June Reading Recap

Between having an internet connection that is nearly non-existent, I've been putting off recapping last months reading.

I'm way behind on updating my challenges...ARGH

Emma Miller - Johanna's Bridegroom (6/2/2013)
Jeanne Kalogridis - The Inquistor's Wife (6/4/2013)
Maryanne O'Hara - Cascade (6/5/2013)
Jessica Anya Blau -The Wonder Bread Summer (6/6/2013)
Trish Wylie - Her Man In Manhattan  (6/8/2013)
Donna Kauffman - Honey Pie (6/11/2013)
Stephanie Doyle - An Act Of Persuasion (6/12/2013)
Lori Carson - The Original 1982 (6/13/2013)
Rachel Brimble - 16 Marsden Place (6/18/2013)
Susan Elia MacNeal - His Majesty's Hope (6/21/2013)
Larissa Reinhart - Portrait Of A Dead Guy (6/23/2013)
Stephanie Burkhart  - A Gentleman & a Rogue (6/24/2013)
Dorothy Love - Every Perfect Gift (6/26/2013)
Pamela Moore - Chocolates For Breakfast (6/27/2013)
Sam Cheever - Yesterday's News (6/28/2013)

Bewitching Book Tours Book Review & Interview: The Miss Education Of Dr. Exeter

Today we are welcoming Jillian Stone to the blog for a little Q & A!

What made you want to become a writer? I’ve always enjoyed telling stories. Whether the story is in a photograph or a painting, a TV commercial, film or novel. My favorite kind of story is a suspenseful, adventure love story.

When you aren't writing, what are you doing?  I’m either writing, or promoting my latest release or I’m at the gym––the glamorous life of a writer. Since I am venturing into indie publishing this year, I will be even busier. I guess it keeps me out of trouble.

What is your favorite thing about writing steampunk?  The gadgets and the fabulous Victorian wardrobe! The Gentlemen of Scotland Yard detectives are the Victorian equivalent of James Bond characters––complete with futuristic vehicles, devices and gadgetry. In the Phaeton Black Paranormal Investigator series, I play with all of the steampunk elements including alternate world time travel, plus––I get to add creatures!

How do you plot out your series like "Paranormal Investigator" and "The Gentlemen Of Scotland Yard?" When I begin a series, I have a sense of the scope of the world and the cast of characters. The first book of the series, The Seduction of Phaeton Black was more of a prequel to the series. In book one, I introduce Phaeton Black, and his paramour, America Jones, Dr. Exeter and Mia and Mr. Ping––the powerful transsexual shapeshifter. There is only a teaser about the Gentlemen Shades, the arcane cadre of uniquely talented wizards and warlocks who monitor 1889 London as well as an alternate world––a more contemporary London.

In the subsequent novels, The Moonstone and Miss Jones and The Miss Education of Dr. Exeter, I have begun to develop the dramatic threads of a much larger story­­––the adversarial and sometimes warring factions of both worlds.

Who is your favorite character from the "Paranormal Investigator" series? Phaeton has to be my favorite character. He’s outrageously sexy, funny––he is also one of my most misunderstood characters. Edvar the Sneaky is another favorite. Edvar is a smallish, gargoyle-like creature, who has been with Phaeton since he was a child––it’s kind of a boy and his dog relationship, although Edvar is somewhat more mercurial than a pup and Phaeton often finds him annoying.

There are certain periods in history that seem more popular than others when it comes to novels. What is it about the Victorian era that drew you to the time period? And why do you think its a period readers love to revisit?  I chose the late Victorian era because its such a dynamic period. The modern world that we live in today is just beginning to emerge. The industrial revolution is in high gear, women’s right’s––particularly the right to vote, is a huge issue. Fantastic inventions and scientific discoveries––like, the light bulb! A huge shift is upon the world, and I find that very romantic and exciting.

The covers for the "Paranormal Investigator" series are stunning and sensual. How much input do you get on your cover art? No input––none. Those covers are all Kensington. I’m always stunned when people tell me how much they like the covers of  Paranormal Investigator series, because I cried for three days when I saw the cover of The Seduction of Phaeton Black. Phaeton is such a sexy, smart, unique character he needed a cover that did him justice––sorry! I like the cover of The Moonstone and Miss Jones best––that one is actually pretty sexy, and Phaeton and America Jones look really cute together.

What are you currently working on? I am writing an erotic contemporary novel. Book one in my Englishmen in New York series. I will also have a new Gentlemen of Scotland Yard book out in late fall if this year. Sometime in 2014, there will be more Phaeton Black, Paranormal Investigator books, I have several ways to take the story. In fact, there could be a series spin off, which means two series! 

Who is your favorite author? My favorite author at the moment is Sue Mink Kidd, author of The Secret Life of Bees.

What book are you currently reading? Hidden Order by Brad Thor. In order to write good thrillers, it’s important to read them ;)

Author: Jillian Stone
Title: The Miss Education Of Dr. Exeter
Publisher: Kensington
Publish Date: June 25, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Review Copy Provided By: Net Galley
Book Blurb: Plunge deeper into the curious world of the deadly Nightshades.

The Moonstone is having a destabilizing effect on the time/space membrane leaving Phaeton trapped in a parallel mirror world where everything is opposite or upside down, yet oddly the same. He is held captive by Domina Valour and tested sorely in this darkly sensual third episode of the Phaeton Black series.

Gaspar Sinclair can't go after Phaeton. His physical body is unraveling before everyone's eyes. America Jones is large with child, but only she has the preternatural ability to locate Phaeton and bring him back. And Doctor Exeter's beautiful charge, Mia, has her claws in him. Quite literally.

To accomplish Phaeton's rescue, the doctor must let loose forces he hasn't the foggiest clue how to control, including his attraction to Mia.

While in the dimension of magnetic opposites, the doctor and Miss Jones attempt to reverse polarity to retrieve Phaeton and stop Gaspar from unraveling. Can America and Phaeton find a way to return together, or will this final test rip them apart forever?

Review: The Miss Education Of Dr. Exeter is the 3rd book in the Paranormal Investigators series. I have to say, it probably shouldn't be read as a stand alone, however I did read it that way, only I wish I hadn't. There were a lot of characters that I really didn't know well.

That didn't stop me from really loving Exeter and Mia and their smoking hot relationship.

Truthfully Mia and Dr. Exeter kept my attention through the whole book and when it was done, I pretty much needed a cold shower.

Mia is a shapeshifter and Dr. Exeter is helping her deal with her shifting. She shifts into a panther and well, Dr. Exeter's name for her when she's in her other form is well...uh yeah..he calls her Pussy. I found that rather amusing. But it isn't the stuff that amuses me that kept me turning the pages, it was how he kept the kitty at bay with orgasms that just left me panting and meowing just a bit.

The chemistry between these two characters is electric.

Mia is such a fantastic heroine. She's younger than Exeter but she's fiesty and she really knows what she wants and she can be pretty demanding.

But it isn't all about sex. One of the best scenes in the book is when she helps America give birth, with some telepathic aid from Exeter.

It was great getting to know these characters, but I'm definitely going to have to read the first two books and probably this one again, so that everything is clear to me.

Rating: 4 flowers

Author Info:  In 2010, Jillian won the RWA Golden Heart for An Affair with Mr. Kennedy and went from no agent or publisher to signing with Richard Curtis and being offered a three book contract by Pocket Books. That summer, she also won the erotica category of the 2010 Romance Through the Ages contest for The Seduction of Phaeton Black and was offered a three book contract by Kensington Brava. Needless to say, she has been busy writing books this past year and a half! Jillian lives in Southern California.

http://jillianstone.com 
http://www.facebook.com/JillianStoneBooks
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4946569.Jillian_Stone
Twitter: @gJillianStone

Giveaway: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

TLC Book Tours Book Review: Restrike

Author: Reba White Williams
Title: Restrike
Publisher: Delos
Publish Date: June 4, 2013
Review Copy Provided By: TLC Book Tours & the publisher
Buy: Amazon

Book Blurb:  Money and murder go hand in glove in the rarified art world of Reba White Williams's exciting first novel, Restrike.

Cousins Coleman and Dinah Greene moved from North Carolina to New York after college to make their mark on the art world: Coleman is the editor of an influential arts magazine and Dinah is the owner of a print gallery in Greenwich Village. But their challenges are mounting as one of Coleman's writers is discovered selling story ideas to a competitor and The Greene Gallery is in the red because sales are down.

When billionaire Heyward Bain arrives with a glamorous assistant, announcing plans to fund a fine print museum, Coleman is intrigued and plans to get to know Bain and publish an article about him. Dinah hopes to sell him enough prints to save her gallery. At the same time, swindlers, attracted by Bain’s lavish spending, invade the print world to grab some of his money.

When a print dealer dies in peculiar circumstances, Coleman is suspicious, but she can’t persuade the NYPD crime investigator of a connection between the dealer’s death and Bain’s buying spree. After one of Coleman’s editors is killed and Coleman is attacked, the police must acknowledge the connection, and Coleman becomes even more determined to discover the truth about Bain. In an unforgettable final scene, Coleman risks her life to expose the last deception threatening her, her friends, and the formerly tranquil print world.

Review: Restrike is another first book in a series and it really wowed me. Not only are Coleman and Dinah looking into the murder of a print dealer, but the book is so much more than that.

My only gripe with this book is the cover. It reminds me of Murder She Wrote ...its too 80s and really doesn't help pull readers to one of the best mysteries I've read.

And this book is so much more than a cozy. There's a lot going on with all the characters. Plus there are several mysteries within mysteries. Like what is the connection between Simon and Heyward Bain? Who is selling stories from ArtSmart to another magazine?

This is really what keeps the pages turning. I don't know much about the art world, but after reading this book, I felt like I knew something.

I loved getting different points of view...Coleman and Dinah are really two very different people. Coleman is more sophisticated and gutsy...Dinah is a little bit wishy washy and her husband...I hated him. This is one relationship that I really can't route for, Jonathan is just to controlling for me, even though it is apparent that he loves Dinah and Dinah loves him.

For the most part this felt like a different sort of cozy. It is a little bit longer (nearly 400 pages) and though their is a police investigation there's a whole lot more to this story than just a murder.

The author gives you clues to make you think you know who did it..but in the end, she kind of throws you a curve ball.

I loved getting to know all of the characters and I really am anxious to see where Reba takes them in the next book.

Definitely a great read for the cozy mystery lovers out there.

Rating: 5 flowers

TLC Book Tours Book Review: Letters From Skye

Author: Jessica Brockmole
Title: Letters From Skye
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Publish Date: July 30, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Blurb: A sweeping story told in letters, spanning two continents and two world wars, Jessica Brockmole’s atmospheric debut novel captures the indelible ways that people fall in love, and celebrates the power of the written word to stir the heart.

March 1912: Twenty-four-year-old Elspeth Dunn, a published poet, has never seen the world beyond her home on Scotland’s remote Isle of Skye. So she is astonished when her first fan letter arrives, from a college student, David Graham, in far-away America. As the two strike up a correspondence—sharing their favorite books, wildest hopes, and deepest secrets—their exchanges blossom into friendship, and eventually into love. But as World War I engulfs Europe and David volunteers as an ambulance driver on the Western front, Elspeth can only wait for him on Skye, hoping he’ll survive.

June 1940: At the start of World War II, Elspeth’s daughter, Margaret, has fallen for a pilot in the Royal Air Force. Her mother warns her against seeking love in wartime, an admonition Margaret doesn’t understand. Then, after a bomb rocks Elspeth’s house, and letters that were hidden in a wall come raining down, Elspeth disappears. Only a single letter remains as a clue to Elspeth’s whereabouts. As Margaret sets out to discover where her mother has gone, she must also face the truth of what happened to her family long ago.

Sparkling with charm and full of captivating period detail, Letters from Skye is a testament to the power of love to overcome great adversity, and marks Jessica Brockmole as a stunning new literary voice.

Review: This is the kind of novel that always pulls me in. I love the time period between the two World Wars.

What I really loved was how you got the story through the letters written between Elspeth and David. There's something intimate about reading letters that really makes you feel like you are sharing something with the characters and that's how this book made me feel, like I was peaking in on the lives of these people.

This is a remarkable debut novel with writing that just pulls you in. In a time when letter writing is becoming a thing of the past, this book gives a glimpse of how words to paper really mean something and can last a whole lot longer than words typed on a phone or a computer screen.

There was really no way I wasn't going to enjoy this book. I recommend it highly to anyone that loves historical fiction from the first part of the 1900's.

Rating: 5 flowers

Cozy Mystery Book Tours: Final Sentence

Author: Daryl Wood Gerber
Title: Final Sentence
Publisher: Berkley
Publish Date:   July 2, 2013
Review Copy Provided By: Net Galley
Blurb:In need of a change, Jenna Hart leaves the high-pressure world of advertising to help her aunt, Vera, open a culinary bookshop and café. Back with her family in Crystal Cove, California, Jenna seems to have all the right ingredients for a fresh start—until someone adds a dash of murder.

As a marketing expert, Jenna wants to make sure the grand opening of the Cookbook Nook draws a crowd, and no one is better at getting attention than her old college roommate, celebrity chef Desiree Divine. But when Desiree arrives in quiet Crystal Cove to do a cookbook signing, the diva stirs up more trouble than business… especially when she turns up dead.

Known for stealing husbands and burning bridges, Desiree left behind plenty of suspects —including Jenna. Though the celebrity’s life always appeared to be an open book, Jenna will have to read between the lines in order to clear her name, and catch a killer before another body is served cold.

Review: Final Sentence is the first book in a new series by Daryl Wood Gerber and it is a great beginning. In fact, I can find very little about this book that isn't great! The cover is so adorable! And the story is fantastic.

I love Jenna and her aunt Vera who are running the Cookbook Nook bookshop and cafe. And all the other characters are just full of...well...character!

Some characters who will catch your eye are, Pepper...the chief of police's mother and a very nasty woman. Cinnamon, the police chief...who has ties to Jenna's dad, Katie...the chef at the bookshop...Rhett....can you say love interest...(we hope) and of course our dead person Desiree and her entourage!

The flow of this book is perfect. There's enough get to know you information about everyone to make you feel at home in Crystal Cove and the killing happened pretty early on so things stayed interesting.

I also loved all the celebrity chef's that were mentioned in the book as well as their cookbooks. It made me want to put on the Food Network and watch some of my favorite shows.

The best thing about the mystery is how Daryl keeps you guessing until the end about the killer's identity.

This is definitely a series I'm going to be keeping up with. Oh and the recipes look fab!

Rating: 5 flowers

DARYL WOOD GERBER aka AVERY AAMES pens the Agatha Award-winning, nationally bestselling Cheese Shop Mystery series. As Daryl, she writes A Cookbook Nook Mystery series, featuring a culinary bookshop and café owner. Daryl’s short stories have been nominated for the Agatha, Anthony, and other awards. As an actress, Daryl has appeared in “Murder, She Wrote” and more. Visit Daryl & Avery at www.darylwoodgerber.com. Check out her recipes on her blog www.mysteryloverskitchen.com And friend her on Facebook

Every year I go to a writers and fans’ conference called Malice Domestic, held in Maryland. Last year, at a dinner that our editor gave its authors (I have a very nice publishing house), we went to Ruth’s Chris restaurant. The steaks are fabulous, the desserts divine. We swooned so much over the dessert that I promised everyone at our table I would make it my mission to figure out how to make the flourless chocolate cake.

I tried a couple of recipes that I found on the Internet, tweaking until I got it right, but then I was lucky enough to go to Ruth’s Chris again, and I told them my plight. I needed my creation a little bit creamier, a little smoother. I begged the waitress to help me get the secret recipe. The chef was super lovely and sent out a recipe. For about 144 portions!!!  LOL

But I used to do chemistry and I can do math. I broke down that honker of a recipe into what should serve 8-10 comfortably, and this time, the consistency was perfect (if I do say so myself).

Like my protagonist in A Cookbook Nook Mystery who is learning to cook, there are times I feel like I’m out of my depth. This was one of them. But practice makes perfect, or nearly so.

Enjoy a bit of sinful chocolate decadence.  I’ve even provided a half-recipe (for a smaller springform pan).

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE CAKE

NO-FLOUR ALA RUTH’S CHRIS

Ingredients:

        2 cups half-and-half

        2/3 cup sugar

        ½ cup applesauce

        2 oz. flavored liquid of your choice (cordials, coffee, etc.) * I used espresso

        2 lbs. dark, milk or mixed chocolate, chopped (5 CUPS)  * I used half dark, half semi-sweet

        6 eggs (whisked)

Directions:                           Preheat the oven to 300º. Brush a 10" spring-form pan with butter, line the bottom with buttered parchment and wrap the pan in foil in case of any leaks. [MINE DIDN’T LEAK AT ALL BUT IT’S A GOOD PRECAUTION.]                           In a saucepan, bring the half-and-half, sugar, applesauce, and coffee JUST to a boil. Place the chocolate into a mixing bowl.  Pour the hot milk mixture over the chocolate.                           Let sit for a few minutes. [It will melt nicely.]                           Mix at low speed for two minutes.                           Add the eggs in all at once and mix thirty seconds, until incorporated.                           Pour batter into prepared spring-form pan. Bake until the cake is “set” - about 1 to 1 and 1/2 hours. The cake will still look wet and slightly loose in the very center, but the edges will be set, slightly puffed and have small cracks. [looks like a cheesecake – I cooked mine one hour then turned off the oven and let it set for another 20 minutes]                           Allow cake to cool on a rack (this takes about 2 full hours), then chill for 6 hours or overnight before removing pan sides.

***************

Half Recipe for 6” springform pan

Ingredients:

1 cup half and half

1/3 cup sugar

¼ cup applesauce

1 oz. espresso  (2 tablespoons)

1 lbs. dark chocolate chips (approx.. 2 ¾ cup chips)

3 eggs whisked

COOK ONLY 45 MINUTES FOR “MINI” CAKE, let rest 10 minutes in oven, remove cool as before.

TIP OF THE DAY: If you don’t happen to have half-and-half on hand, I found out you can use regular milk plus 1 tablespoon of butter to create half-and-half. I haven’t tried it, but it’s a good thing to know. J

         

QUESTION: Do you ever take risks in your life? Has anything been so risky that you are certain you’ll never try it?  Have you ever begged a chef for a recipe?  LOL

Giveaway:

1 random commenter will win a print copy of Final Sentence. Please leave your email in the comments so I can contact you.

Winner to be announced Monday July 15th

Goddess Fish Book Tours Super Book Blast: Halo Legacy/Legacy Reborn

Legacy Reborn

by Genie Gabriel

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB:

An attorney devoted to social causes and a burned out women's advocate help save their home town while struggling not to fall in love. However, an unintended pregnancy and a gift from the heart lead them on a journey to new possibilities and love.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Excerpt

Once more dressed in jeans and her well-worn cowboy boots, with a jacket thrown on to ward off the chill evening air, Phoenix walked.

Against a backdrop of blue-green mountain peaks and the lightly wooded hillsides closer to the farm, the hens were settling in their coop, with only an occasional soft clucking.

Inside the boldly painted red barn, horses whickered in their stalls. She breathed deeply of the scents of horse and hay as she ambled through the dusty structure, then opened the side door and walked into the llama's pasture.

The male immediately approached her and nuzzled her cheek as she slung her arm around him. "I love you too, Romeo."

She closed her eyes and relaxed against the animal's woolly neck. However, her relaxation ended abruptly when the animal stiffened and emitted a shrill cry.

Following the animal's gaze, Phoenix saw CJ standing on the other side of the corral with his arms folded on the top board. "Will your llama spit in my face?"

"It's alright, Romeo." Phoenix patted the llama, then walked slowly toward the man who had occupied too much of her thoughts lately. "What brings you out this way?"

"You left the Governor's presentation right after you talked to Mitch. I wanted to be sure you were okay."

All the memories she had been trying to walk off slammed into Phoenix once more. "What is okay? I'm not sure I've ever been okay or ever will be. How can I find normal or happy when I don't think I've experienced those things?"

"You come up your own version of what makes you happy."

"A woman is dead because of me. How can I ever be happy knowing that?"

"Mitch said Swaggerty was waiting for Charlene. If it hadn't been that night, he would have killed her another way."

Phoenix let that statement sink in. One part of her brain knew that was true. So why did she cling to the blame for Charlene's death? Maybe she was afraid to move forward.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

I'm an optimist whose rose-colored glasses have bent frames and cracked lenses. When life kicks me in the teeth, I find miracles and lessons I refused to learn an easier way. In fact, I live with a small herd of miracles in the furry forms of dogs, who are constantly trying to teach me to forgive, to play more, and to love without limits. I write about people who find courage and integrity in the darkest times of their lives, who rescue stray dogs and kittens, who find a person they would willingly give their lives for, and who make their little corners of the world a better place. People have remarked my stories "aren't what they expected." With rose-colored glasses firmly in place, I take that as a compliment. I invite you to share a piece of my world in the pages of a book, and hope you find some surprises, some tears, some laughter, and always a happy ending.

My Web site: http://www.GenieGabriel.com

My blog: http://oshealegacyseries.blogspot.com

NOTE: All nine books in the Halo Legacy Series will be $0.99 the day of the tour!

http://shop.roguephoenixpress.ieasysite.com/category.aspx?categoryid=82

Giveaway:

Genie will be awarding nine $9 Amazon GCs -- eight will be awarded to randomly drawn commenters during the tour, and one will be awarded to a randomly drawn host.

Check out all the stops on the tour

http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/06/super-book-blast-legacy-reborn-9-in.html?zx=5b50584fb09a1dc9

Book Review: The Perks Of Being A Beauty

Author: Manda Collins
Title:  The Perks Of Being A Beauty
Publisher: St Martin's Press
Publish Date: June 18, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Review Copy Provided By: Net Galley
Blurb: The beautiful Miss Amelia Snow is not accustomed to being snubbed by the gentlemen of the ton. But when her mother dies unexpectedly, forcing Amelia to take employment as companion to a wealthy cit's daughter, she quickly learns to play down her looks or risk losing her position. When her employers, the Smithsons, decide to throw a country house party, she is determined to fade into the background. But how can she when the Smithson's guest of honor is Lord Quentin Fortescue, the childhood friend who stole her heart?

Younger son, Lord Quentin Fortescue, is far more interested in his host's cotton mills in the north than he is in courting the man's dim-witted daughter. But it's the girl's companion who makes him look twice. Years ago, Miss Amelia Snowe rejected his proposal without a backward glance. Quentin has molded himself into just the sort of man she'd have wanted back then, but is Amelia still the smug beauty who broke his heart? And can either of them risk their newfound positions to indulge the fiery attraction that burns between them?

Review: Manda Collins is one of my go to writers for historical romance. I always enjoy the stories and the characters.

This novella takes one of the not so nice girls from the Ugly Ducklings series and sees her reformed. Amelia snow was really the "B" word in the 3 previous full length novels. (All of which I highly recommend)

A change in fortune has brought her low and sees her working as a companion to Harriet Smithson. It is during a house party that she meets an old flame...one that she didn't treat too kindly when he had proposed to her years before.

I wish that somehow we could have had a longer story than the 70 pages of this novella. Once readers really get to know Amelia, you can't help but like her, but I really would have liked to have known more of what really made her what she was before her mother died. Even more so, I would have loved some flashbacks to when she first knew Quentin.

Oh and Quentin is the kind of hero that you really want in your own life. There may have been issues between the two, but he was instantly protective of Amelia and you knew just as quickly that he still loved her.

This is the kind of story that you will instantly feel is too short, because Manda writes characters you want to know..you want to be part of their lives.

Still if a novella was all that we could get for Amelia Snowe and Quentin Fortescue, I'll take it.

Rating: 5 flowers