O'Connor Family Series Collection (O'Connor Family #1-4) by Katie Reus

  O'Connor Family Series Collection by Katie Reus

Blurb:

 

Holly, North Carolina—where it’s Christmas year-round and miracles can happen. A good thing for the O’Connor family—four local siblings, four sexy stories, four unique journeys to happily ever after.

Merry Christmas, Baby:
Legal guardian for her sister, Nora broke her no-romance rule for Jackson, but when he does something she can’t easily forgive, he’ll have to prove a second chance, and her heart, are worth the risk.

Tease Me, Baby:
Reluctantly leaving town to fulfill an obligation, Fallon can’t let her desire for Brad derail her plans. But the sexy sheriff is determined to prove she’s already right where she belongs…in his arms.

It’s Me Again, Baby:
When his new realtor turns out to be “the one who got away,” Maguire knows a second chance with Samantha is within reach…if he can save her from the menace who followed her home.

Mistletoe Me, Baby:
Nolan already wants Miranda, so playing her fake fiancé is no hardship. Convincing her family—and the whole town—is easy. Convincing Miranda, especially after tragedy strikes, proves far harder.

Length: 111,000 words
Author Note: each title can be purchased individually or as a complete series collection.

This is the first book by Katie Reus that I've read that is not romantic suspense so I was really looking forward to finding out about this side of her. Actually, this is not one book but it is a collection of four previously published novellas.
Short but sweet and charming, these books are a really nice treat on a cold winter's day. Heart-warming, sometimes funny,with strong heroines and their significant, very alpha-ish others, these books are captivating and entertaining.

Despite the shortness of the individual texts, there was nothing missing. I am very often frustrated when reading novellas or worse - short- stories because they always seem to be a bit rushed and to miss something vital but this is not the case with these novellas. Developed and intriguing story lines , amazing characters and of course, there's also the fact that Katie Reus's writing is also amazing.
On the whole I really loved these books even though I also would have loved to see some or all of them turned into full-length novels as well. Apart from that though, I can definitely recommend this book with its sweet and interesting stories.

★★★★

Men Under Fire (Grayce Walters #3) by Jacki Delecki

 Men Under Fire by Jacki Delecki

Blurb:
  
Hollie Thomas, the feisty, tattooed office assistant to Grayce Walters, has come a long way from living on the streets. Along with finding a job she loves, she’s found friends and safety. When her new life unravels, she faces dangers that dwarf her troubled past. Fighting to survive, she discovers that sometimes what you need the most might be found in the one person you failed to see coming.
Returning home from the war and struggling to find his way, Sergeant Nick Welby, and his bomb-sniffing golden lab, use their skill set in the last place he’d ever imagined—Seattle’s Waterfront. To protect the one woman who matters, Nick and his trusty canine partner will risk everything to rescue her and Seattle from disaster.
Embroiled in Grayce Walters’ most perilous case—a terrorist plot with the threat of deadly explosives—can Nick and Hollie work together to save themselves and each other before it’s too late?


Even though I liked the storyline, I couldn't really get into the book. I read about the hero and the heroine falling in love, okay, in insta-love, actually but I couldn't feel it. The hero, Sergeant Nick Welby is rather determined in his pursuit of Hollie, our heroine and even though I understand where he is coming from and I read all about his reasons for acting the way he does - I don't really get it. It's just a bit too much, a bit too determined, too strong.

When Hollie's boss, the veterinarian Grayce Walters, is threatened by terrorists, I can't really understand why she becomes a target because, well, it didn't make sense in my eyes.
With Grayce and Hollie's lives on the line, Nick and his bomb-sniffing dog Talley have to work hard to prevent the worst - and somehow without really knowing anything about the situation, those two save the day despite other equally trained people being around who know much more about everything that's happening. That might happen but... well.

Soooo.... I liked Hollie and I liked Nick and Talley - and I even liked other books by Jackie Delecki that I've read but somehow this book and I, we were not a good match. I'd rate it weak three stars, rather 2,5 actually.

★★★

Bad Habits by Staci Hart - Release Day!

Remember 

BAD HABITS

the 

Boxed Set by  Staci Hart

???

It's out today! 

 

*This box set includes three full length, bestselling novels, plus an exclusive epilogue novella.*

 FREE in Kindle Unlimited! 

 

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2J3TByr

Amazon Universal: http://mybook.to/BadHabitsSH

Add to GoodReads: https://bit.ly/2ugooCN

 

Model Boyfriend by Stuart Reardon and Jane Harvey-Berrick

 Model Boyfriend by Stuart Reardon and Jane Harvey-Berrick

Blurb:

 A powerful contemporary romance set in the fast-moving world of international modelling.


"What’s it like dating one of the most beautiful men in the world? A man whose face is on every magazine and ad campaign?

Not as much fun as it sounds, as Anna Scott is about to find out.

Retired from rugby at the age of 33, injured and bored, Nick is given the chance to enter the high stakes world of fashion photography as a model.

But behind the glittering façade lies an ugly reality: drugs, alcohol, all the deadly sins, and people willing to sleep their way to the top.

It’s a tough life and tougher on relationships.

Nick needs to learn to navigate the treacherous path quickly or risk losing it all—including the woman who has become his reason for living.

In this glamorous world, there is no room for error. Being a MODEL BOYFRIEND has never been harder.

Can nice guy Nick find his way through, or will he be tempted to risk it all? Because the one thing he despises is failure.

He’s a lot more than a pretty face."


This story continues where UNDEFEATED left off, although it can also be read as a stand-alone story in its own right.


After having read "Undefeated" I waited rather impatiently for this book to find out more about Nick and Anna's story. I loved "Undefeated" but "Model Boyfriend" was even more intense and unputdownable.
Learning more about the world of modelling and photo shootings - wow, I'm not sure that I really wanted to know it all! This world is so hard and brutal, I was really shocked.

The brutality of this life combined with the sense of loss and drifting after retiring from a sport that defined your whole life, the trials that Anna and Nick, our hero and our heroine, have to face when their past once again comes to haunt them as in "full-fledged poltergeist-mode haunt them" - all of this is part of a very intense story that is captivating and romantic as well as sexy and simply beautiful - and hard.

You feel with Anna and Nick when they have to fight for their happiness, you are with them when they have to compromise and you swoon and smile when both of them, even Nick realize what really counts. I love that those two never really let anything come between them, they care too much for each other and they talk about the things that count.

Parts of the story are inspired by Stuart Reardon's own story so I fear that those two authors know what they are talking about when they tell about the world of international modelling and its harsh realities. I loved that the book and its story are still positive even though the authors don't gloss anything over but tell it as they see it.
Now I am waiting again for the next book ... not so patiently...

★★★★★

Pre-Order Blast! BAD HABITS BOXED SET by Staci Hart

Six best friends. Three love stories. One big city. Countless laughs.

The Bad Habits Boxed Set, a must read collection from Staci Hart is coming July 12th!

Don’t miss this STEAL of a deal that includes three bestselling, full-length novels and an all-new bonus epilogue, all for the special pre-order price of 99¢!

WITH A TWIST

West Williams has been friends with Lily since the day she moved into their building and he saved her armoire from a swift, sudden death by staircase. Their friendship has always been easy, the boundaries clearly defined. With neither of them willing to risk their relationship, they’ve drifted happily through the years as companions, never considering more. Until they do. And that realization changes everything.

  

***

CHASER

Everyone knows you should never say never. Cooper never saw Maggie coming--she was just his best friend’s little sister, the curly-haired, freckle-faced girl from Mississippi who was absolutely off limits. Maggie never expected to find her fiancé banging her maid of honor an hour before she was set to walk down the aisle, but life’s funny that way. The only option to save her sanity is to get the hell out of Jackson and move to New York where her brother lives. The only downside: Cooper is there too. And she just doesn’t know if she can stay away from him — the filthy rich, dead sexy playboy who’s allergic to commitment. 

*** 

LAST CALL

Patrick Evans is no stranger to consequences. When your mother walks out, your dad drifts away. When you leave home, you’re on your own. And when you run away from the girl you love, you lose her. He finally has an opportunity to rebuild the bridge he burned with Rose, and it’s not one he’ll take for granted. But he’ll have to fight for her, even if it hurts. Even if it means he’ll walk away brokenhearted. Because deep down, he knows that she’s it for him. The trick will be to get her to admit she feels it too.

***

HAPPILY EVER HABITS

Who has babies? Who's getting married? Who has a horrible pun battle, and who tosses their cookies? Find out in this exclusive 30,000 word novella that follows the Habits crew through their very own happy endings.

*This box set includes three full length, bestselling novels, plus an exclusive epilogue novella.*

Don’t miss out!

Pre-Order your copy today for only 99¢! 

 

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2J3TByr

Amazon Universal: http://mybook.to/BadHabitsSH

About the Author

Staci has been a lot of things up to this point in her life -- a graphic designer, an entrepreneur, a seamstress, a clothing and handbag designer, a waitress. Can't forget that. She's also been a mom, with three little girls who are sure to grow up to break a number of hearts. She's been a wife, though she's certainly not the cleanest, or the best cook. She's also super, duper fun at a party, especially if she's been drinking whiskey.

From roots in Houston to a seven year stint in Southern California, Staci and her family ended up settling somewhere in between and equally north, in Denver. They are new enough that snow is still magical. When she's not writing, she's reading, sleeping, gaming, or designing graphics.

Rose (Red Hot Love #3) by Elle Casey #Rose

 Rose (Red Hot Love #3) by Elle Casey  

Blurb:

He’s trying to keep things professional—but will passion make it personal? Prepare for more Red Hot Love from New York Times bestseller Elle Casey.
Rose Lancaster has watched her two sisters find new lives and loves in the New York rock scene, but she’s too busy running her animal clinic in rural Maine to join them. If only she could get the town council off her back, things would be perfect. Unfortunately, the council has just served up papers for a lawsuit, and she’s at her wits’ end.
When straitlaced lawyer Greg Lister drops by on band business and gets wind of her predicament, he offers to help, and although Rose suspects it may come with complications she doesn’t need, she accepts. For a New York hotshot, he sure seems more than happy to spend time at Rose’s Maine retreat ensuring the service is completely personal.
Rose tries to resist the urge to connect but the attraction between them is undeniable…until Greg makes a shocking revelation that threatens Rose’s future in more ways than she could have imagined.


Reading Rose, I remembered right away the rather peculiar background of these three young women. I mean, not everyone is raised by three mothers with a very liberal idea of relationships, fathers and love. Okay, and sex. Obviously. Sert against this really interesting background is the story of Rose, the third of the three sisters. Unlike her sisters, Rose spends all her time in her sanctuary, the animal clinic, caring for a couple (or more) stray animals and taking care of them when they are ill. She doesn't need the big city and, well, usually she doesn't mind being alone. When her fathers' lawyer Greg turns up and somehow never really leaves, things start to change. It's Greg who has her back when her clinic is in danger of being shut down and it is Greg who proves to her that no matter what it looks like now, he is also an animal lover and, well, he might not exactly be the city guy that he seems to be at first glance. When things fall apart and her clinic is in danger of being shut down, those two will have to decide whose side they are on and what they feel for each other.

I really enjoy the books by Elle Casey and Rose wasn't an exception of this rule. Rose is the third book in the Red Hot series about the three daughters of the band Red Hot and I loved every one of these books. Amber, Emerald and Rose are really amazing and I loved to read about them and the men they love.

★★★★

 

 

The Duke and I (Saints and Sinners 1) by Heather Boyd #TheDukeAndI #NetGalley

The Duke and I by Heather Boyd

Blurb:

Widowed Nicolas Westfall, the Duke of Stapleton, cannot prevent the upcoming debut of his youngest daughter no matter how much he wishes her eventual marriage wouldn’t leave him all alone. Convinced to host a Christmas Ball to prepare her for the season, he’s aware he’s considered a catch on the marriage mart too, but Nicolas is drawn to companion Gillian Thorpe instead.

Gillian was hired to prepare the duke’s daughter for her first season, but it's not easy when the girl hasn’t the least interest in the men and its the widowed father makes her knees weak when he laughs with her. Gillian respects and admires (perhaps too frequently) the Duke of Stapleton and when she’s lured into a mistletoe kiss with him, will she be able to stop at one or even want to?

Note: A shorter version of the Duke and I was previously published in the Hot Winter Nights Racy Regency Christmas Collection.


Oh my goodness, this book was so sweet! Seriously, I simply couldn't put it down because I loved those characters so hard.

The story itself, well, it is nothing unusual, him falling for the unsuitable servant, his daughter's companion with or without wedding bells ringing at the hopefully happy ending but those characters made it very special. I loved Nicolas and his unabashed pursuit of Gillian. You can feel their chemistry and talk about sparks, right? It's fireworks, actually.
And don't get me started on Gillian, she is such a delight with her refreshing honest, her lovelyness and her capability to love (and to protect when it comes to her young charge and those around them). I loved that despite him pursuing someone in his employ, you never feel like Nicolas was pressuring Gillian, all their interactions are based on respect and honor and of course - love. The kind of love that doesn't care about outward appearances or status but that feels deep and warm and turns those fireworks into some kind of glowing and heart-warming fire.

I really enjoyed reading this book and felt myself grinning and swooning all the way to the last page!

★★★★