Feature & Follow Friday #FF #26 – To change a plot or perhaps not?

Feature & Follow

 

This is a blog hop, a way to find and follow new blogs,

hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.

You can follow me by using any one of the options over on the left sidebar.

This weeks question: Change the Plot. If you could, what book would you change the ending or a plot thread? Go ahead and do it…change it.

Yeah, I would make the main characters in the Mortal Instrument series not brother and sister!!!!!  lol.  I actually stopped after the first book, but wonder if I’d feel differently if it ended different.

Have a happy Friday everyone!

~Pam

 

 

Shady Deals Review

Title:  Shady Deals  Shady Deals

Author:  Cindy McDonald

Published:  2013 by Acorn Book Services

Genre:  Romantic Suspense

Purchase Shady Deals from Amazon

 

 

 

Kate West and Dr. Holden Reese have put their troubled past behind them and are ready to set a wedding date. There’s only one thing in Holden’s way: a powerful drug Lord at Keystone Downs Thoroughbred Race Track has Holden under his thumb, and he’s not letting go!

Kate’s family is determined to get to the bottom the of horse drugging ring, and when the West’s get too close to the truth the Drug Lord sends them a brutal message that can’t be misinterpreted.  Now Holden is on the run, and he’s dragging Kate with him.

Can he escape his indiscretions?

How long can he keep Kate in the dark?

And how damning will the truth be when it’s finally revealed?

(Blurb from Pump Up Your Book)

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Kate and Holden are not only engaged but she’s his assistant.  Kate’s noticed that Holden is acting really on edge lately; he’s either laid back or up tight, no in between.  Kate pins it on his personality.  But what’s really happening is Holden is stuck in the middle of a drug ring with no way out in sight.  While it’s not where he wants to be, when he tries to distance himself from the other criminals, they threaten Kate, and that just won’t do.

Let me be honest, I was going to quit reading this after two chapters.  I felt like there were so many characters in the beginning and I couldn’t keep them all straight so that made it boring to me.  But then something happened.  I got hooked.  And I finished the book at around 3am the next morning!  I’m so glad I didn’t give up (and it really was only the first two chapters before it picked up for me).  Since Shady Deals is part of a series maybe other readers will already know of the characters beforehand too.   So anyways…

This book is great!   I don’t want to say much more about the plot and give anything away, but there are so many twists and turns.  Not to mention the suspense that kept me up reading until dawn to see what happened!

I read a lot so I don’t always remember authors’ names.  But mentioned in Shady Deals was a familiar character’s name, Jack Haliday.  I was like, I know that name.  Turns out I’ve read, and gave 4 stars to another one of Cindy McDonald’s books, Into the Crossfire, a while back!

So if you’re looking for a book with some romance and suspense, definitely give Shady Deals a try.  Ms. McDonald will keep you on your toes.  Just don’t read it if you have plans early the next morning.

 

 

My Rating:  4 out of 5 stars

04

~Pam

*****I received this book free from Pump Up Your Book in exchange for an honest review.*****     

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About the Author:

For twenty-six years Cindy Mcdonald’s life whirled around a song and a dance: She was aCindy McDonald professional dancer/choreographer for most of her adult life and never gave much thought to a writing career until 2005.Suddenly, she felt drawn to her computer to write about things she have experienced (greatly exaggerated upon of course) with her husband’s Thoroughbreds and the happenings at the racetrack.

Why didn’t Cindy write about my experiences with dance? You might ask. “Eh, believe it or not life at the racetrack is more…racy.” Cindy says. “The drama is outrageous—not that dancers don’t know how to create drama, believe me, they do but race trackers just seem to get more down and dirty with it which makes great story telling—great fiction.”

Cindy didn’t start out writing books, The Unbridled Series started out as a TV drama, and the Hollywood readers loved the show. When the series didn’t sell, Cindy recalls, “One of the readers said to me, ‘Cindy, don’t be stupid. Turn your scripts into a book series.’” And so she did!

In May of 2011, Cindy took the big leap and exchanged her dancin’ shoes for a lap top—she retired from dance. “It was a scary proposition,” Cindy confesses. “I was terrified, but I had the full support of my husband, Saint Bill. It has been a huge change for me. I went from dancing hard five hours a night to sitting in front of a computer. I still work-out and I take my dog, Harvey, for a daily run. I have to or I’d be as big as a house.”

Does Cindy McDonald miss dancing? “Sometimes I do,” she says. “I miss my students. I miss choreographing musicals, but I love my books and I love sharing them with readers.”

Connect & Socialize with Cindy!

TWITTER * FACEBOOK  

Discuss this book in our PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads by clicking HERE.

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***Images and wording for book blurb and about the author were provided by Pump Up Your Book***

Evil of Love Blog Tour

Evil of Love

Blurb

Warning: This book is for mature audience only due to sex, language and violence.

“I can’t take it! I’ve been craving you ever since I saw you the other day. I haven’t stopped thinking about you since you disappeared ten years ago! I need you Steph. I’m sorry…” -Eric Sutherland 

Stephanie Wilcox never saw it coming after giving up that life ten years ago of constantly being verbally and emotionally abused by her drunken father. She didn’t run, but when she left, she never looked back. Forced by her abusive father to live with her Aunt Elizabeth, she had to leave behind the one person that had shown her true love. In her mind, Eric Sutherland, deserved so much more and being with her would only bring him down. She never stopped loving the sun-kissed boy who held her hand and touched her kindly. 

It was years later when Stephanie met Travis Barnes, a young self-made billionaire who swooped in and helped mend some of her loneliness. However, after marrying Travis, he began to show who he really was and he was the type of man she was accustomed to, after growing up with an abusive father, and regardless of his flaws she still loves him. After all, why would she deserve any better? 

Eric broke, his kindness, his pure heart, it all fell apart that day Stephanie left. He did all he could to reach her, but it was hopeless. All the sadness, anger, and sorrow built up inside him over time and no one could replace the love he had for Stephanie. Fighting has been his outlet and now as a well-known UFC undefeated fighter, his career is all he has, but no matter how hard he tries to forget her, he can’t. 

Ten years later he comes face to face with those large brown eyes that belong to the one girl he’s always loved and everything changes. This time he won’t let her get away. 

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About the Author

There are many versions of ME. I’m a wife of an amazingly supportive husband, a mother of three beautiful boys that inspire me every day, a friend, a dedicated worker always looking to succeed, an author with characters and stories always on my mind and then there is Me. The woman that loves to stay up late and sleep in, takes ten minutes every morning before the kids are up to sit and have a quiet cup of coffee. The woman that loves staying up late with a good book and getting lost in the words. Enjoying a glass of wine with dinner to wind down from my long days. A person who is still a girl at heart, loving to smile, laugh and have fun whenever the opportunity arises. My favorite place is still the beach because nothing is more peaceful then listening to the sounds of the ocean against the shore. This is all a part of who I am and I LOVE being me! 

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Connect with N.L. Echeverria

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Excerpt

~ Eric Sutherland and Stephanie Wilcox encounter each other again after ten years ~ 

As I push through the crowded sidewalks I come to a tent that has a table filled with what looks like a variety of candies. It’s not often I get to eat sweets so I take advantage of this moment. I step up to the white clothed table and peer at the caramel sweets that are in front of me. I look up to see a larger lady with blonde hair that’s tightly pulled back.

“Is this caramel?” 

“Yes. It’s our specialty,” the woman replies smiling.

“Can I get two pieces?”

“Of course. That will be $2.50.”

I pull my money from my purse as the lady grabs the two small squares placing them in a napkin and handing them to me. As I turn around placing one of the small bites in my mouth the flavor explodes and I close my eyes savoring it. The caramel is smooth and melts on my tongue. I start walking and place the second piece in my mouth enjoying every bit of flavor. Stopping at a water fountain nearby I bend down taking a sip of the ice cold liquid.

“Stephanie Wilcox?” 

I hear a deep voice call from behind me and I turn, wiping the water from my mouth as I look into a pair of brilliant green eyes and I blink a few times unsure if what I’m seeing is real; the man from my past standing right in front of me.

“Stephanie Wilcox?” the man asks again and I almost choke on my own spit as I’m barely able to respond, still in shock.

“Eric? Yeah! I mean it’s Stephanie Barnes now.” Right as it comes out of my mouth I want to take it back. Eric Sutherland’s standing right in front of me. Do I want him to know I’m married? What the hell is he doing here? 

“Well, Mrs. Barnes. You look incredible! It’s been so long.” He looks down at me and then almost like old times wraps his arms around me pulling me in for a hug and I take in the smell of his cologne and the feel of my cheek against his hard chest. He’s taller and broader then when we were kids. Still in shock I have no idea what to say, I hug him back and smile. But too quickly the smile leaves me and I’m faced with real life. There is no point in getting all excited about seeing him.

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Buy Evil of Love from Amazon or Add to Goodreads

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Amazon

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Giveaway

***Moonlightreader is not responsible or accountable for this giveaway.***

Must be at least 18 years of age to enter

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***Images and wording for blurb, author bio, and excerpt provided by Miranda at Mommy’s a Book Whore***

Feature & Follow Friday #26 #FF – Book that Made Me Shed a Tear

Feature & Follow

 

This is a blog hop, a way to find and follow new blogs,

hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.

You can follow me by using any one of the options over on the left sidebar.

This weeks question: What was the last book that made you cry?

Image from Goodreads

Image from Goodreads

I mentioned this one the other week, but this book is so well written and intense.  It gave me some serious anxiety while reading it.  It’s just one of those books that you become so attached to that you can’t help but cry when certain things go wrong.

Have a great weekend guys and thanks for stopping by!

~Pam

 

 

 

 

Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Box Set Review

 

Image from Goodreads

Image from Goodreads

Title:  Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Box Set

Authors:  Ava Lore, Terry Towers, Anna Antonia, Amy Aday, Selena Kitt, Nelle L’Amour, Tawny Taylor, Dez Burke, and Marian Tee

Published:  October 2013 by Excessica

Genre:  Erotica

Purchase the Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Boxed Set from Amazon

 

***This box set contains mature themes, as does this review, and is intended for audiences ages 18 and over.***

 

This is my first review about a box set!  When I started out reading this I was pleasantly surprised.  I guess I thought because it was advertised so cheap on amazon for ten books, that the writing would be bad or the books wouldn’t be good, but that wasn’t the case at all.  I was also surprised to find out that I was reading a BDSM erotica bundle.  Lol.  Guess I should read the synopsis sometimes before I take on a request.  But honestly, I thought it was a romance box set.  It’s okay though, I’m not anti-erotica.  I liked 50 Shades.  Anyways, I only read some of the books, so I’ll just do some quick reviews on the ones that I read.

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The Billionaire’s Muse by Ava Lore

This was a great start to the set.  I was like, wow, if this is what all the books are going to be like, it’s going to be great!

Sadie accidentally breaks a very valuable vase at an auction.  This vase belongs to billionaire Malcolm Ward.  Sadie agrees to be his muse to pay him back for the vase.  Trouble is, Malcolm isn’t really sure what kind of artist he is, so he has to spend a lot of time with Sadie to find out.

This one started out great, Sadie is sarcastic and awesome.  During the beginning of the auction this thought goes through her head, “Me, I was just hoping for a fist fight to break out.” (location 95/14072 on kindle).  Hey, she made me laugh a lot. However, some of the sex scenes were a little weird for me.  Paint brushes shouldn’t go certain places.  Just saying.  And then I felt like the story stretched out a little too long and got a little off course as well.

Overall though, it was a good book.

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The CEO and the Girl from the Coffee Shop by Terry Towers

The billionaire, Gabriel, wants barista, Beth, to come be his housekeeper and chef.  I couldn’t get into this one; I got bored, didn’t finish it and went on to the next.

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Yes, Mr. Collins by Anna Antonia

Mr. Collins is so demanding that he doesn’t keep a personal assistant for long, because no one meets his expectations.  That is until Natasha works for him.  Natasha starts the job so nervous because she knows what Mr. Collins is like.  But then, after she is getting physically sick from stress, she decides that she’s going to change her way of thinking and not be nervous anymore, but live up to the challenge.

This story was quick and decent.  It seemed to be shorter than the others.

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Heidi and the Kaiser by Selena Kitt

Heidi is working in the fashion world, but not as she would like, which would be as a designer.  On the job setting up a photo shoot, she spills coffee on billionaire Warren Kaiser’s pants.  He spanks her and she likes it.  Heidi ends up working for him, and the punishments continue.

Yeah, I’m conflicted on this one.  It felt like borderline abuse.  Heidi liked it but, well, I didn’t!  Kaiser seemed so harsh to me, even at the end.  What kind of relationship is that, you know?

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Gloria’s Secret by Nelle L’Amour

This is another one I just couldn’t finish.  I was bored, I couldn’t get into it.  Gloria is the owner of a lingerie company, (you get it right?  I hope so!)  Anyways here’s a little excerpt that caught my eye.

My right eye was blue; my left one brown.  I had a rare genetic condition known as heterochromia.  In press releases and on the Internet, both eyes appeared to be brown thanks to Photoshop.  But because I suffered from dry eye syndrome, I was unable to use contacts to conceal my idiosyncrasy the rest of the time. (location 7058/14072)

This is pure silliness!  Jane Seymour has different colored eyes, as does Kate Bosworth.  They don’t try to hide it and they’re actors not an owner of a lingerie shop!  Not only that, but I have one brown eye and one green eye myself so obviously I picked up on this.  Gloria must have some real issues for having her eyes photoshopped to be the same color.  I don’t know though cause like I said, I didn’t finish the book.

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There are a few more stories that I didn’t list here; I didn’t read all of them.  So overall I would say that this is a good box set.  Not ‘avoid at all cost.’ Not ‘you need to read this now!’  But good, especially for the cheap prices that amazon tends to list it for.

 

 

My Rating for the whole set: 

3 out of 5 stars

 03

~Pam

 

*****I received this book free from one of the authors, Marian Tee, in exchange for an honest review.*****