Author: Mechele Armstrong

Publisher: Loose Id

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-61118-722-9

Release Date: January 2012

Format: Ebook
Genre: Paranormal, Shape shifter,

Menage Length: Short Story

Rating: 4 ½

Reviewer: GJM

Geant the head of the Eastanian dragon riders is taken prisoner by their arch enemies the Wardonians. The Wardonians hope that they will be able to force the Lord of Eastania to marry their Lady in exchange for Geant’s freedom. Geant awakens caged in a dungeon his jailor is none other than Alin the head of Wardonia’s Dragon Riders. While he’s none too happy with how he came to be imprisoned he also recognizes that he has a hunger for Alin that is equal to his hunger for his human mate. Alin is instantly attracted to Geant but he knows it can never be they are enemies after all and if that’s not bad enough the way he captured Geant was less than fair and honorable. Alin knows that even if Geant succumbs to their mutual attraction it will all be over as soon as Geant’s human mate Elesia arrives This is the second book in the Fire Riders series and while it can be read as a stand alone I urge you to read the first book in the series Taming The Fire as it will give you a better understanding of Geant. News of Geant’s capture has been received in Eastania and the Lord is taking a delegation to Wardonia to negotiate his release that delegation includes Elesia Geant’s mate as she will be needed to ease his fire, as all mature dragon riders risk self combusting is their fire is not eased and it can only be eased by humans. When Elesia arrives in Wardonia and is taken to Geant she notices a few things his fire is almost at pitch point which means he hasn’t partaken of the humans offered to him. This makes her angry as he knows the consequences would be fatal. Secondly she notices that Geant’s fire is burning more than she’d have thought even if he hadn’t used a human to help ease him which starts her thinking that maybe he’s had a lover just not a human lover. Thirdly she seems to have an instant attraction to his jailor Alin. She also notices that Alin seems to be very nervous around her which leads her to the conclusion that jailor and captive have been lovers. I loved this book the chemistry between Alin and Geant was amazing both of them struggling to fight the attraction that was there right from the beginning. Even though they realized it couldn’t last they finally gave in. Alin’s inner torment over Geant’s fire knowing that each time the two men came together the fire grew yet not being able to stay away. Hoping Elesia would arrive yet dreading her arrival as it would mean the end of his relationship with Geant.  Then we had Geant wanting to hate his enemy but craving his touch at the same time. Geant’s self control crumbling as his desire grew all the while he was also fighting the fire within. Wanting Elesia and wondering how she would react when he told her that he had forgone a human to ease his fire yet taken a dragon rider who increased his fire. I’m not really a huge fan of Male/Male however I’d of been gushing about this book even if Elesia never showed up. Elesia was just frosting on a cake. The cake itself was the way Ms Armstrong got the reader emotionally vested in both Alin and Geant right from the first page. If you’re already a fan of Ms Armstrong you’ll love it if you’ve never read her before give her a shot. You’ll not be disappointed.

Unfortunately, my staff and I are overwhelmed by jobs, health issues, and a myriad of other things that prevent us from diving into books like we’d love to do.

As of now, we’re taking a brief break. I hope to have RORR up and running, fully staffed and providing awesome reviews, sometime soon after Christmas.

Thanks for your understanding. The RORR yahoo chat loop will remain open and active, as always, and ya never know…we may post a review or two as we find spare time!

Ash, Gail, and Diane.

Agnes reluctantly goes back to the house where she grew up to care for her ailing elderly mother. She’s terrified of he woods behind the house and the evil it contains. When local kids begin to disappear, all her old fears begin to resurface. A mysterious stranger appears and insists she’s the only one who can save one of the missing girls–if she can overcome her paralyzing fear of the forest.

So it’s taken me absolutely forever to get to this short novella! Now that I’ve read it, I feel bad about that. It’s a fun little story that’s both endearing and suspenseful. I enjoyed the creepy monster who seems to be a reminder of classic 70s horror movie villains and the juxtaposition of the light writing style. The story is a good one for those who like a little bit of horror without the gore and guts mixed in with their romance.

The only negatives are the longish bits of exposition scattered through the story. It got a little bit tedious but Griffin managed to ease back into the actual story quickly. another thing is the hints at the end about Agnes being a paranormal ghost hunter, sort of out of the blue. More buildup or even history of being psychically sensitive would have eased the transition. The dialogue got a bit chunky, especially when Griffin was trying to move he story on, but overall, this is a fun story about love lost, love found, and old sins avenged.

Dylan’s a spin doctor. He spins products, corporations, and most impressively, his own life. That is, until Spring and Diane show up in his carefully constructed life and throw him way off track.

It took me a chapter or two to get into the book. You can tell the author walked on tiptoe around a few things, jarringly enough to be a little bit noticeable. The first chapter is hard to read! Then all of a sudden, like my ancient Ford station wagon twenty yards after a green light, it kicks into gear and takes off.

Baron writes with a casual, light-hearted prose that makes the story whip by. It’s easy to get involved in he characters’ lives and stories. Most importantly, his characters are well fleshed out and it wouldn’t be hard to see them as real people. Although, if Spring was real, I’d be a little concerned about her emotional/cognitive development…

I was surprised to find I actually enjoyed this book. I tried to read Baron’s The Journey Home and couldn’t finish it, so I picked up Spinning with an anticipatory wince. It was definitely a pleasant surprise to laugh and smile and even wipe a few tears by the time I’d finished the story. The only downside is the book is sort of an altered version of that movie starring yummy Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and that adorable little girl, where he’s a football player a d she doesn’t tell him her mom is dead and he’s her dad.

Other than the striking similarities, it’s a good story. I definitely recommend it!

Liza and Garrison have a perfect life. He’s a pretentious artist and she’s a former dancer who doesn’t realize a world exists outside of her mansion with her own private studio. Together, they have a 16 year old daughter who is head over heels in love with Troy, the boy next door. One rainy night, a tragic car accident claims Troy’s life and nearly takes Angel’s.

The next two-hundred and thirty-odd pages deals with her parents’ descent into an alternating self-centric spiral of rejection, deflection, and completely predictable, boring realizations about their uninspiring lives.

The secondary characters were far more interesting and had absolute miles more interesting lives and histories than the main characters of this book. I wanted more of Charlcy and Raymond than I did of what’s-her-name and what’s-his-face. It was only when Harvey was writing about those two did I want to keep on reading.

Liza and Garrison were boring. They had no personalities, really, and I couldn’t get involved in their lives. The way the author writes leaves such a huge distance between the reader and the characters. Lots of ‘telling,’ but not much of letting the reader experience the heartwrenching emotions themselves. We’re told Liza is sad, but then we get launched into a prosaic, near poetic flashback of picnics or dance sequences. I really had trouble connecting with this couple. Nothing about their frequent vows of unconditional love for one another or their daughter endeared me to them.

Liza takes a wild hair and decides to be independent, after Garrison goes all emo and hipster on her and declares he’s sleeping in another room. He’s mad, we get that, but both of them get the wistful, moody, melodramatic treatment that seems much more suited for a soap opera.

The book is full of missed opportunities to really pack an impact. The author pulls her punches, rather than allowing her readers to be big girls and deal with real emotion. Harvey is a good author, even though her characters seemed rather desperate to get us readers to notice the settings through dialogue that was unnaturally highly attentive to exterior details, and she could have easily pulled readers from skimming the wordy exposition and introspection into full-on emotional involvement.

Missed opportunity #1: Garrison and Gwen. If he’d been tempted/contemplating or even if Gwen was an aggressor regarding a real or threatened affair it would have brought a whole new level of emotion to the book.

#2 Angel’s death. You know immediately you won’t have to invest anything emotionally in the book. Angel’s going to live, no lasting damage, and Liza and Garrison are going to live happily ever after. Predictable. Boring. If Angel had passed on, that would have brought her parents to life.

#3 the whole organ donor thing. See #2. Donating hr organs after her death would have added new layers to the emotion pie. Sorrow and grief, but joy and love because her death brought new life.

If you life safe, tame books that don’t push any boundaries and leave you exactly as you were before, this is a good book. There were just so many missed chances to snatch at heartstrings, both good and sad, that I felt so disappointed by the time I was done with the book.

Author: Tara Lain

Publisher: Loose Id

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-60737-924-9

Release Date: Jan 2011

Format: Ebook

Genre: Contemporary Menage

Length: Short Novel

Rating: 5 Lyres

Reviewer: GJM

Dr Emmaline Silvay is a genetics researcher working on a way to cure and treat cancer. Her researcher partner Jake Martin as well as being brilliant in his field is also a cause of distraction to Em as she has developed a forbidden crush on the young man. Yong being the operative word as Jake is quite a bit younger than Em. Jake is also in a committed relationship although Em is about to find out that the “girl friend” Jake recently moved in with is actually the boyfriend which of course to her way of think now means there is no possible chance that her attraction can ever amount to anything other than friendship.

Jake Martin is in love with his research partner Em he’s also in love with his live in lover model Roan Black. He has convinced his lover to get to know Em over a weekend visit with the stipulation that if Roan isn’t attracted to her Jake will give up his notion of having a life with both Roan and Em. However Roan finds himself attracted to Em too and the two men decide they want her in their lives permanently.

Em is prepared to go along with the guys for the weekend but after that she feels she must revert back to a friends only relationship after all she has her hard worked for career to consider and there is no way she could give that up. There is also the age issue she’s older than both men. Not to mention what her friends and colleagues at the university would have to say about the very unorthodox relationship so no she’ll do the noble thing and walk away. Only what will happen when their secret is revealed? Will Em find the strength to stand by her men or will she put her career first and keep walking.

I loved this book so much I could feel the chemistry between Jake Roan and Em jumping off the pages. The characters were well developed and for the most part likable though I will admit I’d of liked to beat Dr Kovak to death with a stick. The story was very well written and fast paced.

Ms Lain told an awesome story and to think this is her debut novel. All I can say is if this is the quality we get in her first book here’s hoping there is another book just around the corner as this is one author you’ll want to read more of.

 
Blurb:
Trapped between two horny vampires and one lusty werewolf on a cruise ship with several hundred other weirdos that thought that they were vampires, Scarlett seriously considered jumping ship. Unfortunately, she hadn’t discovered the truth about her fellow passengers until the ship was somewhere in the middle of the ocean. She decided she wouldn’t have much success talking her way out of the sharks taking a bite out of her, but she would soon realize she wouldn’t have much luck where the men were concerned either.
 
WOW…. This book was so hot. After I finished it I immediately went to the authors books to see if there were any more like this coming out soon.  The female lead in this book is very practical, strait-laced and doesn’t do anything without planning in advance. She won this trip and thought what the hell it’s a free vacation. It turns out to be a themed cruise and she doesn’t believe in any of this vampire crap and wants to get off the ship right away but discovers she can’t and decides to try and enjoy her herself as she is stuck there anyway until the first port.  The first dinner she has, she meets the 3 hottest guys whom she can’t seem to resist or them her.  From there it just goes uphill and gets hotter, except for the evil female vampire trying to kill them before they get her first.

 
Blurb:

Marked for execution, Jessica McInness knows joining the enemy is her only hope for survival. However when Kalquor’s crown princes arrive to rescue her, she discovers the three alien men aren’t quite what she hoped for in lifelong mates.   Arrogant and brutish, the royal clan infuriates her—and awakens passions as no other men have.
The Kalquorians are determined to seduce the temperamental woman who inflames their lusts. They relentlessly pursue the hesitant Earther, resorting to forceful means to claim her as their mate.  But love comes at a high price when the princes’ choice of a princess incites a rebellion on Kalquor…and endangers Jessica’s life.
 
This was an excellent 2nd book in the Kalquor/Earth Series.  It was very hot and exciting I couldn’t put it down until I finished it all.  The hero’s are VERY alpha but the heroin gave as good as she got, she’s a spunky little thing.  I can’t wait for the next book in the series and hope it comes out really soon. Make sure you go buy the first book too, because if you haven’t read it your going to want after reading this one.