K. Nilsson's Blog: Favorite Author Spotlight, page 10
February 5, 2018
Review: CJ Thomas Black Obsession
Black Obsession by C.J. Thomas My rating: 4 of 5 stars I awaited CJ’s third book in the Kelly Black Series, with anticipation, the first two got me hooked, and Obsession didn’t disappoint. The things I like about CJ’s writing are characters; she makes you care about them; the stories have good suspense and romance, and she’s good at cliffhangers. Obsession includes the usual suspects...
CJ Thomas has another cliffhanger with Black Obsession
Black Obsession by C.J. Thomas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I awaited CJ’s third book in the Kelly Black Series, with anticipation, the first two got me hooked, and Obsession didn’t disappoint.
The things I like about CJ’s writing are characters; she makes you care about them; the stories have good suspense and romance, and she’s good at cliffhangers.
Obsession includes the usual suspects, Kendra, Madam, Kendra’s friend/roommate Alex, and of course, the prime suspect in a murder case, Nash Brooks.
At the end of the last book, Kelly was arrested for assault and Kendra was beside herself. He was released, though he wasn’t so concerned about the arrest as he was about interrogating Nash Brooks, even if it meant Kendra would lose Alex’s friendship.
As Kendra chased after Kelly, and Kelly chased after Madam and Nash and then, he made Kendra chase after Alex, the story got a bit dizzying. A little song played in my head, “all around the mulberry bush; the monkey chased the weasel…”
The second half of the book, CJ regained ground and tackled the pertinent points about her suspense series, who killed Maria Greer, and why. Did it have anything to do with Mint, the secret, and exclusive BDSM Club, and what if the murderer wasn’t the obvious suspect?
As the red herrings continue to multiply, I’m hoping they don’t end up smoked.
Which brings me to the same question I had before, why does Kendra keep putting herself in unnecessary danger, tempting fate? All I can surmise is something is going to happen to her, thus adding to the tension, and I think the tension is a good thing.
Meghan March Ruthless Magic
Ruthless King by Meghan March
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Thank you, Meghan March for creating story magic with the Ruthless series.
Mount, the bad ass kingpin of New Orleans, launched a hostile takeover of an assertive businesswoman, Kiera, whose dead husband left her in debt to Mount to the tune of a half million dollars. She’s fighting him tooth and nail but he has her over a barrel, threatening to hurt her family and friends if she doesn’t submit willingly.
Kiera has chinks in her armor, naivete, pride, and family loyalty, that are endearing. Mount softens a bit against her outraged fits and uncharacteristically tolerates a lot of verbal abuse and defiance from her. Mount alternates between amusement and anger to the bickering when he pushes her limits.
Their sexual chemistry is as hot as a car hood on a New Orleans summer day. I feel like a lucky voyeur.
#NOLO #kingpinromance #goodgirltakenbykingpin #shewilllikeit #alphaalltheway #badhusband #indebt
Anita Gray Blair, an innocent assassin
Blaire by Anita Gray
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Blaire was a gripping story of a young girl trained to be an assassin. She maintains a rare innocence borne of being sheltered from normal life and not without naivete. Blaire is surrounded by brutality but manages to be the blossom in the flames, and hopefully, she will end up as the rose amongst the ashes.
It’s very brutal and dark. Maybe the author was been a bit trigger-happy?
Girl in Bath Time travel with CC Heywood was a Blast
Girl in Bath by C.C. Heywood
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Time traveling with CC Heywood was a blast. Think of it as stepping into a Degas painting where a dominant is disguised as a gentleman and a feisty woman with a great singing voice disguised as a laundress.
I think of the era and setting of the story as another character. The Belle Époque was the gilded age, overlapped with the Victorian era. The amount of wealth spent on the Eiffel Tower, the Paris Metro, the completion of the Paris Opera was proportional to the levels of optimism of the times. It was the age of Manet, Renoir, Pissarro, Cezanne, and Degas.
It was the time for a singing laundress, Monica Fauconnier, once a model for a painter, to reach for the brass ring and become a star. Instead, she became the object of Jonathan Derassen’s desire. Jonathan was an enigmatic, divorced man of means with an obsession to make Monica a courtesan and his lover. But the spirited young Monica had other ideas.
One of the story’s new characters was delightful, Madame Pelletier, the owner of the laundry where Monica worked. I envisioned her as a bosomy middle-aged woman, who stuffed handkerchiefs, change, sewing supplies, everything she owned, between her breasts. She was salty with a faint smell of soap, her thick tendrils escaped the headscarf, and her dark eyes pierced like daggers.
Even though this book is an adaptation of the CD Reiss’ Submission Series, Girl in Bath can be enjoyed by anyone. It was a rich, textured, flaky croissant, full of finger-licking flavor. Who does not like croissants?
Bree Dahlia Let me hurt you. It will be okay, I promise.
Broken by Bree Dahlia
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
His eyes say, let me hurt you. It will be ok, I promise.
Deacon Bruce was the exorcist of emotional pain. His silent seduction wasn’t just through his eyes, but his fingers, the tone of his voice, the promise of relief. He wasn’t dispensing a mercy beating to a willing masochist. No, Jacque’s pain was purposeful, dispensed by someone who took sadistic pleasure in the doing.
Sadism is hard to understand on its own but Bree portrayed Deacon as a well-meaning sadist. Pardon me while I stifle my giggle because I know some well-meaning sadists.
But there is something to using physical pain as a therapeutic method to achieve the cathartic experience of releasing emotional pain. Bree’s description of Deacon was what I would have envisioned, intriguing, handsome, and the accent. *sigh* He could beat the”brat” out of me anytime.
Her visuals were as electrifying as they were tender. I felt like I was watching from the sidelines. The words made me feel. Loved the story. Excellent work.
A.R. HADLEY brought back from the dead by a landslide of emotion
Landslide by A.R. Hadley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5 Stars! Landslide is one of those books that will strike a chord with anyone who experienced a loss that left them shattered. She was vivified, brought back from the living dead by a landslide of emotions.
Annie is that shattered person. She is also a beautiful woman in her twenties who went to spend the summer with family friends in Florida, ostensibly, to showcase her photography. Photography was her gateway to freedom. It was a respite from the anxiety and helped her connect with others.
While reading the first few chapters, I realized the half-sentences, a syncopation of inner dialogue were of Annie in the throes of a panic attack. She was attempting to deal the anxiety without drugs. Her social life was almost nonexistent because of this debilitating affliction.
Enter Cal, the forty-something, alpha-stern, sex-on-legs, friend of the family friends and sparks flew. It was a May/December romance at first sight.
Cal’s description is integrated throughout the book. You will see him clearly in your mind’s eye; you’ve seen this guy, I’ve seen this guy. His allure was charisma and power. He was unrelenting dominance. His seduction of Annie anchored and conquered her. His physical possession enticed a dormant, repressed, sex-hungry goddess to come out in the open.
A. R. Hadley conveyed the complex feelings via poetry and the narrative through Annie’s viewfinder. Lyrical poetic metaphors prefaced each chapter. The carefully crafted character’s flaws were like a labor of love from a doting parent. Though I can’t help but wonder if Annie’s habit of twisting her hair is something Hadley does herself. In any case, I like this tic.
Did Annie change in this first of three books? She was vivified, brought back from the living dead by a landslide of emotions.
Hadley ‘s literary style of writing immersed me in the life of the characters, felt their doubts, endured the hiding of emotions and the explosions. I felt the soothing, the unsettling nature of their interactions, hook, line, and sinker.
Landslide ended with a gentle cliffhanger, nevertheless, if the second book was ready, I’d one-click it, right now.
January 28, 2018
Book Birthday! Fall (Improper #2)
Earlier this year, I offered Carrie’s story with Improper, Book 1. The book is free to KU members. I’m happy to say, the second part fills in the blank.
blurb:
She’s been looking for answers in all the wrong places.
Doing all the wrong things …
With all the wrong men …
A really good girl … gone bad.
Until someone found her at just the right time.
On January 25, I gave birth to Improper’s sequel, Fall
blurb:
Carrie was on a journey of self-discovery and healing
When one day, a predator returned from her past,
Someone she didn’t remember
Someone who stole her childhood
And replaced her memories with nightmares.
Someone who took her as a pawn for revenge
He lured her like a lamb to slaughter
To pay for the sins of another.
Torture and pain was the currency,
He planned for retribution
Her only salvation was a heartbeat away.
Check out the new trailers and teasers for FALL to be released with an impressive lineup of Drazen Novellas.
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Goodreads reviews for Fall (Improper, #2)
Reviews from Goodreads.com
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Goodreads reviews for Improper (Improper, #1)
Reviews from Goodreads.com
