Tara Chevrestt's Blog, page 135

Dancing in the Shine by Diane Lynn McGyver

I came across this author on a blog today, and was so excited and inspired by  her words about strong women characters, I immediately sought out her work. To my great pleasure, two pieces were free on smashwords. I was terribly excited by this because this allowed me to sample her style before buying the big book.

I am not disappointed. This was a powerful short story with a terrific message. You can do it!! You can get away. Reach deep within yourself and find it. It's there: courage.


The story is about a woman who is trapped in an abusive relationship in a horrible family. A search for her birth certificate leads to a surprising discovery and possibly a new identity: if she wants.


Like many women caught in controlling relationships, she's found herself making excuses and trapped in a vicious cycle. Just when you think she's going to do it, she does something else, and then something else. The ending artfully took a shocking twist and had me on the edge of my seat.


Very well done. Five stars. I downloaded this from smashwords.

Meme 7

I was tagged by Lilith Duvalier. If I'm correct, it goes something like this: Page 77 or 7, depending on your WIP length, line seven, seven lines. So here is what I got on page 77, line 7, 7 entire lines of my current WIP, Opening Up. *Unedited*


"They just want homes. They are trying to get your attention." Yips and whines accompanied his words. "Put yourself in their paws. What if you were in a cage and felt like nobody wanted you?"I do feel that way. She opened her eyes then and looked. They're caged … just like me, only I've caged myself. Kimberly started with surprise, her eyes widening at that last thought.Carl—Dr. Medina didn't give her much time to speculate, however, before he was pointing to a sad, lonely looking beagle. "I may adopt that guy. He speaks to me."
I happen to have cover art for this book so decided to post it along with it. :p

Dominique WaterSinger Goodall Talks About Her Favorite Book/Author

I was drawn into the world of wolves by an author named David Clement-Davies and his book The Sight. I was caught by the way they had personalities, struggles and strife that almost matched the problems we ourselves suffer with. Caught in the threat her half-sister, Morgra represents, a brave pack struggle to find a place where their Alpha female Palla may give birth free from fear. 

When she gives birth to two pups, one white and one black, her old nurse begins to worry. As the cubs grow, Brassa teaches them the way she taught Palla and Skop, the brother to the Drappa. As the pups near the time for their first hunt, they are joined by Skop and Kar, a pup who is alone in the world after his brothers are taken under Morgra’s edict.

There was something about this book that literally captivated me. Even more so when I read the sad follow up, Fell. Larka’s brother is suffering from loneliness. The events of The Sight had meant that he doesn’t know how to interact with those who may have provided him with the companionship he needs.

Both books are amazing for those who would love to read about things from the point of view of the animals. The slight superstitious theme made it so that all those who love the more paranormal theme are pleased too. It taught me a lot about growing up and how I want to be known after everything I’ve done.

The Sight and the sequel, Fell are two books which I fell in love with a long time ago, and stay in love with now.

Moving on to the author, David Clement-Davies – I’ve actually spoken to him and he is a very down to earth British writer. He was fun, gave some helpful advice about my own writing and doesn’t hesitate to talk to his fans – something which is important to me. I still talk to him now, and he offers insights into things and I will be sure to keep in touch with him all throughout my publishing endeavours.



Dominique Goodall is the author of the soon to be released Echoes of Winter, book one in the Seasons of the Wolf series and a self-confessed wolf addict. She has currently been published in two anthologies by Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing and is currently working on getting herself better known by sending in manuscripts for as many different anthologies as she possibly can.
As much as she loves to admit it, she never will be able to count her wolf stuff- there's nothing left for her to be truly able to collect without her own home.
She can be friended on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/WaterSingerHer author page on Facebook is here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dominique-Goodall-author/250907358312446The page for Echoes of Winter is here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Echoes-of-Winter/355235744499607

The Woman at the Light by Joanna Brady

At first, I really loved and enjoyed this book. The narrative is very engaging. The descriptions are just right. The story is different. Can't say I've ever read a tale quite like this one. It gets major points for a unique story line.

It goes from New Orleans to Wrecker's Cave and the workings of maintaining a light house back in the 1800s to Key West to Cuba. It addresses slavery, greed, and how cruel and deceitful people can be.


When Emily's husband disappears, the story immersed in mystery as well. What happened to him? Where is he? When a former slave lands ashore, Andrew, he becomes a blessing in disguise for a woman trying to maintain a lighthouse position on her own. And they fall in love.


That part was beautiful. But when a hurricane hits, it was all downhill from there. I was aiming at a four until the last half.


Some things that did not sit well with me: I didn't always like the heroine. She claimed to be anti slavery after she got to know Anthony, but I can't say I really felt that much emotion from her about it. The past bits about meeting her husband were dull and unnecessary. The sex stuff involved in her second marriage...errr...felt weird, like it didn't fit. And the ending...I'm sorry, but I found it hard to believe everything could be forgiven with the simple gifting of a bag of weed. Everything was suddenly so pit pat and Andrew just brushed everything off too easily.


I found myself rolling my eyes at times over the fact that all the men want to marry, love, or rape the heroine too. But that was later explained and I confess I didn't see this particular twist coming. Big thumbs up there.


All in all, it is a good book. Every book have things one likes and things one doesn't like. It about averages out for me. Three stars.


I received this via netgalley.

Her Unlikely Bodyguard by Lorraine Nelson

Imagine having a stalker intent not only on terrorizing you, but on separating you from your son?
What's a woman to do? No husband, no boyfriend, just a crazed stalker...after her and her son? Go home, of course. Jemma Leigh packs up her son and heads back to her hometown where she feels she'll be safe and be able to start over on good footing.


But surprises await her... her former lover in in town and that spark of desire still lights up in his eyes...and in her own deep recesses... whoot whoot.


And you know it...stalkers can't be stopped. He finds her even in her hometown and when it looks like the good ole Mounties can't keep her safe, it's up to Ted. Can he keep her safe? More important, can they keep their hearts safe from each other?


A story of love, of broken promises, of flames rekindled, of regrets left by the roadside, and a crazed stalker wreaking havoc. And the sex in this is pretty darn hot. LOL


Available today from Breathless Press

Ride A Cock Horse by Gayl Taylor

Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross to see a fine lady upon a white horse,
Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes,And she shall have music wherever she goes.
I've heard a lot about these Naughty Nursery Rhymes. Submissions calls are up everywhere for them. I've been utterly blank. What am I going to do? Have Red Riding Hood diddle a wolf? I suppose it could be a shapeshifting wolf, but still...

And this is the first one I've read. I am so impressed. How can someone take that nursery rhyme above and write a story of love, second chances, white horses (and mustangs), bells, and music, and wrap it up in an entertaining contemporary romance novelette?

The answer: Gayl Taylor

And she has a way with words. Knowing this was a first time book, I was blown away by her descriptions. The sex scenes were HOT too, not the writing of a newbie, scared to open the door author.

Hunter is the hero, back Banbury Cross after having battled drugs and booze addiction. He wants his woman back, but Kate has her reservations. At first, it all seems like it is falling into place. Readers will be wondering, "where is the conflict?" It's there.  After Kate's cryptic and alarming phone conversation the morning after, I was literally on the edge of my seat, wondering, "Oh, no. WTF?"

It had some LOL moments, too, references to riding and a funny moment in the stables.

Romance? Check. Hot sex? Check. Humor. Check. Great descriptions aka not too much, not too little. Check.

Five stars. And no, this was not a book I edited, but a book I picked up solely for reading pleasure whilst on the elliptical.

No Money Down by Julie Moffett

This is the third book in the Lexi Carmichael series, but it's actually a prequel to to books one and two and about half the length. (That's just an estimate, mind you.)

This is when Lexi met the Zimmerman twins. And oh, Elvis is def my favorite. I hope she hooks up with him somewhere down the road. Anyway, as usual, Ms. Moffett gives us a mystery with a HUGE dose of humor. Seems Lexi is eager to get Elvis out of his pants. *snickers* No, no, not like sexually... Just read it!!! Find out how a wave and rogue vacuum cleaner steal the show.


The mystery involves a crazed scientist, a microship, fake money, secret agents. I was entertained and laughed out loud many times. This is one of my favorite series. I think, however, that everything just fell into place too easily. (Absolutely unavoidable this being a novella.) I wanted MORE. And it's rare that I say that. I'm really quite fond of shorter books as that is all I have time for sometimes, but in this case, I want more Lexi and her funny escapades. I can't wait for book four.


Four stars. I bought this on Amazon Kindle.

Love Like Twilight...Debra Jayne East Talks About the Concept of Love

We all have been there. One day we are having romantic dinners for two and the next day we are wandering down the frozen food aisle looking at Lean Cuisine for one. It sucks! Come on…I hear a deep sigh from the wounded…those memories haunt us and inspire us to keep looking for “ the one.”
We are the happiest when we are in love and for most it doesn’t come easy. How many times do we try to get it right? Don’t ask me because I’ll be embarrassed! Very few get it right the first time. I’m going to self diagnose here, something that I have gotten better at in my old age.
Our first concept of love comes from our family. Mine never were openly demonstrative in that department. Sure, my mother took good care of us and my dad worked hard to provide for us all. I was the oldest of six girls. That’s right, six!My parents never showed open affection to each other or to us. I never saw them hug, kiss or even hold hands. They were shy, reserved and quiet and I was also like that in my early years. I yearned though for the affection of just hearing someone say I love you.
I first found it in the form of a small wiggly puppy. Yep, my first love was dogs. Many times they were my only friends. You can always love just one more dog!Whenever I have lost a beloved pet I tell myself I don’t want another one, but have I only loved one dog? Of course not, I’ve had many and I’ve loved them all.
My second love was teen idols! I’m sorry but I have to be honest here. I grew up in the seventies. I’m talking about bell-bottoms, rock n roll music and Elvis. I fell for Dr.Kildare, the Beatles, Davey Jones and quite a few others. Of course they’re only fantasies in our minds, but it teaches us patience. We have someone to dream about until a real life person comes along.I will still remember the hours I spent reading Tiger Beat and salivating over the full sized posters in the middle! {Admit it, you did it too!}
My third concept of love was from television shows. I Love Lucy,  Leave it to Beaver, The Dick Van Dyke Show. Everyone wanted parents like that. The ideals and concepts of family life have not been duplicated in shows today. I’m sorry but they were the best!
My fourth concept of love was books! Glorious, exciting, mesmerizing books! When I was in second grade my teacher took me to the library and I fell under the spell of The Little Princess, by Francis Hodgins Burnette, who also wrote The Secret Garden.
Later, I became totally spellbound by romance novels. It was Barbara Cartland, Grace Livingston Hill and currently Stephanie Meyers. Their words of romance and ideals of love spoke to my heart.
Barbara Cartland wrote over 700 books in her lifetime and was the most prolific writer of the 20th century. I could never get enough of her innocent uplifting stories of love and passion {without sex scenes I might add.}
Grace Livingston Hill was next. She was immensely popular during her lifetime and wrote over 100 novels and numerous short stories. Her characters were most often young female ingénues, frequently strong Christianwomen or those who become so within the confines of the story.
Currently, I have read all of the Twilight books by Stephanie Meyers. Amazon deemed her book Twilight, the best book of the decade. Other books in her series did just as well. Breaking Dawn sold 1.3 million in the first 24 hours. New Moon, another in that same series landed 25 weeks on the best sellers list. What was all the fuss about? It was kind of weird that teenage daughters and their mothers and even grandmothers all were under the Twilight spell.

It was never about Edward or Jacob or even the actors for me. It was the concept of a forever love. It thrilled me, lifted me and gave me back my dreams of knowing that kind of love again. Coming out of a bad relationship recently, I needed to be inspired. We all want a love like Twilight!
So much so, that I wrote my own paranormal romance called Radiance:Love after Death. Marena Jacobs was not your typical kind of heroine. She was overweight, divorced and a workaholic.Her life is about to change one night in ways she never imagined. She fell in love with the man of her dreams after she died. ~
Author Bio: Debra Jayne East was born the oldest of six girls in Martinsville, Virginia. For as long as she could remember, she loved to keep journals, write poetry and short stories. She researched her family tree and suddenly she understood why. Her distant relative, Violet Florence Martin was an Irish author, born in 1862, who wrote under the pen name of Martin Ross in the late 19th and early 20th
century. 
Learning about her heritage encouraged her to follow her dreams of being a writer.
Where to find me:http:////goo.gl/kjNTF http://www.xoxopublishing.com/shop-onlinehttp://debrajayneeast.blogspot.com
http://twitter.com/juliet2cool4u
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Debra-Jayne-East/177696055623372

The Silent Touch of Shadows by Christina Courtenay

First of all, this is a very different story from Courtenay's usual. It's a time slip, and though it has lots of "in the past" bits, I would say the majority is in the present. There was also a lot less man bits than usual. (I couldn't resist saying that!)

It was almost like reading an entirely different author, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Melissa is a genealogist. (This itself was utterly fascinating. What a unique occupation. I found these parts very educational.) She is struggling with her recent divorce when a mysterious aunt invites her to her 600 year old (I hope that is accurate) estate. Daughter in tow, she ends up moving there and soon, strange dreams, scents, voices, visions begin to haunt her.


When she meets the local vet, a dead ringer for Roger, the ghost haunting and seducing her, she faints!


And oh my goodness, can I just say I love the fact we have a contemporary romance here that doesn't feature an aggressive alpha male, but a nice guy?


But Melissa can't pursue a relationship with the handsome vet until she knows for sure Roger isn't guiding all her movements and decisions...and that Sibell isn't taking over her body. (Roger's love interest in the 15th century.)


The story goes back and forth between Melissa and Sibel. Sibel's story is sad and haunting. An evil father bartering her like coin, four brothers that treat her with brutality...but what in the world happened? All we know in the beginning and middle is that Sibell and Roger were separated, but how? By whom? What happened to the brothers? To Roger? What does Roger want?


Very suspenseful with perfect blend of historical/contemporary, mystery elements, descriptions. My only quibbles: If Roger could say "Help me, please, sweeting," why couldn't he just come out and tell Melissa the problem and how to fix it? LOL. Yes, I realize there would be no story then, but I honestly found myself wondering this. Kinda hoped for an explanation. And hey, don't giggle at old ladies with faulty hearing aids. *wagging finger* I promise it's not any more enjoyable for us to constantly ask you to repeat yourself than it is for you to repeat yourself. LOL


4 and 1/2 stars. (This is my blog so I can do that.) I received this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Unearthed: Book Two of the Duty Bound Series by J.S. Marlo

Unearthed Bones...broken hearts...meddling grandmothers...dead aunts with secrets...RCMP officers...pushy doctors...

Riley may be unearthing more than she anticipates when she takes over a bed and breakfast left to her by an aunt she never knew about. There's possibly three love interests. Avery: the haunted RCMP officer. Bjorn: the man she left in Iceland. Chris: the town's doctor who's taken a strong interest in her and Buccaneer.


While she sorts out her heart, however, she also uncovers some mysterious bones and discovers letters that shed some interesting light on her own family history.


This is the sequel to Unscripted. Available today from Breathless Press