Coming soon - Blogtour: The Once in a Blue Moon Guesthouse by Cressida McLaughlin #BlueMoonGuesthouse

Starting on June 26th!

On my blog on

July 3rd:

 

 There may be some of those on the left and a bit of those on the right involved... and of course, there is also some romance and there are some

★*☆

 *★

Many stars, in fact.

Curious?

 

***July 3rd!***

Authors at the RARE 17 and their books (Jo Raven/Lauren Rowe//Emma Scott/April White) #RARE17

Jo Raven was another author who I had been looking forward to meeting at the RARE because I've read (and loved) many many books by her.
Her latest book is Caveman. I haven't read that one yet but I've read most of her books in the Inked Brotherhood Series and the Damage Control Series and I've read her book Riot which is, I think, my favorite up to know. One of those books that you re-read every now and then because they are THAT good. Oh, do you see the swag? How could anyone resist a condom with a caveman on it?😉
Oh, if you prefer a book in German, some of her books, Asher and Tyler are available in German as well.

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Lauren Rowe is an author whose books I discovered while preparing myself (and my shelves) for the RARE Berlin. I hadn't heard about her up to then but her books sounded intriguing and judging by the first

few pages they also seemed to be well-written so I started to read them - and ended up buying her latest book Captain and another one of her stand-alone novels Ball Peen Hammer at the RARE. If you prefer a series, you might want to check out her Club Series, they sound really promising as well. The Club Series is also available in German.

It was really nice to meet her and I was thrilled to find another great author whose books I'd never have found if it hadn't been for the RARE!

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I love Emma Scott's novel Rush which I read first in January 2016 and re-read almost right away. Somehow I never thought of looking for other books by her and was pleasantly surprised when I realized that there are other books in this series. The next one that I'll read will definitely be her book Love Beyond Words. When I prepared this post, I found I completely forgot to take a photo of her, when I was talking to her. Instead of a photo of her, you'll have to take a photo of the magnet with the cover of her latest novel Sugar & Gold instead.

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April White is not just an interesting character herself, considering her résumé but also very nice and I really enjoyed talking to her. WhenI talked to her I had just started to read her book Marking Time, which has also been translated into German.
Marking Time is also the 2016 Library Journal Indie Award-winner for YA so you might want to check it out yourself. I think it is definitely worth a look. 


I know that there is so much more to tell about each author but I just thought that perhaps you might find some authors that are new to you and who have just written your next favorite books!If you haven't found them yet, don't worry, there are still some authors left!

 

Authors at the RARE 17 and their books (Denise Grover Swank/Lauren Layne/A.Zavarelli/Mariana Zapata) #RARE17

Who else did I meet?
Well, there was, for example, Denise Grover Swank whose Off the Subject - and Wedding Pact Series are amazing, funny, captivating and I loved each and every one of the books. That's why I was really happy when I was offered one of her other books,The Curse Keepers, at her table. My daughter got the first book of Denise Grover Swank's Rose Gardener Series Twenty-eight and a half wishes in German.
I'm really looking forward to reading those books. The only drawback - if I like them only half as much as I like her other books I'll have to buy even more books. *sigh*
Isn't that a nice prospect!? 😉

By the way, for those of you who think that her books sound nice but you'd prefer to read them in English - there're several other books of hers that are also available in German. Oh, and for the audio book lovers - there are some of those out as well.

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I also met Lauren Layne, who was new to me when I started to read books by authors who'd be at the RARE in Berlin. Since that first book by her, quite a number of them have found their way on my kindle. At the moment I'm looking forward to reading her latest novel I knew you were trouble and to the book I got at her table To Have and to Hold. I was lucky to get the second last one  - and I already know that I'll enjoy it.
                                                 

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The first book by A. Zavarelli I read was An Escort for Christmas. I stumbled upon this book by chance when it was on sale on Amazon and have reread it more than once since then. Somehow I never thought of looking for other books by the author but since I started to read in preparation for RARE some of her books of the Boston Underworld Series found their way on my kindle but I must admit that I haven't read them yet. I will let you know how I liked them when I've finally read them! (Somehow my usually very small TBR pile has exploded since I started to prepare for the RARE so it might take some time)

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Another very nice and charming author I met was
Mariana Zapata. I haven't read them yet but Kulti and Lingus are waiting for me on my kindle and I think that I'll have to check out The Wall of Winnipeg and Me as well. This one is, as far as I can see at least, the only one of her books up to now, that is also available in German as "Mit dem Herz durch die Wand".

At Wit's End: A Doyle Cozy Mystery by Kirsten Weiss

 

 

 

At Wit's End by Kirsten Weiss

Blurb:

When Susan Witsend inherits her grandmother’s UFO-themed B&B, she’s ready to put her organizational skills to the test. She knows she can make the B&B work, even if there is a faux-UFO in the roof. After all, what’s not to love about a Victorian nestled in the high Sierra foothills? None of her carefully crafted policies and procedures, however, can prepare her for a corpse in room seven – the body of her small-town sheriff’s ex-husband. But Susan has her own plans to solve the crime.

In Susan’s mind, Men in Black, conspiracy-crazed old ladies, and an angry sheriff are just part and parcel of catering to UFO enthusiasts. But is there a government conspiracy afoot? Or is the murder a simple case of small town vengeance?

Susan must keep all her wits about her. Because the killer isn’t finished, and if she isn’t careful, her fate may be written in the stars…

Recipes in the back of the book!

Somehow I couldn't really get into this story. It is cute, right, but despite the fact that a lot of things happen, it feels a bit as if nothings really happens. I took me several tries to read the book. 

The story itself had a lot of potential and after having read the blurb, I was looking forward to something like a cross between, well, Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams but somehow it was completely different. Susan is rather clueless and has no idea what exactly she is doing when she tries to play detective and solve a murder. Never a good idea when there is still a murderer on the loose, right?

I can't really say what I was missing because the story has it all. It is unique and witty, has a bunch of quirky characters and a good story line. I just couldn't get into it.

★★★

Say Yes to the Scot: A Highland Wedding Box Set by Lecia Cornwall, Anna Harrington, May McGoldrick and Sabrina York

  Say Yes to the Scot 

by 

Lecia Cornwall, Anna Harrington, May McGoldrick and Sabrina York

Blurb:

You are formally invited to the Highland wedding event of the year. These four lasses are about to meet their matches in an original digital anthology featuring stories from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Sabrina York, Lecia Cornwall, Anna Harrington, and May McGoldrick.

How a Lass Wed a Highlander by Lecia Cornwall
In this retelling of The Princess and The Pea, Laird Alex Munro of Culmore has just five weeks to find a bride and marry her...or else the clan will be cursed with ill luck. Cait MacLeod finds herself caught in a clan feud, and when she tries to stop a deadly raid, she ends up as Alex Munro’s prisoner. With timing running out, is this couple meant to be?

A Match Made in Heather by Anna Harrington
She was the laird's daughter. He was nothing more than a penniless, nameless Scot with nothing to offer but his heart. Fate tore them apart, but now he's back in her life with status, money and a title. Can they let go of past hurts and find love?

A Midsummer Wedding by May McGoldrick
Their marriage was two decades in the making. The young, educated woman and her highland, pirate husband, betrothed when they were still children. But on the day of their wedding, Elizabeth Hay and Alexander Macpherson are in for a surprise.

The Scot Says I Do by Sabrina York
Catherine Ross's world is turned upside down when her brother gambles away every penny they own. But to make matters worse? He’s lost everything to none other than Duncan Mackay, the rugged Scot who Catherine loved for years--but he never noticed her, and now she positively loathes him. But her brother’s in danger of going to Newgate, and the despicable Duncan has a plan– she can claim back the money and save her brother. If she marries him…


Weddings? ✔
Scotland? ✔
Highlanders? ✔
Romance? ✔ ✔ ✔

Mix all those ingredients, take some great authors and you get a wonderfully romantic bundle of swoon-worthy love stories to enjoy and to savor.
Four well-written stories about lovers who have to fight for their love and who have to realize that love is the most important ingredient when it comes to a marriage. Whether it is a story about second chances or about taking a chance on someone seemingly unsuitable or about the most infuriating person becoming the most important one in someone's life - all those stories are amazing. Despite the (relative) shortness of each of the stories, the characters are well developed and the stories well done, captivating and romantic.
That's exactly what you get when you take some of my favorite authors of Scottish romance and ask them to write a story about romance, weddings, and Highlanders.
Sounds good?
That's because it is good and I really, really enjoyed reading these stories.

★★★★★

Authors at the RARE 17 and their books (Molly Harper/Suzanne Wright)

I mentioned that I got some books at the RARE, didn't I? This beauty with the most fetching title The Care and Feeding of Stray Vampires by Molly Harper was one of  them and this was the book that I read on Sunday on our trip back home. The moment I finished it, I ordered the next book in the series and preordered two more books. Yes, it was that good. And better. I laughed so hard when I read this book that my daughter told me (repea-tedly) that I was "soooo embarassing"! Oh, and I had to order a german copy of the first book of another series of Molly Harper's as well because my husband and my other daughter have to read her books as well and they don't read books in English. Unfortunately just a couple of her books were translated and those are out of stock so I had to buy it second hand. Seriously, those books are so funny and I'm really happy that I discovered them due to this event.

 

Obviously I will read more books by Molly Harper, especially as her book How to Run with a Naked Werewolf which was the only one print book that I had ordered for RARE didn't arrive in time but is right now lying next to me, waiting anxiously to be read. 

Apart from the fact that they are really capotivating and funny but...I mean - how couldn't you love a book with such a title?

 And  - all books aside, Molly Harper was really nice and I really enjoyed meeting her!

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Suzanne Wright was another author who I met on Saturday. I didn't have the time to read her books before I went to the RARE but I really liked what I read about them and I liked the blurbs of the books as well as the samples so I went and got her signature as well. At her table I got her book Fierce Obsessions and couldn't resist the Force of Temptation (and doesn't that name fit? *sigh*).  We were lucky and the line wasn't that long when we went there so we could chat a bit. Another nice author and from what I saw of her books up to now, I guess that more of those will follow as well.

Demon Ember (Resurrection Chronicles Book 1) by M.J. Haag and Becca Vincenza

  Demon Ember  by M.J. Haag and Becca Vincenza

Blurb:

Mya’s world is falling apart. After a series of earthquakes, deadly animals with glowing red eyes begin attacking people and start the spread of a zombie-like plague. Safety is just a memory as she tries to make her way home. When a different creature attacks the people helping her reach Oklahoma City, Mya is sure she’ll never see the light of another day.

Despite his eerie yellow eyes and very sharp teeth, the grey-skinned creature is more intelligent and humanlike than he first appears. He’s determined to keep Mya by his side and protect her from the new world’s dangers. When his path starts taking her further away from home, she must choose between safety and her family.

**Recommended for adult readers
***Part 1 of 3


Wow, this book drew me in from the first page on! I couldn't put it down till the end, taking my reader with me everywhere I went. It was really amazing! At the beginning, I didn't really know what to expect but having read other books by Melissa Haag and Becca Vincenza, I knew that I love her books so I just trusted that this one would be as good as the others.

I don't know how many times I did burst out laughing and that night found me lying in my bed and giggling everytime I thought of the book. And...bees. Definitely bees. And other b-related things.

That part was amazing, obviously, but the story is not just funny but also thrilling and captivating and I just read on and on and couldn't stop because I had to know... Right. I had to know.
I like the way the authors build up the tension, like our heroine Mya, you only get glimpses of what is happening, and believe me, there are some seriously strange things going on.

Strange earthquakes? Check.
Zombie-producing attacks by deadly dogs? Check.
Strange, equally deadly creatures turning up? Check.

Okay, when one of those strangers is interested in Mya, she (and I with her) is a bit wary of him because, well, let's just say that people who can kill other people that easily are usually the kind of people that you should be wary of. At least - under normal circumstances, right?
Only there is nothing normal when you are in the middle of a Zombie-Apocalypse.
Traveling with a travel buddy like Drav was definitely nothing that Mya could have imagined a few days earlier but with Drav protecting her, she might even make it to the place where the rest of her family is waiting for her alive. Perhaps.

The next book in the series can't come soon enough because I can't wait to see what happens to Mya and Drav whom we left in a rather ...difficult... place at the end of the book.

★★★★★