Friday, April 9, 2021

March Quick Reviews

Spellbreaker by Charlie N. Holmberg (2020)

Elsie Camden lives in a Victorian England where people must pay to use magic and cast spells, but the ability to break spells is a gift only some are born with.  Elsie is a spellbreaker, but as she is unregistered, technically the work she does is illegal.  One day she is caught by a magic user, and she strikes a deal with the mysterious (and handsome) stranger.  I always enjoy Holmberg's stories; she creates unique and interesting magical systems that merge well with their settings.  The magical system in this book really highlights the class differences of the Victorian era.  I liked Elsie's character; she believes she's using her spellbreaking abilities to help the common people.  The plot was a mix of a historical fantasy and a cozy mystery.  There were some unexpected twists and turns that took the story in some interesting directions, and it sets up the second book of the duology nicely.  4 stars

Layla by Colleen Hoover (2020)
 
This is not going to be an easy review to write; I've been ruminating on my feelings for a couple days and I still don't have a firm grip on how I feel about this book!  For Leeds and Layla, it's love at first sight, until an attack leaves Layla with a traumatic brain injury.  To help her recover, Leeds takes her back to the B&B where they first met, but while working on their relationship, Leeds meets Willow, and he's torn between the two women.  I think it's common knowledge by this point that this book is a paranormal romance, but I don't want to say too much more than that because it really is better to go in as blind as possible.  Hoover's writing is great, as always, but I couldn't help but really dislike Leeds; he makes so many questionable choices!  The story definitely held some surprises, too - each time I thought I knew what was going on, Hoover threw a wrench into it.  But - I can't decide if this book was totally brilliant or totally cheesy!  I do feel like the ending came on really fast and would have liked a little more closure.  3.5 stars

The Lady Rogue by Jenn Bennett (2020)
 
In the 1930s, a young woman searches for her adventurer/historian father, with the help of her former beau, after he disappears while searching for a mystical ring that formally belonged to Vlad the Impaler, aka Dracula.  This book is basically the YA/lite version of The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova, and since that's one of my favorite books, I was both excited and nervous to read this story.  The Lady Rogue is a quick-moving historical fantasy, as Theodora and Huck search Romania for her father and dive into the history of the region.  It had a lot of spunk and humor, which made the sometimes dark topics more palatable.  Although I understood the unresolved feelings Theo and Huck had for each other, I thought the story relied too much on their romance.  It just felt unnecessary in a story that was so heavily focused on danger and adventure.  Not every YA book has to have romance!  Can we focus instead on how intelligent Theo is?  The ending was super rushed, but maybe we'll get to see these characters on another adventure!  3.5 stars


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Wednesday, April 7, 2021

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Luck of the Titanic

Can't-Wait Wednesday is hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and helps us spotlight upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating!
 
Stacey Lee
Expected publication date: May 4, 2021
From the critically acclaimed author of The Downstairs Girl comes the richly imagined story of Valora and Jamie Luck, twin British - Chinese acrobats traveling aboard the Titanic on its ill fated maiden voyage.

Southampton, 1912: Seventeen-year-old British-Chinese Valora Luck has quit her job and smuggled herself aboard the Titanic with two goals in mind: to reunite with her twin brother Jamie--her only family now that both their parents are dead--and to convince a part-owner of the Ringling Brothers Circus to take the twins on as acrobats. Quick-thinking Val talks her way into opulent firstclass accommodations and finds Jamie with a group of fellow Chinese laborers in third class. But in the rigidly stratified world of the luxury liner, Val's ruse can only last so long, and after two long years apart, it's unclear if Jamie even wants the life Val proposes. Then, one moonless night in the North Atlantic, the unthinkable happens--the supposedly unsinkable ship is dealt a fatal blow--and Val and her companions suddenly find themselves in a race to survive.

Stacey Lee, master of historical fiction, brings a fresh perspective to an infamous tragedy, loosely inspired by the recently uncovered account of six Titanic survivors of Chinese descent.
- from Goodreads

I'll never get tired of stories about the Titanic, and this sounds like a really interesting angle!

Monday, April 5, 2021

Battle of the Book Covers #4

 
In Battle of the Book Covers, I pick one book, compile a bunch of different international covers, and choose my favorite - and I'd love for you to weigh in, too!  (Thank you to Heather at Random Redheaded Ramblings, who put together a list of 25 book blog post ideas, for the inspiration!)
 
For this edition, I'm going back to 2016 for Fiona Davis' debut novel, The Dollhouse.  Fiona Davis writes beautiful historical fiction novels set in iconic New York City buildings, and their covers generally feature a picture of the subject building, which in this case is the Barbizon Hotel. 


2016 US // 2017 Bulgarian // 2017 Dutch


2017 German // 2017 Italian // 2018 Norwegian

While I love the viewpoint of the German edition and the glamour of the Italian cover, I think my favorite is...



The 2016 US cover!  I love the grayscale with the pops of red.  I think this might have been based on an actual postcard, but I'm not 100% sure!

Which is your favorite?
 
 
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Friday, April 2, 2021

Month in Review: March 2021

 
March was a pretty quiet month around here.  We had a lot of really nice weather, so we took advantage of it and went for afternoon walks almost every day.  My niece had a sleepover at my mom's house one weekend, and since she lives nearby, I spent the afternoon with them, going to the playground and crafting, painting rocks to look like ladybugs.  Tom made a traditional meal for St. Patrick's Day, which is basically his favorite holiday of the year.  While most of my co-workers are busy with tax season, I'm in kind of a quiet time, so I attended some educational webinars and caught up on other projects.

It's hard to believe that it's officially been a year since the pandemic started.  Tom and I are both still working from home, and we don't see that changing soon.  He is eligible to get a vaccine through his employer but hasn't made an appointment just yet.
 
The Books
 


 
 
 
 
The Posts and Reviews
 
 
 
 How are YOU doing?
 
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Thursday, April 1, 2021

Blog Tour + Excerpt: Give Love a Chai

Give Love a Chai, an all-new charming second-chance romance from Nanxi Wen, is now available in Kindle Unlimited! 

Tia Wang’s Wedding Planning To-Do List:

1. Find the perfect dress

2. Win her future mother-in-law's approval

3. Divorce her not-so-ex husband, Andrew Parker

When she fell in love and married her childhood best friend on a whim in Vegas, Tia innocently thought love conquered all. Turns out, that was a crushing lie. Her world shattered as she and Andrew were torn apart by secrets and mistakes.

Ten years later, Tia has left the pain behind and carved out a new life with Mr. Perfect. The only thing standing between her and happily ever after? A divorce from Andrew.

It should have been easy for Andrew to sign his name on the dotted line. Independent, prickly, and always in control, Andrew has done everything to escape his past. But seeing Tia on his doorstep after all these years? He can’t help wondering what might have been. Andrew has never forgotten Tia and vows to fight for their relationship this time around. If he has to hold those divorce papers hostage to get his second chance, he will.

Feelings resurface, stronger and more complex than ever. But Tia and Andrew have more than Mr. Perfect between them. Can they overcome past mistakes to forge a future together, or will new threats ruin their second chance at forever?

'Give Love a Chai' is a full-length contemporary romance, and can be read as a standalone. Book #2 in the Common Threads series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe. 

Read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/36ZjKwl

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3fojKK4

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/396yb4k

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3nTJPUr

Amazon Print:https://amzn.to/3rCsula

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/3b7rRui

Audiobook: Coming later this year!

Excerpt

I didn’t care what Andrew Parker thought.

Not anymore.

Still, I put on some lip balm before I could think too much about why and opened the door. Andrew sat by the little island in his kitchen, hands gripping a beer.

Huh.

I had never seen him drink alcohol before. Unlike pretty much everyone that I knew, he had been very intentional about not engaging in underage drinking. It made me sad to think about all of the changes that I missed, moments that I had expected to be part of if he hadn’t pushed me away.

Now, I was getting angry. I held on to that anger. Anger was easy. Anger had carried me through the first few months after he had betrayed me, especially when I was railing against the world in those awful days in the hospital.

Oblivious to my anger, he looked up. “You still smell like those fruity Lip Smackers you used to love, Ting.” His gray eyes roamed over me. A single dimple flashed at me, as his lips tugged to one side.

I couldn’t believe he still remembered my fondness for Lip Smackers. I had been using them since I first immigrated to the United States from China and discovered them in the aisle of some supermarket. I was the only person over the age of ten that still used them, but I was loyal to what I liked. Unlike Mr. Cool in front of me. “I don’t go by Ting anymore. It’s Tia now.”

“When did you decide that?” Andrew asked, unfurling himself to standing. His six feet two inches of muscles towered over me. The large kitchen suddenly felt small. Andrew the man had a presence that overwhelmed me in a way that Andrew the boy had never.

“Almost ten years ago when I needed a fresh start. I wanted a name that helped me to fit in,” I said, daring him to say anything.

His only response was the tightening of his shoulders. I couldn’t tell if he was reacting to my dig about a fresh start, or to me changing my name after years of him encouraging me to keep my given name. When we first met twenty years ago, we had bonded over not fitting in. As much as he told me “screw them” when our classmates made fun of my foreign-sounding name, my faint accent, or squinted their eyes while saying “konnichiwa” despite my protests that I was from China, I had cared too much. My name was the part of me that was the easiest to change.

“Okay, Tia,” he started, letting my name roll over his tongue, as if testing how it felt. “Why are you here?”

I looked into his face, so achingly familiar that I could have drawn his features from memory. I let myself feel the full weight of sadness, bitterness, and regret wash over me. Andrew Parker was my past, an anchor that I hadn’t even realized was holding me back. I needed to move forward now.

In a voice that sounded stronger than I felt, I said, “I want a divorce.”

About Nanxi Wen

Nanxi Wen thought she was going to write the greatest historical novel. Turns out, her characters decided that they want to be in the 21st century with modern plumbing, online shopping, and reality TV shows. Her first book comes out in February 2021 – Give Love a Chai.

She lives in New England with her husband and two clingy monkeys (aka toddlers). When she is not despairing over word count, she enjoys reading, snacking, drinking coffee, sitting by the fireplace, hanging out with friends (far apart and with masks) and daydreaming.

Find Nanxi Wen online

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NanxiWrites/

Facebook Reader Group: http://bit.ly/3nb3Kxp

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nanxiwenauthor/

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Website: https://nanxiwen.com/

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Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Can't-Wait Wednesday: The Seven Day Switch

 Can't-Wait Wednesday is hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and helps us spotlight upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating!
 
Kelly Harms
Expected publication date: July 2, 2021
Two moms as opposite as a Happy Meal and a quinoa bowl. What a difference a week makes in a heartfelt, laugh-out-loud novel by the Washington Post bestselling author of The Overdue Life of Amy Byler.

Celeste Mason is the Pinterest stay-at-home supermom of other mothers’ nightmares. Despite her all-organic, SunButter-loving, free-range kids, her immaculate home, and her volunteering awards, she still has time to relax with a nice glass of pinot at the end of the day. The only thing that ruins it all is her workaholic, career-obsessed neighbor, who makes no secret of what she thinks of Celeste’s life choices every chance she gets.

Wendy Charles is a celebrated productivity consultant, columnist, and speaker. On a minute-by-minute schedule, she makes the working-mom hustle look easy. She even spends at least one waking hour a day with her kids. She’s not apologizing for a thing. Especially to Celeste, who plays her superior parenting against Wendy whenever she can.

Who do Celeste and Wendy think they are? They’re about to find out thanks to one freaky week. After a neighborhood potluck and too much sangria, they wake up—um, what?—in each other’s bodies. Everything Celeste and Wendy thought they knew about the “other kind of mom” is flipped upside down—along with their messy, complicated, maybe not so different lives. - from Goodreads

I've really been enjoying Kelly Harms' books, and this sounds like it's going to be fun!

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

Blog Tour + Excerpt: Mad About Ewe

 

Mad About Ewe, an all-new heartwarming second-chance romance from Susannah Nix, is now available in Kindle Unlimited! 

Dawn Botstein is doing just fine after her divorce, thank you very much.

She’s got her yarn store to run, her house to herself for the first time in her life, and no use for men anymore. That is until the hottie silver fox who walks into her store turns out to be her old high school crush—the guy who rejected her 30 years ago.

No way is she going to lose her head over him this time, no matter how well he wears that salt-and-pepper lumberjack beard. Okay, so he’s the opposite of her ex in every way, and his attention gives her a thrill she thought she’d never feel again. She’s not risking her heart again.

Mike Pilota is having a mid-life crisis.

Only instead of buying a red sports car he can’t afford and dressing like a 25-year-old who’s time-traveled from the 1990s, he quit his job after his second divorce to move closer to his recently widowed mother.

He didn’t expect to run into Dawn again, but as soon as he lays eyes on her he’s utterly smitten. So he sets out to make up for past mistakes and prove he can be the kind of man she deserves.

But is it too late for second chances? Or will these two lonely hearts find a way back to each other?

'Mad About Ewe' is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #1 in the Common Threads series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe.  

Read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/399SCgE

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/35Wn4Zz

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/394iuuu

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3fpPfDs

Amazon Print: https://amzn.to/3l7pbQf

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/3ockxRN

Audiobook: Coming later this year! 

Excerpt

Mike Pilota sent you a friend request.

I’d received the notification a week ago but still hadn’t responded. I’d just left it hanging there, unanswered. Ignored.

Out of spite? Perhaps a little. After he’d rejected me yet again, I had to admit I enjoyed the thought of Mike getting a taste of that same rejection for once. I liked to picture him sitting at home, futilely checking his notifications day after day, waiting for a reply that would never come.

I wanted him to know that I wasn’t desperate for his attention and would not be begging for treats like a pet Labrador. I couldn’t care less whether I ever spoke to Mike again.

Of course, it was just as likely he’d forgotten he even sent the request by now. There was no reason to assume he was in any way invested in my response.

I couldn’t imagine why he’d sent it in the first place. Why now? Why would you send a friend request to someone you’d brushed off?

I hadn’t even realized Mike was active on Facebook, which was probably just as well. It had saved me from years of pathetic cyberstalking. And it would be pathetic to be hung up on a man you’d had a childish crush on thirty years ago.

Good thing I wasn’t.

I’d meant what I’d said about being done with Mike Pilota. Finito. Over and out. So long, and thanks for all the fish.

So it was annoying in the extreme when I walked into The Old House Pub and saw him sitting next to Angie. My steps, which had been confident and quick as I entered the bar, faltered as I recognized him.

How? Why? What the blazing hell was Mike doing here?

My eyes narrowed as they homed in on my best friend, the obvious answer to all my questions. She must have recruited Mike for her reunion committee. And I could guess why.

It was clearly some misguided attempt to force another reunion between me and Mike in the hopes that, against all odds, this time sparks would finally fly, and he’d realize his secret attraction to me which he’d been repressing all these years.

Did I mention Angie was a bit of a fantasist?

Obviously, there was no way any of that would happen. The far more likely scenario was that Mike and I would try our level best to ignore each other’s existence while pretending there was no lingering awkwardness between us.

That was my game plan anyway. Mike could do what he liked.

Gathering a deep breath, I forced my feet to carry me to the table where Mike and Angie were seated. There were six chairs, and I set my sights on the one farthest from Mike.

Angie spotted my approach immediately and called out a greeting. Mike looked up, and our eyes caught and held for a charged second before I forcibly tore my gaze away to pin my best friend with an accusatory glare. Angie grinned back at me and shrugged, as if she knew exactly what she’d done wrong and didn’t care one bit.

Before I could claim the chair diagonally across from Mike, he leapt to his feet. “Here, you probably want to sit next to Angie,” he said, and held his own chair out for me.

I had no choice but to accept his offer at that point without looking like an ill-mannered ingrate. Mumbling my thanks, I draped my purse over the back of the chair and sat down.

To my consternation, Mike took the seat right next to me at the head of the table. He was so close our knees brushed as he scooted his chair forward, and I jerked my legs away from him as if I’d been zapped with electricity.

“It’s good to see you again,” he said in that warm, gravelly voice that used to make my limbs quiver like a gelatin mold on a mechanical bull. Fortunately, I was completely over my childish infatuation with him, and therefore impervious to his sexy man voice.

I looked up to find him smiling at me, his lips curved invitingly and framed by his neatly trimmed beard, and my heart gave a little involuntary jump in my chest.

Well, crud.

Perhaps I wasn’t quite as over Mike as I’d hoped. 

About Susannah Nix

Susannah Nix is an award-winning author of contemporary romances featuring smart women and swoony men, including the Chemistry Lessons series of romcoms about women who work in STEM fields and the Starstruck series of movie star romances. 

Susannah resides in Texas with her husband, two ornery cats, and a flatulent pit bull. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, knitting, watching stupid amounts of television, and getting distracted by Tumblr. She is also a powerlifter who can deadlift as much as Captain America weighs.

Find Susannah Nix online

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B072KHZS5W 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susannahnix/ 

Facebook Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/160037207970579/ 

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/susannah-nix 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susannahnixauthor/ 

Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16880740.Susannah_Nix 

Twitter: @Susannah_Nix 

Website: https://www.susannahnix.com/ 

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