Title: The Trouble With Fate
Author: Leigh Evans
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Mystwalker #1
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Number of Pages: 344
Source: Netgalley
Meet Hedi Peacock. She's half Fae. Half Were. And all trouble…
I Have Two Words For Werewolves:
My name is Hedi Peacock and I have a secret. I’m not human, and I have the pointy Fae ears and Were inner-bitch to prove it. As fairy tales go, my childhood was damn near perfect, all fur and magic until a werewolf killed my father and the Fae executed my mother. I’ve never forgiven either side. Especially Robson Trowbridge. He was a part-time werewolf, a full-time bastard, and the first and only boy I ever loved. That is, until he became the prime suspect in my father’s death…
Bite Me. Today I’m a half-breed barista working at a fancy coffee house, living with my loopy Aunt Lou and a temperamental amulet named Merry, and wondering where in the world I’m going in life. A pretty normal existence, considering. But when a pack of Weres decides to kidnap my aunt and force me to steal another amulet, the only one who can help me is the last person I ever thought I’d turn to: Robson Trowbridge. And he’s as annoyingly beautiful as I remember. That’s the trouble with fate: Sometimes it barks. Other times it bites. And the rest of the time it just breaks your heart. Again…
I really wanted to love this book. Hedi is everything a strong UF heroine should be: strong, independent and unforgiving. However, a few chapters in I realized I really didn't connect with her at all. There was a lot of world building thrown in that was explained well, but at the same time was overwhelming to me. Sometimes I just don't have the patience for Urban Fantasy books because the story takes awhile to build, and this was one of those times.
This poor book also came after a massive overdose on Urban Fantasy reads on my part, and it was a casualty. The premise was really interesting, but the book itself just failed to hold my attention.
Author: Julie Ann Walker
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Black Knights Inc #2
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Number of Pages: 311
Becky "Rebel" Reichert never actually goes looking for trouble. It just has a tendency to find her. Like the day Frank Knight showed up at her door, wanting to use her motorcycle shop as a cover for his elite special ops team. But Becky prides herself on being able to hang with the big boys-she can weld, drive, and shoot just as well as any of them.Man with a Mission Munitions, missiles, and mayhem are Frank's way of life. The last thing the ex-SEAL wants is for one brash blonde to come within fifty feet of anything that goes boom. Yet it's just his rotten luck when she ends up in a hostage situation at sea. Come hell or high water, he will get her back-whether she says she needs him or not.
This is the book that made me realize Romantic Suspense and I will never get along. In Rides Trouble had a great heroine, a mysterious hero and I don't know why it didn't gel with me, but it didn't. I didn't read book one, which is always a mistake, but from the parts I read, it really worked well as a stand alone. If you like books with humor, bad ass heroes, then you will love this book. This genre, sadly just does not get along with me.
Title: This Fierce Splendor
Author: Iris Johansen
Genre: Historical Romance
Publisher: Random House/Loveswept
Number of Pages: 256
Cover note: This is an old cover and the only one on goodreads. Gotta love those late 80s romance covers!
Scottish beauty Elspeth MacGregor travels to Hell's Bluff to hire Dominic Delaney to lead her to the magical lost city of Kantalan, but at first he refuses -- the last thing he needs is to join a virginal scholar on a dangerous quest. But Elspeth's fiery will coupled with her silky hair and milk-white skin prove irresistible, and Dominic acts -- first with angry lust, then with a searing yet tender passion that brands her eternal soul and bonds them both to a heated and turbulent future. Through wonders and tragedy, across the untamed splendors of Arizona and Mexico, Elspeth and Dominic draw closer to their dual destiny: to experience the dark mysteries and magnificent riches of Kantalan... and to fulfill the promise of lasting love and the birth of a bold family dynasty.
I know, I know...I shouldn't have even attempted a historical romance. My track record with them lately has been about the same as my track record with Romantic Suspense-not so good. In my defense, Iris Johansen used to be one of my all time favorite historical romance writers until she jumped ship to write mainly Romantic Suspense novels. Apparently my heart still hasn't forgiven her for that, because even though the writing is good, the characters were likable I could just not get into the book for the life of me.
