life hasn’t been a bed of roses, but instead of hiding under a rock, Liam build his empire with bikes. Never forgetting his past, he never wanted to commit to any relationship thinking he end up just like his father. Holding his temper in check and staying far away from any alcohol Liam feels he has a good life, but his self-rightness and stubbornness is the true flaws in Liam. Thinking that Zoe “had” to be unhappy she “had” to be in trouble. Liam really assumed to much with Zoe which really created an early rift between them. Liam put Zoe on a pedestal in his mind of everything innocent and perfect, he had a hard fall when he saw the Zoe of now. Not saying Liam wasn’t right, but the way he acted toward Zoe really made me mad. It didn’t stop me from loving him to bits and understanding where he was coming from, and helping Zoe deal with her own demons and having Zoe help him with his fears.

Zoe Ford is a rebel, turning her pain inward and living the carefree life without a regrets as an tattoo artist she can put on skin her art she loves and at night on stage, she can belt out and show she can be one hellva sexy lady. When Liam walks back into her life, she lashes out at him, and even corners/seduces him into the missed night so long ago. Thinking she finally let the memory of Liam go with having sex with him, she’s in for a bigger surprise when Liam offers her a job to paint and help create a bike. Zoe knows Liam just sees her as a charity case and not a woman which hurts her deeply after a tragic accident leaves her barren. As Zoe sees Liam fight his attraction to her, Zoe tries to fight the pull she’s always felt with Liam, and takes matters into her own hands and offers him a not strings attracted affair. With her heart on the line, Zoe helps Liam with his fear and accepting of the past he cannot change but the chance to build a future with her.

Zoe was not your normal heroine, not by a long shot. She drank, she was tough and she was heartbreakingly real. As a teen Zoe loved Liam with all her heart, and when he left she blamed herself for him leaving without a word, because of this she turned inward and after a tragic act that brought tears to my eyes, leaves her feeling like half a woman, things spiral out of control with her family leaving herself to feel she was to blame. Zoe wasn’t happy in her life, but she was dealing in the best way she could with her troubles when Liam walked back into her life. She gave as good as she got when it came to Liam and wasn’t scared to stand up in his face and tell him where to get off. Through her love with Liam, Zoe’s body, mind and heart are finally healed.
In turn Zoe finally lets go of the past and pushing Liam to do the same, understanding him better then himself, Zoe helps him overcome his fears about his father and what happen to his mother. I loved Zoe and in her, I saw many people and friends I know and knew who have been down her road. I felt a deep bond with Zoe and cheered for her through the whole book.

Even with the size of this book, it packs a mean punch with it’s emotion rollercoaster and it’s steamy Blaze worthy scenes. I loved every minute of it as, Mayberry did a amazing job with this book without having to fall back on the normal romance land norms such as the big misunderstanding or the surpise!baby. You get something fresh and deep within these pages, and a few tears along the way.


Overall: there were a few flaws within these pages, but it didn’t stop me for a second in enjoying this book and the many great emotions in brought forth.
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Adrienne read and liked Silapa Jarun's review of The Prince and the Nun:

"I finally had a block of time to finish another one of Jacqueline's books. I've noticed that Jacqueline is a master at building believable environments and communities because both The Prince and the Nun and Light O'Love feature memorable characters ...more I finally had a block of time to finish another one of Jacqueline's books. I've noticed that Jacqueline is a master at building believable environments and communities because both The Prince and the Nun and Light O'Love feature memorable characters who can hardly be called merely "supporting" cast members.

Let's discuss the "Prince" in the story. Mefist IS Prince Charming in every sense of the word but he and his soldiers are caught in a war and assigned to take full control of sleepy convent hidden away in Krasna Dolina Valley which is a time capsule for an old way of life and religious beliefs.

Mefist must deal with Mother Therese, an attractive and intelligent leader of the nuns who must also protect the inhabitants of the valley around the castle.

Well to be exact, he doesn't really "deal" with Therese, he orders in the most charming way as possible to convert part of the convent into a bordello and decides to train the young women as well. The temporary arrangement will affect all the women's lives permanently as they meet people from beyond the valley, face the realities of war and realize that physical love is simply divine.

Jacqueline's work is a delicate narrative involving many pairings, characters from many backgrounds and a highly anticipated ending between the hero and unlikely heroine.

After I completed the work, I couldn't help but feel that the convent's occupants are now truly prepared to go forth and find new paths in their lives.

The Prince and the Nun is a satisfying read for anyone who would like to meet a very strong heroine who realizes her spiritual convictions do not conflict with the temptation her Prince has to offer....
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Adrienne read and liked UniquelyMoi *Dehvotion*'s review of Long Hard Ride (Rough Riders, #1):

"


Thanks for pointing out that I hadn't posted a review, Adrienne.

From the cover:

One lucky woman-three sexy cowboys...she's in for the ride of her life! Channing Kinkaid itches for a change; a wild western adve...more


Thanks for pointing out that I hadn't posted a review, Adrienne.

From the cover:

One lucky woman-three sexy cowboys...she's in for the ride of her life! Channing Kinkaid itches for a change; a wild western adventure with an untamed man. Determined to shed her inhibitions and embrace the steamier, seamier side of life, she sets her sights on hooking up with a real chaps-and-spurs-wearing cowboy. Enter Colby McKay -- bull rider, saddle bronc buster and calf roper. From the moment he sets lust-filled eyes on the sweet and fiery Channing, he knows he's found the woman who-s up to the challenge of cutting loose. What rough and rowdy cowboy could resist a no-holds-barred sexual romp with a sassy young thing starring as his personal buckle bunny?

Intrigued by Channing's bold proposition of horsing around on the road, Colby impulsively sweetens the deal; sexual escapades not only in his bed, but in the bedrolls of his rodeo traveling partners, Trevor and Edgard.

Although Channing's secretly longed to be the sole focus of more than one man's passions, Colby's demand for complete submission behind closed doors will test her willful nature.

Can Channing give up total control? Especially when not all is as it seems with the sexy trio? Or will the cowboys have to break out the bullropes and piggin' string to break in this headstrong filly?

Warning: This title contains the following: lots of explicit sex, going strong long after the cows come home, graphic language that'd make your mama blush, light bondage with bullropes, menage-a-trois, and -- yee-haw! -- hot nekkid cowboy man-love.


Why this rating? This is another instance where I wish we could rate the writer separately from the story itself, because I like Lorelei James' writing style. It was easy to read... it flowed well. But I wish the story had had more meat on the bones, so to speak. Since the writer would get a 3 and the story itself a 1, I've decided to give this a 2 star rating.

This book, in my opinion, was just OK. The problem I have with it is that I couldn't connect or relate to the characters, and this is just another one of those books that exists solely to give pages to sex. Not that that's a bad thing if that's what you like, but I want more substance than that.

The lead male, Colby, came across and insecure and spoiled at the same time. The female, Channing, was ok. I can't say she was strong, or riviting or... memorable.

I would have loved to know more about the characters. Why did they make the choices they made, etc., but was left feeling kind of ... empty after reading it.

I am considering reading the next book in the series because as I said, I do like the author's style.(less) "