#BookReview: Wolf's Honor by Ambrielle Kirk (Paranormal Romance)

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Format: Mobi (Kindle)

Series: Caemdon Wolves #6

Author: Ambrielle Kirk

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Heat: Medium Sexual Content

Available: BN | Amazon | +Goodreads (Blurb/Shelf It)

My Review

This is a novella length story so I'll try not to give to much away. Connor is a wolf shift who has never really affiliated himself with either the Caedmon or the Arnou packs. He and his human father were always the middle men, the negotiator between the human world and the wolf one. Connor who runs a top notch security firm is now needed in the most important of ways. The US government has given himself, his father and the wolf world three days to solve the murders that are going on. Wolves are being murdered in droves, their bodies being laid out where humans can find them. The government is giving them three days or else they step in.

Asked to look further into things by Devon, the Alpha of the Caedmon pack; Connor goes undercover to investigate. He finds out information but he also finds his mate. In comes Antonia Trudeau who is unwillingly caught up on Connors investigation.

A struggling college student, Antonia no longer wants anything to do with the criminal doings she and her brother use to do. But she refuses to let her brother go into this latest job by himself or with someone she doesn't trust. The job is suppose to be simple, drop off the packages and be out but that simply does not happen.

Bad things go down and now both Antonia and Connor are caught up in a situation that is way above both their heads.

I really enjoyed the story, A. Kirk really has a great way of drawing you into her stories. The most thing I loved about this one was that Connor and Antonia grew into their relationship, there was no rushing. Connor was very aware of Antonia's misgivings of her being his mate and I like that he took his time cause she was skittish, lols. Antonia's didn't think she deserved Connor or anyone like him because of her past so of course, she fought him most of the way but I'm happy that she finally came around.

The story tied up nicely although, I was a bit confused as to why Tristan the Arnou pack Alpha knew what was going on in a way and didn't really step in especially with so many wolves being killed but I'm sure the full story will come out soon enough.

I was very excited to dive back into the Caedmon world, six books in and I'm still loving this world that Ms. Kirk has created. The only thing I wished we got more of was more of Antonia's and her brothers past. They were abandoned as children and grew up in the foster care system, their parents not wanting to give any information about themselves at all. But from reading it seems there is more there...

Anyhoo's another great addition to the Caemdon world. If you like your wolfy reads, then I recommend the Caemdon pack!

Rating

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#BookReview: Need You Now by Mika Jolie & Word Of Honor by Tiana Laveen (Contemporary Romances)

Source: Author
Format: Mobi (Kindle)
Published: November 19 2014
Series: Martha's Way #2
Author: Mika Jolie
Genre: Contemproary Romance
Heat Level: Medium/Sensual Sexual Content
Available: BN | Amazon | +Goodreads (Blurb/Shelf It)

My Review

The second book in Ms. Jolie's Martha's Way series, this story picks up on the romance that is developing between Liliana Serrano and Adam Aquilani. You see, Lily and Adam started sleeping together in the first book. In the beginning, neither of them want anything long term and they pretty much convince themselves that their mutual attraction wouldn't go beyond sexual. But of course fate has other ideas and these two are now destined to be tied together forever because of Lily's pregnancy.

This was another story I enjoyed immensely, both Lily and Adam were such flawed and realistic characters. Lily loves Adam but doesn't want him to stay with her because they are having a baby together, she wants more. Adam, well...he was such a complex character for me (in a good way though). He wasn't going to give up on Lily in convincing her to marry him but Adam had a rough really rough childhood and even though he was raised by amazing adoptive parents, it forever reflected how he deals with relationships.

Ms. Jolie again add these amazing quotes at the beginning of each chapter, preparing you and her characters for an emotional journey...I love it! And can I say how much that I love that Lily is Puerto Rican? like the diversity of this series is out of this world. Lily and Adam must decide if their love for one another is worth the winding trail that this author puts them on, are they ready? Another welll done story from the vineyard. She had me up and down and I would be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy the ride.

Rating

Source: Purchased
Format: Mobi (Kindle)
Published: August 8, 2015
Series: From Race To Remdeption #2
Author: Tiana Laveen
Genre: Contemporary Romance (Unconventional)
Heat Level: Strong Sexual Content
Available: BN | Amazon | +Goodreads (Blurb/Shelf It)

My Review

This is a continuation of The N Word. In Word of Honor, you pretty much have Aaron and Mia coming together and deepening their relationship as a couple. Aaron is out of jail because of his now friend Marcus. I'm so glad that more of Marcus's story was added here...I liked that he wrestled with his decision to help Aaron but in the end decided to do the right thing. Aaron and Mia have to deal with many things in this continuation but mainly since he is no longer part of his nationalist group, his and Mia's lives are now in danger.

As I've said in my first review, Aaron's road to redemption was nothing short of amazing BUT he still was a character in growth..get what I'm saying. Ms. Laveen did not write him to change overnight. Aaron still had his struggles and his demons. He was still a angry man but now his fight is against the very same people whom he called his brothers. He is also going through issues with his baby momma who hates that Aaron is with Mia and I'll also add that she hated him because of his decision to move beyond the hatered in his life. Aaron is trying to to be a better person but like he said to his ex "It's people like you who make it so goddamn hard!". No Aaron knew he would not be a completely good person and he was changed, he DID start to see beyond just the color of one's skin BUT he was still the same man who would do anything to protect his family; he was not to be played with. Mia continued to be her but I agree with Aaron where she kept blinders on when it came to him. She wanted Aaron to be good down to the bone and he knew that he couldn't. He knew that there would be things that he would never tell Mia about himself and that is a real thing. We also learn more about Aaron's siblings and get to see him interact with them, which was great to read.

A little preachy in some spots and looonnng, I still think this was a wonderful story and a great wrap up to the first book. Again, all the characters were great in growth. Ms. Laveen just doesn't give you a story about how some folks feels about the race of another group but with as with Marcus's case, she writes about how we are sometimes faced with the mistreatment from folks in our communities.

This is definitely a book that will stay with me for awhile.

Rating

*this rating is for both The N Word & Word of Honor

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#BookReview: Zoe by T.A. Ford (Historical Romance)

Hi Beautiful People! this review will be a bit different. I mean, it will be the same but this review is also a book club review, so! what I'm going to do is link my fellow club member reviews (who are also bloggers) at the bottom of my mines. 

Source: Self Purchased

Format: Mobi (Kindle)

Published: May 2008

Series: No

Author: T.A. Ford/Sienna Mynx

Genre: Historical Romance

Heat: Medium Sexual Content

Available: Amazon | BN | ARe | +Goodreads (Blurb/Shelf it)

My Review

This story reminded me a bit of the character in the movie Belle. The daughter of a Frenchman and one of his African housekeepers, Zoe is raised in a world of privilege, she stills though suffers the stigma of being a mulatto woman. She is basically raised by her stepmother to be her younger sisters chaperon. The woman hates Zoe and her father who feels guilty because he wasn’t man enough to claim Zoe’s mother as his own pretty much leaves Zoe in the woman’s abusive hands. On a visit to one of her father’s friends, Julien La Roque where the intention is for him to offer marriage to Zoe’s younger sister Marianne; she and Julien start an affair that Zoe can’t get away from no matter how hard she try.

I felt like Zoe came off as a strong character but not so much. To me for all her *I’m never going to be any man’s whore*, she fell into Julien’s bed quite quickly. She knew exactly what he wanted from her but yet she was able to convince herself for a short while that he was different...I think not? which lands her in a predicament she can’t get out of. I felt bad for her because the people that claimed to love her the most, who should have had her back when most needed (her Father and Sister) couldn’t seem to get pass her color either. They in their own way kept reminding Zoe of “her place” in their world. I felt bad for her especially with her fat, ugly, greedy ass step-mother who was willing to sell Zoe off to the highest bidder to so she could continue to have a comfortable life.

Julien I thought was okay. He was willing to keep Zoe as his mistresses in the beginning because of *his fascination with her* and his claim of not becoming obsessed with a woman the way his father did. But he proved at times to be just like the other men who lusted after Zoe because of her  exoctiness. I really didn’t care for him until towards the end of the book after he came out of his stupidity and realized that his selfishness only pushed Zoe away not towards him.

Zoe isn’t a sweeping historical romance, but it’s still a story you can and will get caught up in. Ms. Mynx weaves a tale of a young woman of color back in a time where her lot in life was pretty much mapped out. Zoe wanted to break the mold but with her father’s cowardliness, her sister’s ignorance and her stepmother's hatred, she really didn’t stand a chance. Zoe was still strong in some ways, which she proved towards the end as well and I appreciated that she wasn't so naive about her heritage and social standing. We get a HEA and Zoe is able to exact a little revenge towards her stepmother WHICH I was internally grateful for. I recommend the read, it was a little like Cinderella and Belle all rolled up into one story.

Rating

Marcia's BookSwaggers Review

Monica's Monlatables  Review

Also check out Patrice's list of IR Historical Romances @ 

Musing Of A Romance Junkie

IR/MC Romance Reading Challenge

Books N Tunes Challenge

*Song Choice

Don't Be Gone Too Long Ariana Grande ft Chris Brown

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Tuesday Jam #138

Want to share that song you been loving like crazy lately? Just grab the image above or make your own...and whether you have a blog or not, you can either leave your link in the linky below OR in the comment section.  You can show a video, a music player..whateva suites your fancy. Just remember to have some fun!

Heard this one while walking to school yesterday and I insta-loved it. Thought I'd share it with y'all :) Enjoy!

"Oh, Sheila!" lols. I love my 80's music and Ready for the World was one of the groups I listened to constantly. I loved both of these songs, but Let Me Love You Down was my favorite. I remember just wrapping my arms around myself and doing th slow jam all by myself, lmaooo!!!

If you have a Jam you would like to share with us, comment below in the comment section.
Leave a video, blog, Facebook, or Twitter link.

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#MovieReview: Lord Of War

Director: Andrew Niccol
Drama| Crime | Thriller
Length: 122 mins
Starring: Nicholas Cage | Jared Leto | Ethan Hawke

About (IMBd)
An arms dealer confronts the morality of his work as he is being chased by an Interpol agent.

Available: DVD (Amazon|BN) | Streaming (Netflix|Amazon)

My Review

I’ve been wanting to catch this one because my boo is in it *coughs* Jared Leto aka my boo, lols. No but seriously, I have been wanting to watch this one for the longest and it’s another one you can’t find easily, but guess what? It’s on Netflix! I know some folks don’t like Nicholas Cage but I actually think the man is a great actor. He is another one who just takes on roles and dives fully into the character. Both he and Jared do this so this movie with the both of them in it was truly worth watching.  

Your main character is N. Cage’s, Yuri Orlov; a arms dealer. Yuri comes into this job when he notices in his neighborhood that guns are what’s needed plus he is at the time in his life when he starts dealing that he doesn’t know what he wants out of life and figures hell, dealing guns can’t be all that bad and it’s good money. Bringing in his brother Vitaly (Jared’s character) as his partner he figures it all should be easy right? Well, they say “the best things in life are free” or are they really?

The movie covers Yuri’s rise as one of the top gun dealers around, everyone wants his products. But with becoming the best, you have enemies, fanatics, pitfalls and downfalls. Yuri gets everything he wants, the penthouse apartment in the city, the trophy wife...the good life. But as the lies start to mount, his brothers drug use (it was the way Vitaly dealt with how their guns costs lives) rages out of control and the DEA on his back, Yuri’s world is slowly collapsing around him. He has to figure out how to handle it all and he thinks he does but he doesn’t.

I liked the movie. It encompassed seriousness and there was also humor. I thought both actors N. Cage and J. Leto did a great job with their characters. You could buy into Yuri’s attitude of “we aren’t here for the lives our products costs, we are here for the money”, his almost dismissive attitude about what he did for a living and You could literally taste Vitaly’s downward spiral as he dealt with his conscious about the whole gun dealing atmosphere, it was a sad ending. Good movie.

Rating

Really Good, Go Watch It

Favorite Quote:

*You know who is going to inherit the earth? Arms dealers because everyone else is too busy fighting each other* ~ Yuri

Movie Trailer

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Tuesday Jams #137

 

Want to share that song you been loving like crazy lately? Just grab the image above or make your own...and whether you have a blog or not, you can either leave your link in the linky below OR in the comment section.  You can show a video, a music player..whateva suites your fancy. Just remember to have some fun!

Hey hey! So this week I'm gonna go a bit emotional. Even though I'm not feeling the slightest bit heartbroken or anything lol. But my pick is Secondhand Serenade's album A Twist In My Story. I absolutely love this entire album and I guess the lyrics spoke to me on some level. I wasn't feeling overtly emotional or anything, it just... did. so.. enjoy :) ... Plus I love his voice. :)

Guess what I've been listening too? More 80's~90's Music, lols! Enjoy :D

PM Dawn ~ I'd Die Without You (from the Boomerang Soundtrack)


Brian McKnight ~ The Only One For Me

If you have a Jam you would like to share with us, comment below in the comment section.
Leave a video, blog, Facebook, or Twitter link.

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#BookReview: Closer & Mind Over Matter by Kaia Bennett

Source: Author

Format: Mobie (Kindle)

Book Deets: Closer | Mind Over Matter

Available: Amazon | BN | Smashwords

Genre: Contemporary New Adult Romance

Heat Level: Strong Sexual Content

My Review

What started off as a erotic week in #1 Crush turns into a full fledged antsy relationship between Nicole and Gabriel. They go from we are just going to be friends with benefits to we so confused, lols. Ugh, I wanted to strangle both of them.

I can’t say who frustrated me the most because they both did. Nicole running from herself and scared of having a relationship with anyone and Gabriel trying his hardest not to be the failure his father keeps predicting he will be. They couldn’t figure it out or get it together, sleeping with one another but still running from what was so obviously right in there in front of them. And they had no problem saying that they loved each other, they were just….just the most. They were frustrated and so was I, lols.

Closer and Mind Over Matter are truly two books where you see these two grow, annoying as they were...there was growth.

Kaia Bennett definitely gives you a story of two people coming into their own. Growing up is hard and if you are not sure what you want, it can be a slippery slope. Nicole and Gabriel are slipping and sliding all over the place. They do finally get it together and all I could say was “Gotdambit, finally!” I read both books on my way down to visit my niece in Maryland and was cussing the whole way...my mother and sister kept peeking at me the whole way, lols. Great job Ms. Bennett ;)

I say give it a go.

My Rating

Kaia Bennett is a native of New Jersey, a college graduate and U.S. Army veteran who loves music, movies, astrology, tattoos, martial arts, animals and, of course, the written word. She heard the siren call of the writer as a teenage girl, but took her sweet time answering it until she had lived and loved enough to share her work with the masses.

She is an erotic author who loves to write stories with diversity, depth, realism and viscerally hot encounters that flirt shamelessly with the taboo. A lover of all genres and a voracious reader, she aims to write stories that are transformative for her characters and readers alike.

Website Blog Twitter Facebook Goodreads

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#BookReview: #1 Crush by Kaia Bennett

Welcome to our stop in Kaia Bennett's Mind Over Matter Tour.  I will be reviewing all three as well as spotlighting them. My first review will be on #1 Crush the first book in the series, catch my review for the remaining books tomorrow :D

#1 Crush
by: Kaia Bennett
Loose Ends #1
Publication Date: December 1, 2014
Genres: Contemporary, Erotica, Romance
Amazon - Nook - Kobo - iBooks - Smashwords - +Goodreads

Book Deets: Nicole Langley’s #1 Crush has always been Gabriel Roberts, but settling for being a friendly acquaintance has had to be enough.

Gabriel has always seen Nicole as his good friend’s very pretty, but extremely off limits baby sister.

Then a hot summer day and an even hotter discovery pushes them over the lines of friendship, over the lines of unrequited desire, and into each other's arms.

Will they indulge and move on? Or will this crush turn into something more, something deeper? Something that leaves loose ends begging to be tied…

My Review

So ever been caught by your crush in a very compromising position? Nicole has.

There has always been a attraction between Nicole and Gabriel but being that he is her sister's best friend, they both have kept in at the friend level with other distractions and moving on to other relationships. But during her latest trip visiting her sister, Nicole is caught by her #1 crush being naughty in his bedroom of all places. After the embarrassment is over and a night of passion between herself and Gabriel, they both decide to move forward past the infatuation and give into their fantasies during Nicole's stay while visiting her sister.

Oh my, oh my! this book was hot! Nicole and Gabriel acting on their desires was refreshing to see because when you read most books like this, the couple is always usually dodging each other like bullets for one reason or another but not these two. Oh no, they were going at...here me? It was sexy and erotic. These two were not unsure of what they wanted and proved it again and again in this story. 

So, as Nicole's visit winds down...the growing feelings that she for Gabriel start to develop for one another can be denied especially now that they have given into their desires. Life moves on of course, Nicole returns home and Gabriel goes on with his life. 

I'm very intrigued to see how much further these two can go. I thought they were good together. Although they both say that they aren't looking beyond what they started, I'm not really believing it. I think Nicole feels more for Gabriel than just a crush and as for him, I feel the same way...he is starting to feel a bit more for Nicole. She understands him and supports his dream of becoming a musician, something his last girlfriend did not. So yeah, it would be interesting to see what goes on further. 

#1 Crush is good, well written and the characters are not too angsty. Highly recommended read, but definitely for the adult crowd.

My Rating

Kaia Bennett is a native of New Jersey, a college graduate and U.S. Army veteran who loves music, movies, astrology, tattoos, martial arts, animals and, of course, the written word. She heard the siren call of the writer as a teenage girl, but took her sweet time answering it until she had lived and loved enough to share her work with the masses.

She is an erotic author who loves to write stories with diversity, depth, realism and viscerally hot encounters that flirt shamelessly with the taboo. A lover of all genres and a voracious reader, she aims to write stories that are transformative for her characters and readers alike.

Website Blog Twitter Facebook Goodreads

GIVEAWAY

*click on the pic

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#VideoBookReview: The 'N' Word by Tianna Leveen

I'm doing this review a little different, you may notice that there is no rating. I decided to add it after I finish the 2nd book as I want to rate it as a whole but so far so good. This book deals with racism and all the ugly that goes with it. The author does give a warning in the beginning that if your sensativities may come into question, then this is not the book for you. But I challenge you to read it and experience the growth a man who you may see on the outside and assume that he is a hopeless case.

Source: Purchased
Fomate: Mobi (Kindle)
Published: August 8 2015
Series: From Race to Redemption #1
Author: Tiana Leveen
Genre: Contemproary Romance (A Unconventional One...)
Heat: Medium/Strong Sexual Content (A lot of dirty talk through letters)
Available: Amazon | Goodread (Blurb/+Shelf)

YouTube Video

Book N Tunes Challenge
IR/MC Romance Challenge

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