Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 88
March 2, 2024
Review: DON’T LET SISTER-IN-LAW BE SAD by Panahi (erotic manga)
A man in love with hissister-in-law succumbs to wild fantasies. It was cute and funny how shy andawkward he was around her. A yoga session becomes close and intimate. Wow, doesit get good! So sexy! But no one can compare to his sister-in-law.
Very sexy! Wish we could’ve seenwhat happened next with the sister-in-law.
Rating:4 stars
Review: MASTER MEETS CHALLENGER (erotic manga)
A young man realizes his adoptedfather actually has two legitimate (and hot) daughters. It was bad enoughhaving to live with his dad’s sexy girlfriend, but now the other hotties?
The most action we get here isbetween the dad and the girlfriend. Nothing much really happens with the youngman. There are some erotic scenes, sure, but this was just an okay read in mybook.
Rating:3 stars
Review: NAUGHTY SISTER-IN-LAW by Kelly Un Ho (erotic manga)
A married teacher that feelslonely. The only married guy on earth that needs to make an appointment to havesex with his wife. And the hot, irresistible school director doesn’t help any.Poor guy has to work too hard to get any and the wife’s too bossy, too. What todo? Well, good thing his sister-in-law was coming for a visit.
The nervous guy act was too funny.As luck would have it, his sister-in-law turns out to be a hottie, too. And hejust watches her and drools over her. The illustrations were pretty good andcertainly naughty. Some of the angles were a little off in the artwork. It waskind of hard to follow the story sometimes. Does the guy cheat on his wife ornot? It just seemed like the guy was sexualizing every girl he saw and it wasmaking him mad. Seriously, he practically loses it.
A pretty good and sexy read.
Rating:3 stars
Review: YOUR BODY’S MINE (erotic manga)
A shy, geeky boy in love with hisbeautiful neighbor. Boy, he was a nerd!
A freak electrical accident giveshis pen-is magical powers, it seemed. O-kay. Evidently, one touch from himmakes people…nice. He seems to give people an aphrodisiac. Unfortunately,nothing really good happens, except the sex scene in the bathroom.
Eh, an ok read.
Rating:3 stars
March 1, 2024
Blog Tour: HAPPY HARRY by Barbara Lampert
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will award a $30 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn winner. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
In her dog memoir Happy Harry: A Magical Golden, psychotherapist Barbara Lampert, a lifelong dog lover, tells the story of her beloved Golden Retriever, Harry. Like her first dog memoir, Harry's story comes from her mostly uncensored daily journal and takes place in Malibu, California.
Harry was a genuinely free spirit - wild, and very wolf-like. Did all this contribute to his being exceptionally happy? Perhaps.
Harry was not only the happiest being Barbara's ever known, happy to the very core of him, but also the bravest. More than once in his life, Harry had to face true adversity, and each time, Barbara would look at him in wonder, not fully understanding how a being could be so brave and at the same time continue to be so happy.
Harry literally pranced through life, with a joyous attitude that made being around him like magic. Barbara fell in love with Harry. And as you immerse yourself in Harry's story, it's likely you will too! Happy Harry is unforgettable!
Read an Excerpt
I call Harry my calendar dog. Exquisite face. That’s what drew me to him when he was nine weeks old. Sounds superficial, but I thought his face was extraordinary. And this sounds superficial too, but I’d hoped his face would stay as gorgeous when he grew up. Well, it has. But you know, no matter what he turned out to look like, I knew I would love him tremendously. What’s inside Harry is amazing!
Harry is the happiest dog I’ve ever known. Genuinely happy, from the core of him. Mostly with a ball game. Harry can’t wait for the moment when he can go out to play.
The first few years with Harry were insane. He was a maniac, wouldn’t listen. Particularly when he was out of the house on a walk or at the big field at the nearby school. We tried every kind of leash and harness. We enlisted a dog trainer. Nothing worked. But little by little, he’s getting better. Still pays scant attention when we’re out of the house, but at least I don’t have the feeling he would run away. Though he’s never off leash when we’re out. Never!
Those first years were so chaotic with him that I was resigning myself to the possibility he might be a sociopath, because he seemed to not care about rules, listening, or consequences. I needed to accept him as he was. But now, at six, Harry has become incredibly devoted and loyal. Our wild wolf has settled into his pack.
I’m at work right now and can’t wait to get home and see Harry. Give him lots of kisses, get his over-the top joyful greeting with a soft toy in his mouth. Seeing Harry brimming with enthusiasm makes me so happy! I love him so much!
Harry’s adapting… But more than that, he’s still so joyful. His abundance of happy energy is so wonderful to be around. He’s still putting stuffed toy rabbits and balls in his mouth, particularly when he’s really happy. Still comes to me with even more enthusiasm and his head held even higher than usual when I say, “Hey Harry.” I love saying that to him, and Harry seems to love hearing it. I only use the “Hey” with Harry. It’s special, just for him. Something I started saying to him a few years ago. To me, it’s a way of emphasizing how cool Harry is. Yes, Harry is really cool, in the true sense of the word. Unafraid, carefree. Still.
Dogs are such special beings. I swear a big reason they were put on this earth is to teach us how to be.
Review: This is the lovely story of howHarry, the golden puppy at the pet store, became Happy Harry. Story is told inthe daily, concise journal entries of Harry’s owner, documenting the events andactivities of Harry. The whole thing reads more like a series of blog entrieswith quick, short snippets and random thoughts. Most of the time, the sentencesweren’t even complete. At times, these random thoughts can get long and tediousas they become almost rambling. I’m not sure if we needed to chronicle everylittle thing. But the sentiment from these pages was loud and clear: this lady washead-over-heels in love with this dog (and she said it in the book often.) Anytrue dog lover would relate to this.
It's sweet and loving—so full ofheart. This was a nice read and certainly perfect for any dog lover. Shorterand quicker would’ve made the read better, I think. That’s really why I go halfa star less than 4 on this one. As a dog lover myself, I’d recommend any dogperson to give this a read.
Rating:3.5 stars
About the Author:
My passion is dogs! I’ve had dogs most of my life and hope to have at least one by my side always. Dog energy is the best! I’m the author of two dog memoirs: Happy Harry: A Magical Golden and before that Charlie: A Love Story. Each about one of my Golden Retrievers. (I told you dogs are my passion!)
I’m a psychotherapist, licensed for over thirty years, specializing in relationships.
I was a flight attendant for nine years. And taught sociology at several universities. I have two master’s degrees and a doctorate.
Gardening is another love – not as much as dogs, but right up there! I see my garden as a work of art and garden as much as possible in my free time. I love being in nature.
I live in Malibu, California with my husband David and, you guessed it, our two wonderful Golden Retrievers, Oliver and Henry.
https://www.happyharryamagicalgolden.com/happy-harry-a-magical-golden
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CMTXK538
https://www.facebook.com/barbara.lampert.50/
https://www.facebook.com/barbaralampertauthor
https://www.tiktok.com/@barbara.lampert5
https://www.instagram.com/barbaralampert1/
https://www.pinterest.com/drbarbaralampert/
a Rafflecopter giveaway
February 29, 2024
Blog Tour: RED PLANET LANCERS by Brian H. Roberts
RED PLANET LANCERS
by Brian H. Roberts
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GENRE: Science Fiction Thriller
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BLURB:
Howfar will you go to save a friend?
Aftersweeping Dallas Gordon and the American base from Earth’s moon, Emperor ZhangAiguo launches an armada to conquer Ep City and control Mars.
RuthlessColonel Song Dajing leads his Emperor’s flotilla to defeat EPSILON’s isolatedMars colony. He brings the same armaments he used to defeat Dallas Gordon onthe moon, plus a high yield missile to annihilate Ep City and its occupants.The US Space Force, occupied with plans to take back the moon, refuses tointervene.
Ina race against time, Dallas Gordon must organize a mercenary squadron andpursue Song before he can deploy his weapons on the defenseless colony. Ep Citycommander Genady Antonov must prepare his civilian workforce for the cominginvasion and plan for the unthinkable should Gordon fail to reach Mars beforeSong does.
Taughtand fast-paced, Red Planet Lancers builds tension until the exciting climax.Once you start this Earth-to-Mars rocket ride, you won’t want to stop. Orderyour copy today!
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ExcerptThree:
As the squadron squeezed in on the rovers, a dense cloud ofdust erupted, obscuring the wheeled transports from view.
Dallas said, “The rovers are using rotating brushes. PangXianjing used them to erase his tracks. Song is using them to generate a dustscreen.
“Fire into the cloud,” barked the exasperated commander.
As they did, rovers nosed out of the dense screen. An orangeglow announced missile launches. The transports backed into the cloud.Brilliant green beams lanced across the distance, but to no effect.
“Missiles away!” shouted Dallas. Streaks of orange leapt inall directions. The ASSETs’ AI briefly disengaged from their primary targetsand attacked any missiles within their thirty-degree field of fire. Missilesthat escaped, suddenly veered toward the nearest Water Bug.
The hair on Dallas’s neck stood on end. “Evasive, evasive!”he screamed. He jerked his Bug up and away from two missiles, barelymaintaining control.
Six klicks away, Sake’ rolled her Bug just as a missilestreaked by. The rocket’s scream was deafening as it passed. She turned and theprojectile disappeared in a green flash.
Her echelon was not so lucky. Both Dusty and Big Seal tookdirect hits before they could react. “Big Seal!” shouted the wing leader. “He’shit!”
“NO, NO, NO!” Dallas tracked the smoking ruin of theNavajo’s water Bug as it tumbled to the ground, raising a rusty cloud of duston impact.
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What was the mostchallenging thing about writing this book and how did you overcome it?
I’m a plotter. When I writea book, I don’t just sit down at my keyboard and bang away. I like to buildthings from the bottom up. I use an excel workbook to detail the backstory formy main characters and outline the plot, determining what happens when. Once Isit down, I know what each chapter will contain, making the writing effortless.
Red Planet Lancers has anumber of plot lines, each weaving through the others, coming to theirconclusions at the end. Normally it takes me about a month to flesh out mycharacters and lay out the plot. But I had a number of plotlines that weredead-ending for me. For the first time in my career, I experienced writer’sblock. Or more accurately, plotter’s block.
The months began to tickby—two, three, four. I was getting frustrated. Then one night I woke up at 3AM. Seeing the entire book in my mind’s eye, I rushed out to my desk—afterputting some clothes on, it’s cold in Central Oregon in January—grabbed a stackof scratch paper and started writing down my thoughts. I ended up with aboutfive pages of hand-written notes. When I dotted my last “i” and crossed my last“t”, I headed back to bed. It was the best I’d slept in weeks.
The next day I typed mynotes into my outline. After that the writing flowed. My characters faced asuperior adversary, fell in love, squabbled, problem-solved and betrayed oneanother. How did it end? You’ll have to read Red Planet Lancers to find out!
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
In his first life, BRIAN H. ROBERTS worked asa contractor and civil engineer in bustling Seattle. In his spare time he readnovels by the greatest names in science fiction: Andy Weir, Frank Herbert,Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and so many others. As he readthese authors’ works, he was inspired to write Sci-Fi Thrillers to engage andentertain readers like him.
As with so many of us, life intervened. Raising afamily, work, remarriage and finally retirement all placed demands on his time.Desiring a change – and time to write – he and his wife traded big city lifefor the outdoor adventures of Central Oregon. His writing draws deeply on hislifelong loves of science/technology and adventure sports. The EPSILON Sci-FiThrillers is Brian’s first series.
Subscribe to Brian H. Roberts's newsletter – Just Over theHorizon - for regular updates including preorders, new releases, sales, coverreveals, giveaways, and more! https://brianhroberts.com/sign-up
Follow him on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/bhrauthor/
Follow him on LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-h-roberts-792b15212/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/RED-PLANET-LANCERS-EPSILON-Thriller-ebook/dp/B0CQTJ848W/ref=sr_1_1
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GIVEAWAY
BrianH. Roberts will award a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.
a Rafflecopter giveawayFebruary 28, 2024
Blog Tour: THE SOPHIA FREEMAN series by T.X. Troan
THE SOPHIA FREEMAN SERIES
by T.X. Troan
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GENRE: Middle-Grade Fantasy Mystery
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BLURB:
Whatbegins as a special trip for eleven-year-old SOPHIA FREEMAN and her billionairefather, leaves her trapped on a mysterious island with a tree boy and otherfantastical creatures.
Themoment Sophia thinks her situation can’t get any crazier, she is shocked tolearn the island is under a deadly eternal curse. All living things are rapidlydecaying and soon nothing and no one—including herself—will be left alive.
Fromcompeting in a three-round yearly held competition to reviving a long-lostmagical spell, Sophia and her new companions must gather every ounce ofcourage, wit and skill as they are stepping closer to breaking the 150-year-oldcurse. But will they make it in time while surrounded by enemies and traitorsaiming to stop them at any cost?
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Excerpt from Book One:
“So, what’s onyour agenda today, my dear?” Grandma asked.
“Dad and I aregoing to explore his new island after this,” she replied, sitting on the edgeof her seat.
“Oh, yes, yourfather told me about that on the phone last night,” said Grandpa, then gaveSophia a serious look. “My girl, do you know why all the previous ownersvanished?”
Sophia shookher head slightly, but kept watching him without blinking.
“Rumors say theplace possesses some sort of magical energy. As dusk arrives, the island comesto life: boulders begin to quake, monstrous trees uproot themselves, andmysterious creatures crawl out of their homes. They will do
anything toprotect their island … especially from humans.”
Sophia’s eyeswidened and her hands began to sweat.
“Joe, that’senough!” Dad ordered. “You’re scaring her.”
“That was verymean of you, Joe,” Grandma added.
Grandpachuckled. “Well, it looks like I haven’t loss my touch. You’re still thatinnocent girl that I used to know.”
Sophia sighedwith relief. He must have been teasing.
When she was alot younger, Grandpa used to tell her ghost stories and it would frighten herevery time. The all-time best story was about an invisible spirit that watchesus from behind since the day we were born. It would one day transfer our soulto a magical place when
we are ready togo. He told the little girl it was time for him to go and would never return.She burst into tears and tried to convince him it wasn’t time yet. She stayedwith him that whole night and never let him out of her sight.
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What was your greatest challenge inwriting this series and how did you overcome it?
I havealways been an illustrator/graphic designer (and always will be), but at onepoint I realized that my artwork alone can never tell a full story. In 2013, Ihave decided to become an author and worked on a story that followed me foryears.
Mygreatest challenge on this journey was actually writing itself. From finding mywriting style to getting used to all the rules, it was a huge learning curvefor me. To overcome it, I had to read books—and most importantly, I have a verystrong and picky editor, who was not afraid to tear my manuscripts apart to takethe stories to the next level (very grateful for that). I learnt so much fromher!
Afterfive years of patience and hard work, my first middle-grade fantasy novel, SophiaFreeman and the Mysterious Fountain, was finally published and had won fewawards from multiple categories.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Thuan Doan is an award-winning author of the Sophia Freemanseries. He conceived his first middle-grade fantasy novel, Sophia Freeman andthe Mysterious Fountain, during a trip to Gabriola Island, British Columbia inthe summer of 2013. Then he took his work and settled in a small town ofEnderby, where it’s peaceful and quiet.
Thuan is writing under a pen name of T.X. Troan. “X” stands forXu, his grandmother’s name who passed away. And “Troan” is a combination of hisparents' names.
“No matter how this turns out, I want my family to be a part ofthis wonderful journey.”
T.X. Troan married Sarah, his original fan and longtime love, in2016. They live in Enderby with their pack dogs!
Book Links:
Author Website: www.txtroan.com
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B5M559C1
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/t.x.%20troan
BookShop: https://bookshop.org/p/books/sophia-freeman-and-the-mysterious-fountain-book-1-t-x-troan/9222735
Social Media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TXTroan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/txtroan/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18815756.T_X_Troan
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GIVEAWAY
T.X.Troan will award a $10 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.
a Rafflecopter giveawayFebruary 27, 2024
Blog Tour: OUR LIVES IN BETWEEN by Billie Kowalewski
OUR LIVES IN BETWEEN
by Billie Kowalewski
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GENRE: Young Adult Fantasy
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BLURB:
Ithad been five years since the accident that derailed Veronica’s life, whichleft her suffering from a strange flu-like illness ever since. Thanks to abarrier set in her mind at birth, she can’t remember her name is Harmony andthat this is not her real life. She has no memory of the many lives she hadlived before this one and how several of those lives had been cut short. Howshe must uncover the reason why those lives had ended so early, and how thismoment may hold the key, or she risks losing herself and Earth forever.
AsHarmony, she wants to uncover the reason why her lives keep ending so soon. AsVeronica, she wonders how much longer she has to live like this? What couldpossibly be left for her? Little did she know, she was about to get heranswers...
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Excerpt One:
My world isyour world—only you can’t remember any of it. A barrier exists between what youthink is real and what you know to be. It had been put in place during thetransition into the world you currently know and will be removed upon yourreturn.
In other words,this is not your real life.
My name isHarmony, and I am going to let you in on a little secret. I am a student at thebiggest, most famous school ever known. And so are you! It’s called Earth.
Yep. Earth is aschool. Are you shocked? If you are, it’s okay. That is the most common andexpected reaction to this news. I will give you a moment to let that sink in…
Just kidding!Based on the fact you’ve chosen to read this; I am going to bet that you’re alot like me. You’re probably fine, and not shocked by this at all. If you do,however, find this news to be at all surprising, perhaps it would be best ifyou stopped here. This story may not be for everyone, and I am not looking toupset anyone’s beliefs. Our extreme diversity is an important part of whatmakes us who we are. So, this may be where we will agree to disagree andpossibly part ways. Hopefully as friends.
For everyoneelse, I will move on.
Yes, life isabout learning, and Earth is our school. I’m sure you have heard someone onEarth say this before. I know when I am there, I hear this often. Some peopleknow, but it’s not because they remember it is. They know because people cannotget through a single day there without learning something, somehow. On Earth,learning is unavoidable.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Billie Kowalewski grew up in a small town along the Connecticutshoreline. She’s always had a wild imagination and spent her childhood dreamingup stories. This would often lead her to the library or whatever bookstorewhere she would be combing the shelves for books that closely resembled whatwas in her head at the time. A lot of the time she would come close and wouldbe satisfied with what she found. However, there was always this one story shecould never find. It was in 2010 that she decided to write it herself. Inwhatever spare time she has left, she enjoys listening to pretty much anythingthat rocks, like 80's hair bands, metal, etc. She also has a gift for findingthe strangest movies and shows ever (according to her children) and lovesspending time with her family.
Links to Our Lives In Between:
iTunes: http://books.apple.com/us/book/id1212458275
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/our-lives-in-between
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1143953733?ean=9781535604505
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=WMrREAAAQBAJ
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CG3PFJKD
My Socials:
https://www.billiekowalewski.com
https://www.instagram.com/kowalewskibillie
https://www.youtube.com/@billiekowalewski9288
https://www.facebook.com/authorbilliek
https://www.facebook.com/enlightenedbookofficialpage
https://www.twitter.com/enlightened31
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/billie-kowalewski
https://www.goodreads.com/harmony31
https://www.tiktok.com/@billiekowalewski3
Buy the book for only $0.99 on Amazon.
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GIVEAWAY
Onerandomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $25 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
a Rafflecopter giveawayFebruary 24, 2024
Review: ROMANCE QUICKIES #8 by Monique Dubois
An ESL teacher in desperate needof a new place to live aims to seduce her French student. Do Frenchmen reallymake excellent lovers? Well, Brooke was about to find out. The only problemwith the French guy was his lame butchering of the English language, which, nodoubt, killed the mood a bit. She’d have to find a way to keep him fromspeaking too much. Well, no problem there.
But Frenchmen don’t have one-nightstands; they fall in love. That could be a problem for the playgirl Brooke. Butthat wasn’t the shocking revelation of this close encounter.
Oooh, a great read with tensionand loads of action!
Rating:5 stars
Review: ROMANCE QUICKIES #7 by Monique Dubois
How could overworked Ella possiblycompete with the rest of her promiscuous friends on who can sleep with the mostguys? After all, she spends all her time at the bakery? Perhaps a hotconstruction worker can take her to the top…literally? A good quickie!
Rating:4 stars
