Double Book Review

I got to read an advanced copy of Shana Galen's new novel, The Rogue You Know (Covent Garden Cubs #2). I really enjoyed the first book in the series and was glad to see Gideon get his own story. I like how Galen writes the Regency period, but doesn't stick to the ballroom. She uses the stark difference of the gangs that weren't all that far away from the glittering ton.

In this story, Gideon is trying to get out of the gang and he's going to pull off one more jewel heist to do it. It doesn't go smoothly, however, and he's forced to run.  He ends up at Marlowe's home (who was the center of the last book) and she's very respectable gentry now. Unfortunately, Marlowe's debutante sister-in-law comes face to face with Gideon as he's breaking into her home to hide.

Susanna is sick and tired of her life.  Her mother dictates every move she makes and even the tiniest gesture must be "proper." She's going out of her mind, wishing for a bit of adventure, when Gideon enters her life.  The repartee between them made me laugh out loud and the old adage of opposites attract definitely applies here.  Susanna longed for adventure and when she strikes a deal with Gideon, she definitely gets that.

The one thing that struck me most as I read this story were the similarities to the Disney movie, Tangled.  The author admits this inspiration in her acknowledgments, so, if you've seen that movie, you can sort of see where The Rogue You Know is going to go.  (For my gentle readers, however, there are some sexual situations, but they are easy to skip over.)

You can preorder your copy here for $6.15

Here's the back copy:

She's beyond his reach...

Gideon Harrow has spent his life in London's dark underworld-and he wants out. A thief and a con, he plans one last heist to finally win his freedom. But when everything goes wrong, he finds himself at the tender mercies of one of Society's most untouchable women-Lady Susanna Derring.

...and out of her depth.

Susanna has spent her life in London's glittering ton, under the thumb of a domineering mother-and she wants out. When a wickedly charming rogue lands at her feet, she jumps at the chance to experience life before it's too late. But as she descends into London's underworld, she finds that nothing- not even Gideon-is as it seems. As excitement turns to danger, Susanna must decide what price she's willing to pay...for the love of a reformed thief.

The second book I want to tell you about today is Brenda Novak's new one, The Secret Sister. This one has a lot of mystery and intrigue, with a complicated romance mixed in.

Maisey is getting a divorce, she's got writer's block, and her brother tried to commit suicide.  Hoping to help things, she goes home to Fairham Island.  Talk about family issues! Her mother is controlling and critical, so Maisey decides to stay at her family's bungalow where she has great memories of her dad before he died.  It was damaged by a hurricane, though, so it needs work, but Maisey doesn't care. Anywhere her mother isn't, is where Maisey wants to be.  The only problem is, the guy working to restore the bungalow is Rafe Romero, a guy she had a fling with in high school. So, she's kind of between a rock and hard place, but chooses to face Rafe, rather than her mother.

Rafe just wants to keep the job and be able to care for his daughter (who was my favorite character I think! Laney was adorable.)  Maisey complicates that plan, but he's determined to show her he's not the person she remembers.  Before he has much of a chance, though, he comes across a box of old photographs hidden inside a wall and that starts off a chain of events that takes Maisey back into the past where some people don't want to go.

The mystery as to what happened to the secret sister was well done and had a lot of twists and turns. I was grateful there wasn't anything gory, just suspenseful and it kept me turning pages. I really enjoyed the ending and am looking forward to the second book in the series.  (For my gentle readers, there are some sexual situations to skip over, so be aware of that.)

You can get your copy here for $8.99

Here's the back copy:

Did she once have a sister? Has her mother lied all these years? Why?

After a painful divorce, Maisey Lazarow returns to Fairham, the small island off the North Carolina coast where she grew up. She goes there to heal—and to help her brother, Keith, a deeply troubled man who's asked her to come home. But she refuses to stay in the family house. The last person she wants to see is the wealthy, controlling mother she escaped years ago.

Instead, she finds herself living next door to someone else she'd prefer to avoid—Rafe Romero, the wild, reckless boy to whom she lost her virginity at sixteen. He's back on the island, and to her surprise, he's raising a young daughter alone. Maisey's still attracted to him, but her heart's too broken to risk…

Then something even more disturbing happens. She discovers a box of photographs that evoke distant memories of a little girl, a child Keith remembers, too. Maisey believes the girl must've been their sister, but their mother claims there was no sister.

Maisey's convinced that child existed. So where is she now?